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American Visas from Thailand

By Ben Hart

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 08Jul2009 Word count: 512 Viewed: 349 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

There is a virtual glut of information on the web regarding US Immigration. There is somewhat less when dealing with US Immigration from Thailand. In either case, much of the information floating around the blogosphere and internet is either incomplete or incorrect. This article will attempt to provide clarity and concision regarding US Visas from Thailand.

In the field of US Family Immigration for fiancées or spouses there are basically two major visa categories and one supplemental visa application that can be made. For the Thai-American couple that has yet to legally marry there are really two options: the K-1 visa and the CR-1 Visa. The K-1 visa is a fiancée visa and both parties must be unmarried at the time of the K-1 visa application in order to qualify for the visa. The CR-1 visa is a spouse visa and requires the couple to be married at the time of application.

Both visa categories have their own upsides. In the case of the K-1 visa the upside is the fact that it currently has the fastest processing time of all the family based visas. At the time of this writing, the K-1 visa was taking approximately 6-7 months from application submission to final decision at the US Embassy in Bangkok. The disadvantage of the K-1 visa category is the fact that it does not give the visa holder permanent residence in the USA. Therefore the K-1 visa holder must file an adjustment of status application in order to obtain a green card in the USA. The adjustment of status process requires additional fees, but the K-1 visa conferee may remain in the United States until such time as the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service adjudicates the adjustment petition.

With the CR-1 visa the initial processing time is considerably longer. It generally takes approximately 12 months from application submission until final decision at the Embassy. However, the CR-1 visa grants permanent residence to the Thai spouse from the moment they enter the USA. The visa stamp that the US Immigration officer places in the Thai spouse's passport acts as a temporary green card until the Resident Alien Card (Greencard) is issued.

The K-3 Visa is somewhat less than useful for the couple who is not yet married. The K-3 is a supplemental petition used as an expedited marriage visa. The visa itself has two years of validity, but does not confer permanent residence. It requires the filing of 2 petitions and the Thai spouse has the option of adjusting status in the United States or returning to Thailand for interview and adjudication. The problem with the K-3 for the unmarried couple is the fact that it is slower than the K-1, but still does not confer permanent residence. For this reason most unmarried couples are probably better off choosing either a K-1 or a CR-1 Visa.

(Nothing in this article is to be construed as an alternative to personal legal advice from a licensed attorney. No relationship, attorney-client or otherwise, is formed between the author and reader of this piece.)

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