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The International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA) and US Immigration from Thailand

By Benjamin Hart

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 02Oct2008 Word count: 703 Viewed: 1150 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

Many people looking to sponsor a Thai fiancée or spouse for a visa to the United States come into contact with a strange acronym: IMBRA. IMBRA stands for the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act and, at first glance, it would not seem to effect immigration for a Thai fiancée that did not meet her US Citizen soon-to-be spouse through a marriage broker. However, IMBRA has had many critical and lasting ramifications for those looking to bring a Thai loved one to the United States on a K Visa.

What is IMBRA and why was it Enacted?

There are many aspects to IMBRA. In fact, the act's primary purpose seems to be monitoring international marriage brokerage firms, but for our purposes we will focus specifically on the effects this act has on US Immigration. IMBRA requires all U.S. Citizens petitioning for a K1 Fiancée or K3 Spouse visa to submit more information regarding personal history to USCIS and the US State Department than was previously required. Also the IMBRA legislation establishes limitations on the number of petitions for K visas one may file on behalf of a Thai loved one. Also, the Act lays out restrictions on how many K Visa petitions one may file for within a certain period of time.

Apparently lawmakers felt that too many people were abusing the K Visa system; namely, the right of a US Citizen to petition for an unlimited number of K1 Visas.

How many K1 Fiancée Visas can a US Citizen obtain for a Thai Fiancée?

As of July 2006, the US government has placed limitations on filing K Visa petitions, including the petition form for the K-1 Fiancée Visa: the I-129(f). The legislation has two restrictions: a limitation on the number of petitions that may be filed and a limitation on how many may be filed within a certain period of time. USCIS currently construes Section 832(a) (2) of the IMBRA to mean that some US Citizens are not entitled to file a K Visa petition as a matter of right. Thus, if a US Citizen has ever filed for 2 or more K Visas that were granted approval, then a waiver from The Department of Homeland Security (USCIS) must be obtained before approval will be granted on a subsequent K Visa request. At the same time, if in the past twenty four months a US Citizen filed a K Visa petition which gained approval, then that US Citizen must hold off from filing another K Visa petition until another twenty four month period has transpired. Otherwise, the US Citizen must obtain a waiver from the Department of Homeland Security (USCIS) before the US Citizen can effectively file for another K visa.

Therefore, if a US Citizen has filed for two or more K1 Fiancée Visas in his or her lifetime, then they must obtain a waiver to file for another K-1 Visa for a Thai Fiancée. This is also true if the US citizen has filed for a K1 Visa within 24 month prior to the latest filing.

Does the IMBRA affect Immigrant Travel Visas to the USA?

The IMBRA only covers the non-immigrant visas specifically the K Visas. Therefore a person could theoretically file for as many Immigrant visas as he or she likes. However, with the wait time for an Immigrant Visa being approximately 1 year at the time of this writing, the goal of the legislation; namely, prevention of frivolous K Visa petitions seems to have been met. For more about the IMBRA and how it could effect your Thai Fiancee's K Visa Petition, check out:

http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/IMBRA072106.pdf

Thanks for Reading,

Benjamin W. Hart This information is made available to provide general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide legal advice about specific situations or problems. By using this site and the information contained herein the reader understands that there is no attorney-client relationship or express or implied contract between the reader and the author. The information contained herein should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your jurisdiction.

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