Love knows no race or boundaries. You can fall in love with someone unexpectedly despite a language barrier or vastly different backgrounds. Getting engaged is the natural next step when you realize that you have found the person you want to be with for the rest of your life.
If they live in another country, you may want to bring them to the United States so that you can live together after your marriage. Unfortunately, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) tends to carefully scrutinize any request for K-1 fiance visas, as they want to avoid potential abuses of this visa program.
There are certain ways that you can prepare ahead of time to validate your relationship and engagement when you apply for a visa for your betrothed.
Keep those special little souvenirs
Do you tuck away the receipts from all of your dates or take a selfie every time you go out for dinner? Your personal memories won’t do much to prove that you have dated each other, but photographs and receipts can show that you have engaged in a long-term romance. The older and more in-depth the verifiable records of your romance are, the easier it is to prove you have a legitimate relationship.
Share the love with your family
One of the easiest ways to validate a romantic relationship in the eyes of the USCIS is to prove that you and your fiance have held yourself out as a couple to your communities and families.
Photographs of you at one another’s family get-togethers and even public social media posts sharing stories about your relationship or news of your engagement can help you.
Get on the same page about the big things before you apply
Interviews are an important part of the fiance visa process. If you have completely different answers about your living situation or your hopes for children, that may undermine how strong your relationship looks to outsiders.
If you have already talked about matters like where you want to live or how big your family will be, you will present a united front to the USCIS when answering personal questions during your interviews instead of contradicting each other.
Understanding how to help demonstrate your relationship in the real world can make it easier for you to bring your fiance to the United States on a visa.