K-1/K-2 Visa Information

The highly technological era we live in has created several different avenues for men and women to meet. Nowadays, instead of being introduced to a person of the opposite sex through family and friends or meeting face to face, more and more people are branching out online, utilizing dating services, and going abroad to seek partners. With increased use of email, the Internet, and other web tools, it is now possible for people to become close without ever physically meeting.

The adage “love conquers all” is more applicable today than ever before. Despite geological, cultural, and political differences, men and women form special bonds with one another. Long separations can negatively affect a relationship, particularly one that has to be maintained by couples living in separate countries. After meeting, it is natural for every couple to want to cohabitate. Often times, couples of different nationalities decide that they want to settle down in the United States.

Based on legality, spouses are given first preference for immigration. However, in certain cultures, men and women are strictly forbidden to marry outside of their ethnicity or religion. Some couples also prefer to marry in the United States rather than in the fiancé/fiancée’s home country. For these groups of people, i.e. U.S. citizens' fiancés who are outside the U.S., the K-1 visa is a good option.

These days, family units can be complicated and untraditional. It is certainly not uncommon to bring in children from a previous marriage or relationship. To account for this, the derivative K-2 visa allows minor children of K-1 holders to also come to the United States while awaiting the marriage of the K-1 parent to the U.S. citizen.

United States law recognizes the need and urgency for such loved ones to be together. Given the multi-national relationships that form between people as well as the complicated nature of families, the K-1/K-2 visa presents the best option for reuniting U.S. citizens with their foreign fiancés/fiancée’s and foreign unmarried children of their fiancés/fiancées.