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pamda54 comments on FIANCE NEEDS ANOTHER VISA??

Fiance visa I am a US citizen and met a Colombian man online 26 months ago. We plan to marry and we just completed the fiance visa process. It really wasn't that bad. I used an immigration attorney but after I've been through the process I don't think it's necessary. We sent the visa petition to USCIS on 2/16/06 by overnight delivery and they received it 2/17/06. They approved my petition on 3/14 and it was then sent to the National Visa Center (State Dept) in RI. About a week later I received notice that my petition had been sent to the American Embassy in Bogota and on 4/5 my fiance received his first set of documents. He sent two forms back and was then sent a second package with additional instructions of what he needed to bring to the interview at the American Embassy and was given an interview date of 6/22. At the end of the interview on 6/22, he was told his visa had been approved and the next day he was able to pick up his passport and visa. This process could have been shortened by 3 weeks since he did procrastinate a few weeks. Before starting this process, I was going to Colombia and get married there but was told by several Colombians and immigration attorneys, the best way to do this was to bring him here on a fiance visa and get married here. I was also told that if we married in Colombia, our government would not recognize the marriage and he would have to remain in Colombia while I came back to the states and started paperwork to bring him over as my husband. I was told by the attorney this is a much longer process than the fiance visa process. As someone who can relate to your situation, I hope this information helps. pamda54