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The K-1 fiancé(e) visa: you must marry within 90 days of entry, and that deadline cannot be extended
If your foreign partner is still abroad, you have two paths: marry first and then file for immigration (I-130), or bring them in first and marry here (K-1). This article covers the latter.
When a K-1 applies
Your foreign partner is abroad and you intend to bring them into the US first and marry here.
The form is I-129F (Petition for Alien Fiancé(e)), filed by the US citizen.
Three key conditions
1. You've met in person within the past two years
There has to be a record of an actual meeting (a waiver route exists, but requires substantial grounds). This condition exists to filter out purely online relationships, so prepare evidence of meeting: flight tickets, accommodation, photos together, entry and exit stamps.
2. You must marry within 90 days of entry
This is a hard deadline and cannot be extended.
Fail to marry in time and they cannot adjust status in the US and lose the basis for lawful presence. There's no grace period and no remedial process.
So as soon as they land, the first thing to do is get a marriage license, not settling in or adjusting to the country, but getting that piece of paper in hand. The license itself also has a waiting period and a validity window (see item 3 of the checklist), which also have to fit inside those 90 days.
3. File the I-485 after marrying
Marriage does not equal legal status. After the wedding, you still need to file I-485 to adjust status before you can get a green card. For travel and work authorization during this period, see item 121 of the checklist, which contains a trap that can get a case treated as abandoned.
K-1 vs I-130
| K-1 | I-130 (already married) | |
|---|---|---|
| Applies when | Not yet married, wanting them here sooner | Already married |
| Speed of entry | Usually faster | Slower |
| Total cost | Higher (I-485 fees still to come after entry) | Simpler |
| Time pressure | Hard 90-day deadline after entry | No such deadline |
A simple test: if you're already married, take the I-130 and don't consider a K-1 because you heard it's fasterK-1 is the path for people who are not married yet.
If you aren't married, the trade-off is "seeing each other sooner" versus "saving money and a deadline." Some people marry abroad or in a third country and then take the I-130; others take the K-1 because they don't want to wait any longer.
Making the 90 days work in practice
What many couples do: after arrival, hold a simple civil ceremony at the county clerk (see item 8 of the checklist) to complete the legal process, and hold a separate wedding for friends and family later.
The advantage of this arrangement is decoupling the legal deadline from wedding planning, so you are never chased by the 90 days because of venue availability.
Fees
USCIS deliberately doesn't publish per-form amounts on its form pages; use the official calculator for current fees. Remember a K-1's total cost has to include the I-485 that follows.
In one line
Already married means I-130; on a K-1, get the marriage license the moment they land, because those 90 days won't wait.