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Explore visasI-129FFull guide

K-1 / K-2Fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen

For the foreign fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen who plans to come to the United States and marry within 90 days of arrival, and for the fiancé(e)'s unmarried children under 21 (K-2).

At a glance

How you apply
The U.S. citizen files Form I-129F with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Once it is approved, you apply for the K-1 visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate, generally the one where you live
Checked Oct 18, 2026[1]
The 90-day rule
You must marry the U.S. citizen who filed for you within 90 days after you are admitted on the K-1 visa. K-1 and K-2 status expires automatically after 90 days and cannot be extended High confidence
Checked Oct 18, 2026[1,2]
What the visa gives you
One entry while the visa is valid (up to 6 months). After a wedding within the 90 days, you may apply for a green card from inside the U.S. on Form I-485
Checked Oct 18, 2026[1]
Children
Your unmarried children under 21 may be eligible for K-2 visas without a separate petition; the U.S. citizen must list them on Form I-129F High confidence
Checked Oct 18, 2026[1,3]
Work
K-1 status allows work during your authorized stay, but you first need a work permit (Employment Authorization Document, EAD) from Form I-765. Filed right after you arrive, it is valid only until 90 days after entry; you can also file it with Form I-485 High confidence
Checked Oct 18, 2026[1,3,4]
Main fees
Form I-129F: $675 (Form G-1055, edition 10/07/26). K visa application: $265 per person, paid to the State Department (Code of Federal Regulations, 22 CFR 22.1). Green card and work permit fees come later; see Fees
Checked Oct 18, 2026[5,6]

What the K-1 visa is

The K-1 visa, also known as the fiancé(e) visa, is a nonimmigrant visa for the foreign fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen. It lets you travel to the United States and marry the U.S. citizen who petitioned for you within 90 days of arrival. Eligible children of K-1 applicants receive K-2 visas.[1,7]

High confidence K visas are nonimmigrant visas, but the State Department processes them much like immigrant visas. The consular officer decides, as far as practicable, whether you qualify as if you were applying for an immigrant visa, except that at the visa stage you are exempt from the vaccination requirement and the labor certification requirement.[8,9]

K-1 and K-2: the official classes

Official classes from 22 CFR 41.12; the section of law is in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Who each class covers is from USCIS and 8 CFR 214.2(k).
SymbolOfficial classSection of lawWho it covers
K1Fiancé(e) of United States CitizenINA 101(a)(15)(K)(i)The foreign fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen who is the beneficiary of an approved Form I-129F
K2Child of Fiancé(e) of U.S. CitizenINA 101(a)(15)(K)(iii)An unmarried child under 21 of the K-1 who accompanies or follows to join the K-1, without a separate petition
High confidenceChecked Oct 18, 2026[1,3,10]

Who qualifies

  • The petitioner is a U.S. citizen, and the two of you intend to marry each other within 90 days of your admission to the U.S. on a K-1 visa. The marriage must be valid: you both have a bona fide intent to establish a life together, and the marriage is not for the sole purpose of getting an immigration benefit.[1]
  • High confidence You are both legally free to marry: you are legally able to marry in the United States, and any previous marriage of either of you was legally ended by divorce, death or annulment. The State Department adds that you must have been free to marry when the petition was filed and must have remained so; a petition filed while either of you was still married cannot be the basis for a visa, even if that marriage has since ended.[1,7]
  • You and the U.S. citizen met in person within the 2 years immediately before the petition was filed. USCIS may waive this, as a matter of discretion, only if meeting would cause extreme hardship to the U.S. citizen or would violate strict and long-established customs of your foreign culture or social practice; for the customs waiver, the U.S. citizen must also show that all other parts of the traditional arrangements have been or will be met. Without the meeting or a waiver, the petition is denied, but a new petition can be filed once you have met in person.[3]Whether this applies to you depends on the facts; an immigration attorney can apply the rule to them.
  • Limits on the petitioner. The State Department's manual states that under the International Marriage Broker Regulation Act (IMBRA), absent an IMBRA waiver, USCIS may not approve a petition from a U.S. citizen who has filed two or more earlier fiancé(e) or spouse petitions, or who had such a petition, filed within the previous 2 years, approved. Under the Adam Walsh Act, a U.S. citizen convicted of a specified offense against a minor cannot file a K petition unless the Secretary of Homeland Security, in their sole and unreviewable discretion, determines that the citizen poses no risk to you.[7]Whether this applies to you depends on the facts; an immigration attorney can apply the rule to them.

What goes with Form I-129F

  • Proof that the petitioner is a U.S. citizen: a copy of a birth certificate issued by a civil authority showing birth in the United States, a naturalization or citizenship certificate, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (Form FS-240) or an unexpired U.S. passport; or an original statement from a U.S. consular officer verifying that the petitioner is a U.S. citizen with a valid passport.[11]
  • Proof that any previous marriage of either of you legally ended (final divorce decree, annulment order or death certificate of the prior spouse); one color passport-style photo of each of you taken within 30 days of filing; evidence of any legal name change; and, if it applies, evidence supporting an IMBRA waiver.[11]
  • Evidence that you both have a bona fide intention to marry and intend to marry within 90 days of your K-1 admission, and evidence that you met in person within 2 years before filing (or evidence for the waiver). Any document in a foreign language, for example one issued in Chinese, needs a full English translation with the translator's certification that it is complete and accurate and that the translator is competent to translate into English.[11]

From petition to visa

  1. File Form I-129F

    High confidence The U.S. citizen files Form I-129F with USCIS in the United States, at the USCIS Dallas lockbox, including when the U.S. citizen is abroad. A K petition cannot be filed with, or approved or denied by, a consular officer or an immigration officer stationed abroad.[7,11]

  2. USCIS decides

    USCIS reviews the petition and may mail a Request for Evidence (RFE) if it needs more. If eligibility is established, USCIS approves Form I-129F and sends it to the State Department's National Visa Center (NVC), which forwards it to the U.S. embassy or consulate where you will apply, generally the one where you live. Otherwise USCIS denies the petition and gives the reasons.[1]

  3. Approval lasts 4 months

    High confidence An approved petition is valid for 4 months from the date of USCIS's decision. A USCIS director or a consular officer may revalidate an expired petition for 4 months from the date of revalidation, on finding that you are both free to marry and intend to marry each other within 90 days of your entry; under State Department guidance, a consular officer may revalidate it any number of times. The approval ends automatically if the U.S. citizen dies or withdraws the petition in writing before you arrive in the United States.[3,7]

  4. Visa application and medical exam

    You file Form DS-160, the online nonimmigrant visa application, and present a valid passport, your birth certificate, police certificates (if you are 16 or older, where obtainable, for the countries and places the rules list), proof of your relationship to the petitioner at the interview, evidence that any prior marriage of yours ended (if the petition does not show it was already submitted), and the report of your medical exam by a panel physician. Each accompanying child needs a DS-160, a valid passport (or inclusion in a parent's passport), a birth certificate and a medical exam, plus police certificates if the child is 16 or older.[7]

  5. Interview

    High confidence The consular officer interviews you to decide eligibility as if you were applying for an immigrant visa as an immediate relative. You give a sworn statement that you are able and intend to conclude a valid marriage with the petitioner within 90 days of arrival. The officer must tell you about any criminal background or protection-order information on the petitioner that USCIS reported with the approved petition, and give you time to decide whether to go ahead and whether you still intend to marry the petitioner within 90 days of entering the United States.[7,9]

  6. Visa and arrival

    If the officer grants the K-1 visa, it is valid for up to 6 months for a single entry, and you seek admission at a U.S. port of entry while it is valid. A visa is not a promise of admission: a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer at the port of entry makes the final decision. If the consular officer does not find the relationship to be bona fide, no visa is issued and the petition goes back to USCIS.[1]

Fees

USCIS fees from Form G-1055, edition 10/07/26; the visa fee from 22 CFR 22.1. Which rows apply depends on your case, for example on whether you work or travel before your green card is approved. Online fees apply only when USCIS accepts that form online from you: online Form I-485 filing is offered to certain applicants, and advance parole for a pending I-485 can be filed online only if the I-485 receipt number begins with IOE.
ItemAmountWhen it applies
Form I-129F (USCIS)$675The U.S. citizen's petition for a fiancé(e)
K visa application (State Department)$265 per personYou and each child applying for a K visa
Form I-765 work permit after K-1 admission$520 paper / $470 onlineGeneral fee for an initial Employment Authorization Document (EAD), when no reduced fee applies
Form I-485 green card application$1,440 paper / $1,390 onlineAfter the marriage. A child under 14 filing together with one parent's I-485: $950 paper / $900 online
Form I-765 with a pending I-485$260If the I-485 was filed with a fee on or after April 1, 2024, and is still pending
Form I-131 advance parole$630 paper / $580 onlineTravel abroad while your I-485 is pending
Form I-864 affidavit of support; Form I-693 medical exam report$0No USCIS filing fee for these forms
Form I-751$750 paper / $700 onlineRemoving conditions on residence ($0 when filed with a waiver of the joint filing requirement based on battery or extreme cruelty)
Checked Oct 18, 2026[5,6,12,13]

Your first 90 days in the U.S.

High confidence K-1 and K-2 status expires automatically after 90 days, and K-1 and K-2 nonimmigrants cannot get an extension of stay. If you do not marry, you and your children generally must leave the U.S. at the end of the 90 days; staying is a violation of immigration law that may result in removal (deportation) and could affect future eligibility for immigration benefits. If you marry the U.S. citizen after the 90 days, they may file Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, for you instead.[1,14]

High confidence Your K-1 status authorizes you to work for the period of your authorized stay, but to be employed you must apply, with a fee, for an Employment Authorization Document on Form I-765. If you file right after admission, the work permit is valid only until 90 days after your entry. You can instead file Form I-765 together with Form I-485 after the wedding.[1,3,4]

Green card after the wedding

To adjust status based on your K-1 admission, you must properly file Form I-485 while physically present in the U.S.; you must have been inspected and admitted on a K-1 visa; within 90 days of that admission you must have entered into a bona fide marriage with the U.S. citizen who filed your Form I-129F; no applicable bar to adjustment can apply; you must be admissible (or eligible for a waiver or other relief); and you must merit USCIS's favorable discretion. If you marry the petitioner within 90 days of your K-1 admission, you are treated as an immediate relative, so an immigrant visa is always available to you.[2]

High confidence Under 8 CFR 245.1, a K-1 cannot adjust status unless the application is based on a marriage, within 90 days of entry, to the U.S. citizen who petitioned for you. If you do not marry that U.S. citizen, USCIS says you generally cannot apply for a green card in another category. The limited exceptions: if you are granted U nonimmigrant status (victims of qualifying criminal activity) or T nonimmigrant status (victims of a severe form of trafficking in persons) while in the U.S., you may apply in any category that applies to you. You may also leave the U.S. to seek a green card on a different basis.[2,15]Whether this applies to you depends on the facts; an immigration attorney can apply the rule to them.

USCIS lists what a K-1 applicant should send with Form I-485, including: a copy of the Form I-797 approval notice for your I-129F, your marriage certificate, two passport-style photos, a government photo ID, your birth certificate, the passport pages with your K-1 visa and your admission stamp, Form I-94, and, if required, Form I-864 or I-864EZ (affidavit of support) and Form I-693 (medical exam and vaccination record). If you had an immigration medical exam before you arrived, you may not need another one, but you must still show that you met the vaccination requirements.[2]

To get a green card you must be admissible. As a K-1 nonimmigrant, all grounds of inadmissibility in INA 212(a) apply to you except the labor certification ground (INA 212(a)(5)). If you used Form I-601 to get a waiver for your K-1 visa, that waiver is valid only if you married the U.S. citizen who filed your I-129F; if you do not marry them, you remain inadmissible.[2]Whether this applies to you depends on the facts; an immigration attorney can apply the rule to them.

High confidence You and your spouse will usually be required to appear for an interview. If you have been married less than 2 years when Form I-485 is approved, USCIS grants permanent residence on a conditional basis for 2 years under INA 216; to remove the conditions, you file Form I-751 in the 90 days before the green card expires.[1,2]

Children (K-2)

High confidence Your unmarried child under 21 may be eligible for a K-2 visa without a separate petition, but the U.S. citizen must list the child on Form I-129F. The child must still be unmarried and under 21 to be admitted as a K-2, and may travel with you or after you, but not before you.[1,3]

A child following to join you later can be given K-2 status even after you have married and become a permanent resident, but the State Department's final date for issuing the K-2 visa is one year from the date your K-1 visa was issued. After that year, the U.S. citizen, or you once you are a permanent resident, must file an immediate relative or second preference petition for the child.[7]

High confidence If you married the U.S. citizen within 90 days of your K-1 admission, your K-2 children may apply for green cards on Form I-485; USCIS says they should apply at the same time as you or after you. They must remain unmarried to be eligible. A child who was under 21 when admitted as a K-2 does not age out of green card eligibility.[2,16]

Common mistakes

  • High confidence Leaving a child or a prior marriage off the petition. Children must be named on Form I-129F to come as K-2. The State Department lists children not named in the petition and an undisclosed prior marriage, even one that has ended, among discrepancies that might lead the consular officer to question whether the relationship is bona fide.[1,7]
  • Leaving the U.S. while Form I-485 is pending without an advance parole document. Generally, that means you have abandoned the application. Check Form I-131 and its instructions before you travel.[2]
  • Sending Form I-129F with pages from different editions, unsigned, or with required fields blank (such as the classification sought, family names, dates of birth and the petitioner's mailing address). USCIS may reject a form with mixed editions and rejects unsigned forms and forms missing those fields. It also does not accept non-paper items such as DVDs or thumb drives (photos or copies of them are accepted), and you should not send DNA samples or graphic photos of childbirth or intimate relations.[11]

Recent policy changes

Recent policy changes

Official

Updates

Ask WELIVEINUSA Visa

Ask WELIVEINUSA Visa

Answers come from our sourced database and your own timeline, sorted into fact, public data, inference and unknown. No AI model is used in this version, so questions outside what we cover get an honest "not covered".

Questions people ask

Can I come on a visitor visa and get married instead?

The K category does not stop a fiancé(e) from getting a visa in another classification if they qualify for it. The State Department's example: someone coming to marry a U.S. citizen may be classified B-2 (visitor) if it is established that they will leave the United States after the marriage. Whether this fits your plans depends on the facts; an immigration attorney can apply the rules to them.[7]

Can I leave the U.S. and come back before the wedding?

High confidence The K-1 visa is for a single entry. If you have used it and go back abroad before the wedding, a consular officer may issue a new K visa if you both still intend and are free to marry, with validity ending no later than the 90th day after your first admission. You pay a new visa fee and file a new DS-160, and you must return and marry within 90 days of the original admission. If you have not married within those 90 days, the petition is no longer valid and no new K-1 visa can be issued.[1,7]

Does the K-1 visa require Form I-864 (affidavit of support)?

High confidence Not for the visa. Like any visa applicant, you must show you are not likely to become a public charge, but the State Department says Form I-864 cannot be required at the K visa stage. You may submit a letter from the petitioner's employer or evidence that you will support yourself, and the officer may ask for Form I-134. Form I-864 or I-864EZ comes later, with your Form I-485, if required.[2,7]

How is the K-1 different from the K-3?

High confidence K-1 is for a fiancé(e) who will marry in the U.S. K-3 is for the spouse of a U.S. citizen who has filed Form I-130; the citizen uses the same Form I-129F, with no fee for a K-3, so the spouse can wait in the U.S. while the I-130 is processed. Once the I-130 is approved, the spouse is no longer eligible for K-3, so the State Department rarely issues K-3 visas.[11,17]

How long does the process take?

High confidence It varies by case. USCIS processes fiancé(e) petitions in the order it receives them and posts current Form I-129F processing times on its Check Processing Times page. For the visa stage, the law requires the State Department to have a policy of processing fiancé(e) visas within 30 days of receiving the necessary information from you and from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Department expects visa sections to strive to meet it.[1,7]

Related categories

Content last reviewed: Oct 18, 2026 · General information, not legal advice.

Sources

  1. 1.Visas for Fiancé(e)s of U.S. Citizens - USCISUSCIS · Agency page · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  2. 2.Green Card for Fiancé(e) of U.S. Citizen - USCISUSCIS · Agency page · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  3. 3.8 CFR 214.2(k) - Spouses, FianceCFR (Office of the Federal Register) · Regulation · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  4. 4.8 CFR 274a.12 - Classes of aliens authorized to accept employmenteCFR (Office of the Federal Register) · Regulation · Checked Sep 27, 2026
  5. 5.Fee Schedule (Form G-1055) - USCISUSCIS · Form / instructions · Checked Oct 12, 2026
  6. 6.22 CFR 22.1 - Schedule of fees for consular services (Department of State)eCFR (Office of the Federal Register) · Regulation · Checked Sep 27, 2026
  7. 7.9 FAM 502.7 OTHER IV AND QUASI-IV CLASSIFICATIONSU.S. Department of State (Foreign Affairs Manual) · USCIS Policy Manual · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  8. 8.9 FAM 402.7 FIANCÉ(E) AND OTHER NIV FAMILY MEMBERS PROCESSED AS IF IMMIGRANTS – K AND N VISASU.S. Department of State (Foreign Affairs Manual) · USCIS Policy Manual · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  9. 9.22 CFR 41.81eCFR (Office of the Federal Register) · Regulation · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  10. 10.22 CFR 41.12eCFR (Office of the Federal Register) · Regulation · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  11. 11.I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé(e) - USCISUSCIS · Form / instructions · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  12. 12.I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust StatusUSCIS · Form / instructions · Checked Oct 12, 2026
  13. 13.I-131, Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents, and Arrival/Departure Records - USCISUSCIS · Form / instructions · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  14. 14.8 CFR 214.1 - Requirements for admission, extension, and maintenance of statuseCFR (Office of the Federal Register) · Regulation · Checked Sep 27, 2026
  15. 15.8 CFR 245.1eCFR (Office of the Federal Register) · Regulation · Checked Oct 18, 2026
  16. 16.Child Status Protection Act (CSPA)USCIS · Agency page · Checked Sep 27, 2026
  17. 17.K-3/K-4 Nonimmigrant Visas - USCISUSCIS · Agency page · Checked Oct 18, 2026