Filing I-130/immigrant visa petition from UK??

[dahlia]

Hello,

Reaching out for some advice, would greatly appreciate any help

I'm a US (dual) citizen living in the UK with my British retired husband and we'd like to move back to the states this year. I currently work for a US contractor here so would like to submit the I-130 petition for an immigrant visa but not sure if I'm able to do it online from here now that the London US Embassy closed their doors to petitions back in 2020?

The USCIS site states I can submit the petition online but does that only mean if I'm currently residing in the US or can I begin the process here? I understand there's a medical and interview portion he would have to complete so wondering if he has to go stateside for this or if it can be completed here in the UK?

If we're not able to begin this process until I'm stateside, would applying for a K-3 visa make more sense so he can reside with me for up to 2yrs while we petition for the immigrant visa? Appreciate your help as I'm unable to find these answers anywhere! Thanks!

Regards, Delilah

[Ticktack]

Hello,

Reaching out for some advice, would greatly appreciate any help

I'm a US (dual) citizen living in the UK with my British retired husband and we'd like to move back to the states this year. I currently work for a US contractor here so would like to submit the I-130 petition for an immigrant visa but not sure if I'm able to do it online from here now that the London US Embassy closed their doors to petitions back in 2020?

The USCIS site states I can submit the petition online but does that only mean if I'm currently residing in the US or can I begin the process here? I understand there's a medical and interview portion he would have to complete so wondering if he has to go stateside for this or if it can be completed here in the UK? The medicals and interview would be done here in the UK, not in the US.

If we're not able to begin this process until I'm stateside, would applying for a K-3 visa make more sense so he can reside with me for up to 2yrs while we petition for the immigrant visa? Appreciate your help as I'm unable to find these answers anywhere! Thanks!

Regards, Delilah

Regardless of what option you go with, US family visas are a very lengthy process. It could take between 18 months to 2 years from starting the process to you the petitioner receiving the I-797 (notice of action).
If memory serves me well, from this point of receipt of the above, it could take another 4 months for the US embassy to call your spouse to come to the embassy for medicals and interview (here in the UK).

He might not be able to work for 3-4 months whilst he does the adjustment of status (when he enters the US).

Brace yourselves for a long time apart.

[dahlia]

Thanks for your reply and appreciate the information! Thankfully we will be together throughout the whole process as I'm currently employed here in England. He's also retired so he won't be working when we both get stateside.

We're both planning on moving to the states together and after much research, it's definitely possible as long as we provide and meet all the necessary requirements/documentation. Here's hoping the process won't be too long! Thx again for your response and all the best to you x

[Ticktack]

Thanks for your reply and appreciate the information! Thankfully we will be together throughout the whole process as I'm currently employed here in England. He's also retired so he won't be working when we both get stateside.

We're both planning on moving to the states together and after much research, it's definitely possible as long as we provide and meet all the necessary requirements/documentation. Here's hoping the process won't be too long! Thx again for your response and all the best to you x

Glad to know you have it all figured out. It would be nice if you could also give some updates from time to time, about the processing timelines. This might help someone else on a later date.

Nothing ever beats first hand experience.