This Act, referred to as “IMBRA”, was signed into law on January 5, 2006. Immigration regulations under IMBRA prohibit the issuance of a K visa without an approved waiver in two sets of circumstances. The two areas are 1) a petitioner with a criminal conviction for a specified crime, and 2) a petitioner who has previously filed K-1 visa petitions or had a K-1 visa petition approved within the previous two years. IMBRA regulations also prohibit the issuance of a K-3 spousal visa without an approved waiver if the petitioner has criminal convictions as noted above.
Criminal Conviction
This restriction covers various crimes involving violence as well as crimes relating to a controlled substance (drugs) or alcohol. If you believe that there is a possibility that you may come under this section of IMBRA, please give us a call. We will discuss your situation with you and advise you as to whether, in our opinion, your petition will require a waiver and, if so, what the chances are of our waiver request being granted.
Filing Limitations
If you have filed two or more K-1 visa petitions at any time in the past, or previously had a K-1 visa petition approved within two years prior to the filing of the current petition, a waiver must be obtained before your K-1 petition can be approved. By regulation, this provision does not apply to a K-3 spousal visa petition.
If you fall within these restrictions, please call us so that we can assess your situation and make a determination as to whether we believe we can obtain a waiver for your K-1 visa petition.
The fact that you may have criminal convictions or have previously filed a K-1 visa petition for a fiancée(s) will not necessarily prevent us from successfully obtaining a K visa for your fiancée or spouse. While there are certainly no guarantees in these situations, Holmes & Lolly has successfully obtained waivers in many of these cases. If you will call us, one of our attorneys will be glad to discuss your particular situation and give you our best estimate of the chances of our being successful with your K visa petition.
