By Art Saborio
Making the decision to meet your foreign fiance is a big deal. It means that you have a made a choice to not only pursue a relationship with her, but have also made the decision to marry. Now it becomes very important to start documenting everything. The documentation process will help prove the relationship is real. Being able to prove your relationship means providing written documented evidence that the relationship existed.
What kind of documentation do you keep? Keep all your boarding passes from your plane trips, phone logs, and Internet emails, receipts while in the Ukraine or Russia. Make yourself a folder with sections. Categorize your trips by creating a naming convention for them. I just named them trip one, two etc. with the date and location. It makes it easier to date your progression and show a time line to the US Government.
Picture taking is very important and one of the best ways to provide proof of your relationship. Actually it is very hard to go through the K1 Visa process without taking some pictures of you and her together. So in a nutshell take lots of pictures while you are there.
Make sure that you take a few pictures in front of something that can prove the location. For example, take a picture in front of a government office or in front of a historical location. If you have a feature that prints the date and time on your pictures, then turn that on and use it for the entire trip.
If you get to meet her family, then take a picture with them. The best kind of picture to have is one with your fiance, mother and father. This is very strong proof that your relationship is valid.
There are some that recommend documenting everything from the first time you start to talk to the girl. I feel that is a waste of time and does nothing to help your chances of getting a Visa. Why should you start to document everything you did with a girl if you have no idea if you really like her or even want to meet her? I recommend starting your documentation when you first decide to meet.
Things like emails, boarding passes, Ukrainian retail receipts, receipts from site seeing tours, phone logs, receipts from money sent to her, receipt for the engagement ring and anything else that had to do with my relationship. You get the idea. The more information you have the better. You want the officer to open your application and have zero doubts. From the first minute of reviewing your application, they should know that you are really in love with your fiance.
Although it does not sound very romantic, it is a necessity if you really want to bring your fiance to the USA. To be honest the entire process of K1 Visa application is not the most romantic thing. It does not lend itself to flexibility or understanding of the relationship. It concentrates on relationship proof which translates to immigration fraud. It also focuses on Homeland security.
