U.S. Embassies and consulates have been issuing V visas since April 1, 2001. INS published V visa regulations on September 7, 2001. V Visas are for the spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents and allow eligible family members to enter the U.S. as nonimmigrants and wait until their immigration process is completed. To be eligible for a V visa, the applicant must be the beneficiary of an immigrant visa petition (I-130) that was filed by a Lawful Permanent Resident on or before December 21, 2000 under the Family 2A Preference category. The child of a petitioned-for spouse or a child beneficiary is also eligible for such status if he or she is accompanying or following to join the applicant. The I-130 immigrant visa petition must have been pending for three or more years or the visa petition must have been approved and three years must have passed since the date of filing. Additionally, an immigrant visa number must not be yet available to the beneficiary or, if an immigrant visa number is available, his or her application for an immigrant visa abroad or application for adjustment of status in the U.S. must still be pending.

An eligible spouse of a lawful permanent resident will be classified as V-1. An eligible child of a lawful permanent resident will be classified asV-2. The child of either, if eligible to accompany or follow to join the principal applicant, will be classified as V-3. Anyone eligible for V nonimmigrant status may apply for a V visa at a U.S. Embassy or consulate abroad or, if already in the U.S., he or she may apply to the U.S. INS for V status. A beneficiary granted V nonimmigrant status may obtain employment authorization. Eligible applicants may enter and work in the U.S. and continue to reside here while they wait for their immigrant visa petition to be approved, or their priority date to be reached so that they can file for adjustment of status or apply for an immigrant visa.

Note:

• Applicants are still eligible for V visas even if their petitions are not yet approved by INS;
  
• V-2 and V-3 visas may issued up until the date before the applicant turns 21 years old and the visa validity will be limited to the day before he or she turns 21. Those who enter the U.S. as V-2 or V-3 nonimmgirants lose their legal status and work authorization once they turn 21. If their V status expires, they will fall out of status unless they have made a timely application to change to another nonimmigrant category or have found another way to maintain lawful status in the U.S. A beneficiary who remains in the U.S. after the expiration of his or her period of lawful admission in V status without finding another lawful status begins to accrue unlawful presence and is subject to removal; and,
  
• Although the State Department has instructed beneficiaries to contact the U.S. Embassy or consulate in their country of residence concerning local application procedures, there are also instructions requiring applicants to apply at the post which has been designated on the I-130 visa petition. Applicants who reside in a country different from that in which they were born may wish to contact the post at which they wish to apply for a V visa to confirm that they are eligible to apply at that particular consular office.

K Visas are for the spouses and children of U.S. citizens to enter the U.S. as nonimmigrants and adjust to immigrant status in the U.S. at a later date. There are three essential requirements for K nonimmigrant status:
1. The applicant must already be married to a U.S. citizen who has filed an I-130 visa petition on his or her behalf with the INS;
2. The same U.S. citizen spouse must be petitioning on that applicant's behalf to obtain a nonimmigrant visa; and,
3. The applicant must be seeking to enter the U.S. to await the "availability of an immigrant visa".

United States citizen spouses and children will be designated as K-3 and K-4, respectively. The U.S. citizen spouse must have filed a K visa petition in the U.S. and the visa must be issued by a consular officer outside of the U.S. There is no mechanism for adjustment or change to K visa status from inside the U.S. Additionally, if the marriage between the U.S. citizen and the alien beneficiary occurred outside the U.S., the K visa must be issued by the Embassy or Consulate in the country where the marriage occurred.

K visa status is available to those who are the beneficiary of I-130 petitions filed
before, on, or after December 21, 2000. K visa status will terminate thirty days after the denial of: an immigrant visa petition, the visa application based on a successful visa petition, or an application for adjustment of status.

Although the U.S. citizen petitioner must have filed a Form I-130 visa petition
with the INS on behalf of his or her spouse seeking K-3 nonimmigrant classification, the visa petition need not yet have been approved. INS recommends that petitioners whose alien spouses wish to obtain K-3 visas and later adjust status in the U.S. state this intent on question 21 on the I-130.

Note:

• K-3/4 applicants are subject to the three and ten year bars to re-entry under INA § 212(a)(9)(B);
  
• K-3 visa holders will be admitted to the U.S. for a period of two years. K-4 visa holders will be admitted for two years or until the day before the alien's 21 birthday, whichever period is shorter;
  
• Nonimmigrants cannot change from another nonimmigrant status to K status while in the U.S. nor can K-3/4 nonimmigrants change to another nonimmigrant class while in the U.S.;
  
• U.S. citizens whose spouses and children who are already in the U.S. do not fall within the eligibility rules for K classification - such beneficiaries must obtain a K visa and enter the U.S.;
  
• K-3/4 nonimmigrants will get work authorization upon the approval of a Form I-765. A K status holder seeking to renew employment authorization must show that he or she is pursuing the immigration process and still meet the requirements of the classification by virtue of having an application or petition awaiting approval;
  
• K-3/4 nonimmigrants may travel outside the U.S. and return using their K visas even if they have filed for adjustment of status before departing the U.S.;
  
• K visa holders are not subject to the Affidavit of Support requirements but will be required to file a Form I-864 when filing for adjustment of status or an immigrant visa; and,
  
• Applications for K-3/4 status or for employment authorization for those in K status must be sent to: U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, P.O. Box 7218, Chicago, Illinois 60680-7218.

This law is not an amnesty statute. Among other things, it does the following:

• Extends INA §245(i) to April 30, 2001. Beneficiaries of approved family petitions or labor certifications can file for adjustment of status, although where the application was filed after January 14, 1998 the beneficiary must prove physical presence in the U.S. on December 21, 2000.
• Authorizes a new V visa for the spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents who have been waiting for an immigrant visa. The petition must have been filed on or before December 21, 2000 and have been pending or approved for at least 3 years. V visa holders can enter the U.S. and obtain work authorization or, if already in the U.S., to file to adjust status.
• Authorizes the issuance of a K visa, usually reserved to fiancées and their minor children, to the spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens who have been waiting for an immigrant visa. K visa holders can enter the U.S. and obtain work authorization.