Complete Guide to Form I-129F
A complete field-by-field guide to the Petition for Alien Fiancé(e), including K-1 and K-3 classification, petitioner and beneficiary information, relationship history, IMBRA questions, criminal history, signatures, supporting evidence and filing preparation.
Before You Start: Prepare Your Records
Form I-129F is used by a qualifying U.S. citizen to petition for a fiancé(e) for K-1 classification or, in applicable circumstances, a spouse for K-3 classification. Prepare identity, citizenship, relationship and immigration records before completing the petition.
K-1 is for a qualifying fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen. K-3 is for a qualifying spouse when the petitioner has filed Form I-130 and seeks the applicable K-3 classification. All sample information below is fictional.
Classification Requested
Classification for the Beneficiary
Select the classification that actually matches your legal relationship and filing basis.
If Filing for K-3, Have You Filed Form I-130?
Information About You — Petitioner
Alien Registration Number — A-Number
Enter your A-Number if USCIS has assigned one. If you do not have one, follow the form instructions.
USCIS Online Account Number
Enter your USCIS Online Account Number if one has been assigned. This is different from an A-Number or USCIS receipt number.
U.S. Social Security Number
Enter your U.S. Social Security Number if you have one. Do not enter a foreign identification or tax number.
Your Full Legal Name
Enter Family Name, Given Name and Middle Name according to your current legal identity documents.
GIVEN NAME: JOHN
MIDDLE NAME: ALEXANDER
Other Names Used
Provide all other names you have used, including aliases, maiden names and nicknames.
Petitioner Address History
Mailing Address
Provide your current mailing address, including In Care Of Name where applicable, street address, apartment/suite/floor, city, state, ZIP Code, province, postal code and country.
Is Your Mailing Address the Same as Your Physical Address?
Physical Address History — Last Five Years
Provide your physical addresses for the last five years, whether inside or outside the United States. Enter your current address first.
Petitioner Employment History
Employer 1 — Current or Most Recent
Provide the employer's full name and address, your occupation, employment start date, and employment end date where applicable.
Employer 2
Provide the additional employment needed to complete the five-year employment history.
Information About Your Parents
Parent 1
Provide Parent 1's full legal name, date of birth, city or town and country of birth, and current city/town and country of residence.
Parent 2
Provide the same required information for Parent 2.
Previous Marriage Information
Have You Been Previously Married?
Previous Spouse Name and Marriage End Date
Provide each previous spouse's legal name and the date the marriage legally ended. Use Part 8 when more space is required.
Petitioner Citizenship Information
How Did You Obtain U.S. Citizenship?
Certificate of Naturalization or Citizenship
If applicable, provide the certificate number, place of issuance and date of issuance requested by the form.
Previous Form I-129F Filings
Have You Previously Filed Form I-129F?
Final Action on Previous Petition
Report the actual result, such as approved, denied, revoked or withdrawn. Use additional information space when more than one prior filing exists.
Petitioner's Children Under 18
Do You Have Any Children Under 18 Years of Age?
Places You Have Resided Since Age 18
U.S. States and Foreign Countries
List all U.S. states and foreign countries where you have lived since reaching 18 years of age. Use Part 8 if additional space is needed.
Information About Your Beneficiary
Beneficiary Full Legal Name
Provide the beneficiary's Family Name, Given Name and Middle Name.
GIVEN NAME: EMMA
MIDDLE NAME: SOPHIE
Beneficiary A-Number
Enter the beneficiary's A-Number if one exists. If no A-Number exists, follow the form instruction.
Beneficiary U.S. Social Security Number
Enter the beneficiary's U.S. Social Security Number if applicable. Do not enter a foreign identification number.
Date of Birth
Enter the beneficiary's actual date of birth.
Sex
Current Marital Status
Choose the beneficiary's actual current legal marital status. For a K-1 petition, both parties must be legally free to marry at the required time.
Place of Birth
Provide the beneficiary's city/town and country of birth. If the beneficiary is stateless, follow the form instructions.
Other Names Used
Provide all other names used by the beneficiary, including aliases, maiden names and nicknames.
Beneficiary Address History
Beneficiary Mailing Address
Provide the beneficiary's current mailing address. If the beneficiary has a U.S. mailing address, provide it where appropriate.
Beneficiary Physical Address History — Last Five Years
Provide the beneficiary's physical addresses for the last five years, inside or outside the United States. Enter the current address first where applicable.
Beneficiary Employment History
Current or Most Recent Employer
Provide employer name and address, the beneficiary's occupation, employment start date, and end date where applicable.
Previous Employer
Provide additional employment needed to complete the required five-year employment history.
Beneficiary Parent Information
Beneficiary Parent 1
Provide the parent's full name, date of birth, place of birth, and current residence information requested by the form.
Beneficiary Parent 2
Provide the same required information for the other parent.
Beneficiary Previous Marriage Information
Has the Beneficiary Been Previously Married?
Previous Spouse and Termination Date
Enter each previous spouse's full legal name and the date the marriage ended. Use Part 8 for additional marriages.
Beneficiary Children
Children of the Beneficiary
Provide each child's full name, country of birth, date of birth, and current address information as requested.
Eligible children may seek the appropriate derivative K classification. A separate I-129F is generally not filed solely to classify those derivative children.
Beneficiary U.S. Entry Information
Has the Beneficiary Ever Been in the United States?
Class of Admission
Enter the immigration status/class used for the relevant U.S. admission where requested.
Form I-94 Number
Enter the actual I-94 Arrival/Departure Record number if applicable.
Arrival Date and Authorized Stay
Provide the date of arrival and expiration of authorized stay shown by the applicable immigration record.
Passport / Travel Document Information
Provide passport or travel-document number, country of issuance and expiration date where requested.
Relationship and In-Person Meeting
Is Your Fiance(e) Related to You?
Have You and Your Fiance(e) Met in Person During the Two Years Before Filing?
Generally, the petitioner and fiancé(e) must have met in person during the two years immediately before filing, unless a qualifying exemption applies.
Describe Your In-Person Meeting or Exemption Request
Describe dates, places and circumstances accurately. For an exemption request, explain why the requirement would violate strict and long-established customs or would result in extreme hardship to the petitioner, as applicable.
International Marriage Broker Information
Did You Meet the Beneficiary Through an International Marriage Broker?
IMB Name and Contact Information
Where applicable provide: broker name, organization, website, street address, city, province, postal code, country, and telephone number.
Beneficiary's Written Consent
When required, attach the signed written consent obtained by the broker authorizing release of the beneficiary's personal contact information to you.
Consular Processing Information
U.S. Embassy or Consulate
Enter the city/town and country of the U.S. Embassy or Consulate where the beneficiary is expected to apply for the K visa.
Criminal and Protective Order Information
These questions apply to the petitioner and must be answered carefully.
Protection or Restraining Orders
Answer whether you have ever been subject to a temporary or permanent protection or restraining order, whether civil or criminal.
Specified Violent or Abuse-Related Crimes
The form asks whether you have ever been arrested or convicted for specified offenses including categories such as: domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, child neglect, dating violence, elder abuse, stalking, or attempts to commit covered offenses.
The form's criminal-history questions can require disclosure even if a record was sealed, cleared or someone told you it no longer existed.
Homicide, Murder, Manslaughter, Rape, Abusive Sexual Contact and Related Crimes
Answer each applicable criminal-history category according to your actual history.
Kidnapping, False Imprisonment, Involuntary Servitude and Related Crimes
Answer Yes or No according to your actual criminal record and the exact current USCIS wording.
Other Criminal Offenses
The form also asks about other arrests, citations, charges, indictments, convictions, fines or imprisonment for violating laws or ordinances, subject to the exact wording and exceptions in the form.
Where the answer is Yes, the form instructions can require details and certified court or arrest records.
Provide Circumstances, Place, Date and Outcome
For applicable Yes answers, provide the circumstances, location, dates, and outcome for each incident, using Part 8 when more space is required.
Multiple Filing Limitation and Waiver Information
Prior I-129F Filing Limits
USCIS applies statutory multiple-filing limitations in certain I-129F cases. Your prior filing history determines whether this issue may apply.
Waiver of the Filing Limitation
Where the filing limitation applies, the petition may require a waiver request and supporting explanation under the applicable rules.
If you have filed previous I-129F petitions, review the exact USCIS requirements before answering the waiver questions.
Biographic Information
Ethnicity
Race
Select all applicable race categories presented on the form.
Height and Weight
Enter height in feet and inches and weight in pounds as requested.
Eye Color
Select the applicable eye-color option from the form.
Hair Color
Select the applicable hair-color option from the form.
Petitioner's Statement, Contact Information and Signature
Petitioner's Statement
Indicate whether you read and understood the petition yourself, or whether an interpreter read the questions and instructions to you.
Petitioner's Contact Information
Provide daytime telephone number, mobile telephone number where applicable, and email address.
Declaration and Certification
Read the declaration carefully. By signing, you certify under penalty of perjury that the petition and evidence are complete, true and correct.
Signature and Date
A missing or invalid signature can cause a paper filing to be rejected.
Interpreter Information, Certification and Signature
Interpreter Full Name
Enter Family Name and Given Name of the interpreter.
Business or Organization
Enter the interpreter's business or organization name where applicable.
Mailing Address
Provide the complete interpreter mailing address requested by the form.
Telephone and Email
Provide daytime phone, mobile phone where applicable, and email address.
Interpreter Certification
The interpreter certifies that they are fluent in English and the language used to interpret the petition for the petitioner.
Interpreter Signature and Date
The interpreter signs and dates this section when an interpreter was used.
Preparer Information, Declaration and Signature
Preparer Full Name
Provide the preparer's Family Name and Given Name.
Business or Organization
Provide the preparer's business or organization name where applicable.
Mailing Address
Provide the complete preparer mailing address requested by the form.
Contact Information
Provide phone numbers and email address as requested.
Attorney or Accredited Representative
Complete the applicable statement concerning whether the preparer is an attorney or accredited representative and the scope of representation.
Preparer Certification, Signature and Date
The preparer certifies that the petition was prepared at the petitioner's request using information provided or authorized by the petitioner.
Additional Information
Petitioner Name and A-Number
At the start of Part 8, enter the petitioner's name and A-Number where applicable.
Page Number, Part Number and Item Number
For every additional explanation, identify the exact page, part and item number to which the answer relates.
PART NUMBER: 2
ITEM NUMBER: 54
Additional Sheets
If Part 8 does not provide enough room, follow USCIS instructions for attaching additional sheets and clearly identify the relevant page, part and item number.
Supporting Evidence and Final Checks
Evidence of U.S. Citizenship
Provide acceptable evidence showing the petitioner is a U.S. citizen, according to the current USCIS instructions.
Evidence Both Parties Are Free to Marry
For K-1 cases, provide evidence that any previous marriages of the petitioner and beneficiary were legally terminated.
Evidence of Intention to Marry Within 90 Days
For K-1 cases, submit evidence showing that both parties genuinely intend to marry within 90 days after the beneficiary's admission in K-1 status.
Evidence of In-Person Meeting
Provide evidence of the required meeting during the two-year period, or evidence supporting an applicable exemption.
Passport-Style Photographs
Include photographs when required by the current Form I-129F instructions, using current USCIS photo specifications.
Foreign-Language Documents
Any foreign-language document submitted to USCIS must include the required complete English translation and translator certification.
Criminal History Documents
If a criminal-history question requires a Yes answer, review the current instructions for required certified arrest, court and disposition records or other documentation.
Final Review Before Filing
Correct K-1 or K-3 classification
Petitioner legal name and identifiers
Five-year petitioner address history
Five-year petitioner employment history
Parents and prior spouses
Citizenship information
Previous I-129F filings
Children under 18
Places lived since age 18
Beneficiary legal name and identifiers
Five-year beneficiary address history
Five-year beneficiary employment history
Beneficiary parents and prior marriages
Beneficiary children
U.S. entry and I-94 information
Two-year in-person meeting question
IMBRA information
Consular location
Every criminal-history question
Multiple-filing limitation questions
Biographic information
Interpreter and preparer sections
All required signatures
Required evidence and translations
Every Form I-129F must reflect the petitioner's and beneficiary's actual identity, relationship, immigration history, address history, marriage history and circumstances.