Tightening the K-1 Fiancé Visa Program

Despite the fact that an average citizen of any western nation has a better chance of winning the lottery than dying at the hands of a terrorist, it seems that more and more freedoms must be given up in the name of terrorism.

In response to the European nationals who committed the attacks in Paris, the Visa Waiver Program has been restricted by the US Congress. And because of Tasheen Malik, the Saudi national who got into the US through the K-1 Fiancé Visa program and committed the San Bernardino attacks with her husband, the K-1 Fiancé Visa is being administered with additional scrutiny.

So what’s happening to the K-1 Visa program?

First, let’s look at what Tasheen Malik had to go through to get approved:

• She went through an in-person interview at the U.S. Embassy in Pakistan.
• She was vetted and checked out by five different government agencies.
• Her identity was run through the international terrorist watch list.
• Her fingerprints and biometric data were also run through two different official databases – criminal and counterterrorism.

You are probably thinking that’s pretty stringent – and it is. However, thanks to some misinformation that she was blatantly declaring Jihad on social media, now Facebook profiles and social media presence are also being incorporated into the K-1 Visa program vetting process.

As a result of this woman having entered the US through the K-1 Fiancé Visa, the tens of thousands of people who properly enter the U.S. every year through this program must now pay the price. This is despite the fact that the official story is that there was a slip up in approving Tasheen because the immigration officials did not thoroughly vet her application.

There’s No Such Thing as 100% Security

Judging by the past, it appears that regardless of how extreme the vetting process gets, terrorists may still manage to slip through the cracks. On one hand, we are told that everything we do is watched, tracked, and scrutinized to ensure safety and security. On the other hand, terrorists still manage to slip in through various official means, whether legal immigration as refugees, through the Visa Waiver Program, the K-1 Fiancé Visa Program, and so forth.

No matter what leaders might preach, there is no such thing as 100% perfect security. Ironically, the more draconian everything gets the more dangerous the world becomes.

Let us know if you have any questions on the K-1 Fiancé Visa Program or if our immigration law firm here in Chicago can help or represent you. We will keep a close eye on this issue and keep you updated on any new developments.