K-2 Child of a K-1 Fiancé(e)
K-2 is the derivative status for the unmarried child under 21 of a K-1 fiancé(e). The child travels on the strength of the parent's approved Form I-129F, provided the US citizen petitioner listed the child on it, and adjusts status alongside the parent after the wedding. No separate petition is needed, but a separate visa application and fee is.
- Duration
- 90 days from admission, matching the K-1 parent. K-2 status runs with the parent's, so the child must be admitted while the parent's K-1 is valid and within one year of the parent's K-1 visa issuance.
- Extensions
- None. Like K-1, the 90-day period cannot be extended and cannot be changed to another nonimmigrant classification. The route forward is adjustment of status after the parent's marriage.
- Work
- Yes with an application. A K-2 may file Form I-765 for an EAD covering the 90-day period, but in practice work authorisation is requested with the adjustment of status package instead.
- Dual intent
- true - K-2 shares the K-1's built-in immigrant purpose, so immigrant intent is not a bar.
- Dependents
- Not applicable. K-2 is itself the derivative classification and cannot carry further dependants.
- Path to a green card
- Adjustment of status on Form I-485 once the K-1 parent has married the US citizen petitioner, based on the same Form I-129F approval. Ageing past 21 before approval is the main danger, and Child Status Protection Act relief for K-2 children is narrower than families expect, so timing matters.
- Processing time
- Tracks the K-1 parent's case exactly, since both hang off the same Form I-129F approval. The consular interview is usually scheduled together with the parent's.
Who qualifies
- Unmarried children under 21 of a K-1 fiancé(e) applicant
- The child must have been listed on the US citizen petitioner's Form I-129F
- Stepchildren of the US citizen who qualify through the K-1 parent
Requirements
- The K-1 parent must have an approved Form I-129F naming the child
- The child must be unmarried and under 21 at the time of admission
- Own Form DS-160 and own MRV fee payment
- Own medical examination by a panel physician
- Police certificates if aged 16 or over
- Entry at the same time as, or after, the K-1 parent - never before
- Admission within one year of the date the K-1 parent's visa was issued
- Since March 30, 2026, social media profiles set to public for online presence review
How to apply
- 1
Confirm the US citizen petitioner listed the child on Form I-129F before it was filed
- 2
Complete a separate Form DS-160 for the child and pay the $265 MRV fee
- 3
Book the child's own panel physician medical examination
- 4
Get police certificates for any child aged 16 or over
- 5
Set the child's social media profiles to public if they have any
- 6
Attend the interview with birth certificate, proof of the parent-child relationship and the parent's case documents
- 7
Travel with the K-1 parent or after them, and within one year of the parent's visa issuance
- 8
File Form I-485 for the child after the parent's marriage, with Form I-765 and Form I-131 if wanted
Fees and forms
| MRV nonimmigrant visa application fee, K category | $265 per K-2 child |
| Form I-129F | $0 additional; the child is covered by the parent's $675 petition if listed on it |
| Medical examination by a panel physician | Varies by country and physician |
| Form I-485 adjustment of status | $1,440 paper or $1,390 online; $950 paper or $900 online for a child under 14 filing with a parent |
| USCIS immigrant fee | $0 for K nonimmigrants |
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- March 30, 2026: K-2 applicants were added to expanded online presence review alongside K-1 and K-3, and told to set social media profiles to public.
- Jan. 1, 2026: Presidential Proclamation 10998, signed Dec. 16, 2025, took effect at 12:01 a.m. EST and replaced Proclamation 10949 (signed June 4, 2025, effective June 9, 2025). It fully suspends visa issuance to nationals of 19 countries - Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen - plus holders of Palestinian Authority travel documents, across every nonimmigrant and immigrant category. It only reaches people who were outside the United States and held no valid visa at 12:01 a.m. EST on Jan. 1, 2026; no earlier-issued visa was revoked under it. The full suspension reaches K-2 applicants from the 19 listed countries.
- Jan. 1, 2026: PP 10998 removed the immediate relative and adoption visa carve-outs that PP 10949 had allowed, closing off alternative routes for affected children.
- Oct. 1, 2025: the interview waiver rollback announced Sept. 18, 2025 took effect and superseded the July 25, 2025 guidance. Almost every nonimmigrant applicant now needs an in-person interview. The standing carve-outs are A-1, A-2, C-3 other than personal staff, G-1 through G-4, NATO-1 through NATO-6, TECRO E-1, diplomatic and official visas, and 12-month renewals of B-1/B-2, Mexican border crossing cards and H-2A. Waiver-eligible applicants must also apply in their country of nationality or residence, must never have been refused a visa unless overcome or waived, and must have no apparent ineligibility. The old under-14 and over-79 age exemptions were abolished. No further update has issued as of September 2026.
- July 15, 2026: State told nonimmigrant applicants to interview in their country of nationality or residence, or at the designated processing post if their country has no routine operations. Applying elsewhere is allowed but harder to qualify, the MRV fee is non-refundable and non-transferable, and waits are much longer. A, G, C-2, C-3, NATO and diplomatic applicants are exempt.
- July 4, 2025: Public Law 119-21 added non-waivable immigration surcharges on top of normal filing fees. The ones that touch nonimmigrants are the Form I-94 fee, held at $24 for FY 2026, the parole fee, adjusted to $1,020 for FY 2026, parolee EAD surcharges of $560 initial and $280 renewal, and a statutory visa integrity fee of at least $250 on nonimmigrant visa issuance. The $250 visa integrity fee is enacted but unverified as collected: it appears nowhere on the State Department fee schedule as of September 2026 and no implementing rule has published.
- Current USCIS fee schedule, Form G-1055 edition 05/29/26: Form I-485 is $950 on paper or $900 online for a child under 14 filing concurrently with a parent.
Where it goes wrong
- The petitioner forgetting to list the child on Form I-129F, which cannot be fixed later without a separate and much slower immigrant petition.
- The child travelling before the K-1 parent. Admission must be at the same time or later.
- Missing the one-year window from the parent's K-1 visa issuance.
- A K-2 child who marries or turns 21 before adjustment loses eligibility, and Child Status Protection Act relief is limited here.
- Assuming the child's status survives if the parent's marriage does not happen inside the 90 days.
- Forgetting the child needs their own medical examination and, from age 16, their own police certificates.
Also in fiancé and spouse
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