Evidence of a Bonifide Marriage

[AddyG 0]

We were just wondernig what other people have submitted as evidence and how it turned out. None of these really apply to us as we still live in seperate countries - it seems we can only provide 5 and 6. How much detail needs to be put into this at this stage? Should we send lots of photos, plane tickets, emails, etc at this point? I thought that was more for the interview? What do they consider "other relevant documentation"? Any help from those that have already submitted would be great!

The USCIS now requires that when filing an I-130 for a spouse that you include evidence of a bonifide marriage. They list examples of acceptable evidence as:

1. Documentation showing joint ownership or property; or

2. A lease showing joint tenancy of a common residence; or

3. Documentation showing co-mingling of financialresources; or

4. Birth certificate(s) of child(ren) born to you, thepetitioner, and your spouse together; or

5. Affidavits sworn to or affirmed by third parties havingpersonal knowledge of the bona fides of the maritalrelationship (Each affidavit must contain the full nameand address, date and place of birth of the person makingthe affidavit, his or her relationship to the petitioner ofbeneficiary, if any, and complete information and details explaining how the person acquired his or herknowledge of your marriage); or

6. Any other relevant documentation to establish that thereis an ongoing marital union

[YuAndDan 153]

This is a very frequent topic. Most go with #5 affidavits from people who know you.

Note: USCIS takes into consideration that most have only been married for a very short time, and probably don't have anything to give them other than a copy of marriage cert, and a few wedding pictures, this if fine.

This really comes into play for couples that have been married for a few years applying for an IR-1 visa, or are doing DCF through a foreign consulate or embassy after having lived together for a few years.

[Madie 0]

We sent affidavits sworn by friends, photos, a few yahoo messenger conversations, print screen of our email inbox, some emails and some copies of the plane tickets and we got approved. I have this feeling that sending photos where they can actually see us together, makes the processing more personal and faster. It might be just a feeling,i don't know...But include some of those in the package and make sure you have everything by the book. Any mistake that you do right now will cause you to get RFEs and, by definition, huge delays. So check 10 times before you send in the paperwork!

Good luck!

[o0pink0o 3]

We are still in the process of K3. The proof of evidence that we submitted are:

chat conversations in Yahoo and MSN ( we printed out 2 conversations per month)emailsSnail mails ( postcards, letters and gift packages)text messagesphone bills and phone cardswedding pictures , pictures of us together and pic of us with family and friends airline ticketshotel reservationswestern union receiptsmarriage contractaffidavits sworn by a friend of mine

Good Luck to us all!

[ColombianoGringo 0]

We sent our marriage certificate, pictures, boarding passes, hotel receipts and a life insurance beneficiary form, but no affidavits. We were approved without any RFE. They don't appear to be very demanding when it comes to evidence for newlyweds.

[Urge To Race 2]

We submitted no affidavits, pretty much ignoring the requirement since we had nothing else to show and in my opinion the affidavits would prove nothing other than maybe some people saw us taking our wedding vows. People can only attest to that, not to our relationship really. We had only spent a few weeks together. We did have our marriage cert, but that in itself is a separate requirement for filing an I130 for a spouse. We were approved sans RFE

We were just wondernig what other people have submitted as evidence and how it turned out. None of these really apply to us as we still live in seperate countries - it seems we can only provide 5 and 6. How much detail needs to be put into this at this stage? Should we send lots of photos, plane tickets, emails, etc at this point? I thought that was more for the interview? What do they consider "other relevant documentation"? Any help from those that have already submitted would be great!

The USCIS now requires that when filing an I-130 for a spouse that you include evidence of a bonifide marriage. They list examples of acceptable evidence as:

1. Documentation showing joint ownership or property; or

2. A lease showing joint tenancy of a common residence; or

3. Documentation showing co-mingling of financialresources; or

4. Birth certificate(s) of child(ren) born to you, thepetitioner, and your spouse together; or

5. Affidavits sworn to or affirmed by third parties havingpersonal knowledge of the bona fides of the maritalrelationship (Each affidavit must contain the full nameand address, date and place of birth of the person makingthe affidavit, his or her relationship to the petitioner ofbeneficiary, if any, and complete information and details explaining how the person acquired his or herknowledge of your marriage); or

6. Any other relevant documentation to establish that thereis an ongoing marital union

[Mononoke28 134]

I submitted our marriage certificate and 2 affidavits from family members, nothing else and was approved right away.

Diana