Co-sponsor OR bank statements?

[Amina_KSA 0]

Hi DCF Friends,

So, it seems our date with destiny is finally arriving. Our interview is set for November 3rd, one week from today.

I am really not worried about any aspect of the interview except the financial questions. My husband and I are planning to travel to the US at the very end of the six months that the visa is valid for (due to my husband's work contract), during those six months we will save like crazy and upon completion of his contract he will receive a sizable bonus. We are very comfortable and confident with this plan....HOWEVER, as it stands currently we do not have lots of money in our bank account - a great amount for normal living, but not a huge nest egg for immigration.

That being said, we have a co-sponsor for affidavit of support (I am currently a stay-at-home mom and can't work in this country due to visa restrictions)...the co-sponsor obviously exceeds the poverty guideline requirements.

So, my question is - if you have an affidavit of support sponsor that exceeds the income requirements are you still supposed to prove to them that you (the immigrant) have money? Or, is that the whole purpose of the affidavit of support and you (immigrant) are not required to prove that you have savings, assets, etc?

We are so worried that they'll be like "um, you're not seriously planning to immigrate with that amount of money in the bank are you???"...Probably because I've overheard two interviews taking place while I was at the embassy waiting to hand in our documents and in both interviews they really grilled the people about their savings, etc. So I was left thinking "Wow, I hope they are asking all those questions because these people don't have a sponsor that meets the income requirements, because otherwise we are screwed!"

Tell me VJ experts...is it sponsor that meets/exceeds income requirements OR personal financial records.....or is it both???

HELP!!! These last minute jitters are killing us!

[YuAndDan 153]

It is all about the Petitioner's ability to support the immigrant after they enter the USA.

The immigrant can add their assets to that of the petitioner, BUT evidence of how the assets WILL be transferred to the USA will be needed, or if the assets have been transferred to the USA then a bank statement from the US bank will be needed showing the asset is in the USA.

As long as JOINT-Sponsor meets the 125% poverty line requirement then this is not a problem.

One thing about DCF is the US Citizen/Spouse/Petitioner MUST provide an I-864, and I-864 REQUIRES US domicile, and IRS returns. The Petitioner is required to provide evidence that living out of country was "temporary" and has NOT given up US domicile.

MORE: http://travel.state.gov/pdf/I-864GenInfo-FAQ-Final.pdf

[Amina_KSA 0]

Thank you for your response.

Yes, for the I-864 I have provided my previous tax returns and a written statement explaining that I did not work in the year 2007 due to living abroad on a visa that did not allow me to work. I also explained that it is my intention to work once we return to America (God willing).

Our joint sponsor has also provided her last 3 years of tax returns...

At a previous visit to the embassy I asked them about proving domicile and the man said "do you have an American drivers license?" I said "yes"...he said "how long have you lived abroad?" I said "less than two years"...and he said "you're totally fine on this issue"...also, in our final packet with the document instructions and medical exam forms it doesn't ask for ANY documents related to proving domicile...so today we handed in all our documents based on the list the embassy gave us and the guy who took the papers said we submitted all necessary documents..

So the bottomline that I'm wondering about is - Am I correct in thinking that because our joint sponsor meets the income requirments we will not be expected to provide any financial documents at the interview?

[YuAndDan 153]

Thank you for your response.

Yes, for the I-864 I have provided my previous tax returns and a written statement explaining that I did not work in the year 2007 due to living abroad on a visa that did not allow me to work. I also explained that it is my intention to work once we return to America (God willing).

Our joint sponsor has also provided her last 3 years of tax returns...

At a previous visit to the embassy I asked them about proving domicile and the man said "do you have an American drivers license?" I said "yes"...he said "how long have you lived abroad?" I said "less than two years"...and he said "you're totally fine on this issue"...also, in our final packet with the document instructions and medical exam forms it doesn't ask for ANY documents related to proving domicile...so today we handed in all our documents based on the list the embassy gave us and the guy who took the papers said we submitted all necessary documents..

So the bottomline that I'm wondering about is - Am I correct in thinking that because our joint sponsor meets the income requirments we will not be expected to provide any financial documents at the interview?

US Citizen sponsor WILL be required to provide an I-864 at the interview, the I-864 REQUIRES past year's IRS return attached to it or a strong explanation why one was not filed, like primary sponsor's income fell below the minimum amount needed to file an 1040 to the IRS.

[Amina_KSA 0]

I think I'm being unclear..???

I (US citizen) DID provide an I-864 and the past three years of tax returns...I also provided a letter stating why I did not file taxes in 2007 (because I was a stay-at-home mom with a visa that did not allow working)...and also explained that I intended to work immediately upon return to the United States.

We ALREADY submitted these documents and ALL OTHER DOCUMENTS to the embassy (in Riyadh you are supposed to give them your documents one week before your interview)...

So I was asking if I had to supply any OTHER documents aside from my I-864 and my joint-sponsor's I-864....

[YuAndDan 153]

I think I'm being unclear..???

I (US citizen) DID provide an I-864 and the past three years of tax returns...I also provided a letter stating why I did not file taxes in 2007 (because I was a stay-at-home mom with a visa that did not allow working)...and also explained that I intended to work immediately upon return to the United States.

We ALREADY submitted these documents and ALL OTHER DOCUMENTS to the embassy (in Riyadh you are supposed to give them your documents one week before your interview)...

So I was asking if I had to supply any OTHER documents aside from my I-864 and my joint-sponsor's I-864....

NO

Joint sponsor's I-864 will require financial evidence from the Joint sponsor, NOT from the primary sponsor.

[Amina_KSA 0]

Thanks YuandDan...

So, since we gave them the joint sponsor's tax info I think we should be safe, God willing.

I think I'm being unclear..???

I (US citizen) DID provide an I-864 and the past three years of tax returns...I also provided a letter stating why I did not file taxes in 2007 (because I was a stay-at-home mom with a visa that did not allow working)...and also explained that I intended to work immediately upon return to the United States.

We ALREADY submitted these documents and ALL OTHER DOCUMENTS to the embassy (in Riyadh you are supposed to give them your documents one week before your interview)...

So I was asking if I had to supply any OTHER documents aside from my I-864 and my joint-sponsor's I-864....

NO

Joint sponsor's I-864 will require financial evidence from the Joint sponsor, NOT from the primary sponsor.

[MargotDarko 0]

You weren't being unclear. I understood your question from your original post.

As long as the joint sponsor meets the income guidelines for their household plus the immigrant and you have the documents to back it up, you're fine. They won't be looking for proof of income or assets in your name. You do need to present the I-864 as the main sponsor and you'll explain that you haven't worked, which is why you haven't filed tax returns recently. It could be helpful to type a statement to that effect and bring it along to the interview.

You say that you already gave them joint sponsor's tax info. When and how did you do that? I thought that with DCF the I-864 and supporting documents were never presented until the interview. Just curious. Also, do you have proof of the joint sponsor's current income, like a letter from their employer?

[Amina_KSA 0]

Thank you so much Margot - I'm glad you understood me, lololol! I appreciate your response.

And yes, I provided my 2005 and 2006 income tax returns with my I-864 and a letter explaining that I did not work in 2007 because I was living abroad on a visa that prohibited work. I also explained that I fully intended to work when we returned to the United States, etc.

For my joint sponsor I provided her 2005, 2006, and 2007 tax returns plus all their supporting documents (1099's, etc). I did not provide a letter from her employer because she is a retired government employee, the tax documents state the clearly.

As for giving the documents early - yes we were shocked too. When we received the final packet the front page had a list of all the required documents (birth certificates, medical report, marriage certificates, I-864, etc..) In big, bold, capital letters on the front page it says "These documents must be delivered to the embassy at LEAST one week prior to your interview date"...this really surprised us b/c we had never heard of such a thing. In any event, we delivered the documents today and they seemed very shocked that we actually followed the instructions. He was like "oh, ok...when is your interview? Oh, most people just bring everything to their interview..but ok, yea...so since we have everything now just bring the passport to your interview"..then threw our documents on a back table...????

[loz9 0]

Thank you so much Margot - I'm glad you understood me, lololol! I appreciate your response.

And yes, I provided my 2005 and 2006 income tax returns with my I-864 and a letter explaining that I did not work in 2007 because I was living abroad on a visa that prohibited work. I also explained that I fully intended to work when we returned to the United States, etc.

For my joint sponsor I provided her 2005, 2006, and 2007 tax returns plus all their supporting documents (1099's, etc). I did not provide a letter from her employer because she is a retired government employee, the tax documents state the clearly.

As for giving the documents early - yes we were shocked too. When we received the final packet the front page had a list of all the required documents (birth certificates, medical report, marriage certificates, I-864, etc..) In big, bold, capital letters on the front page it says "These documents must be delivered to the embassy at LEAST one week prior to your interview date"...this really surprised us b/c we had never heard of such a thing. In any event, we delivered the documents today and they seemed very shocked that we actually followed the instructions. He was like "oh, ok...when is your interview? Oh, most people just bring everything to their interview..but ok, yea...so since we have everything now just bring the passport to your interview"..then threw our documents on a back table...????

Our 1-864s were due before our final interview, too. Since they have all your financial info, assuming you meet the 125% poverty guideline, you should be fine. I would think they would request further information or alert you if there were any problems before they scheduled the final interview.

Good luck!

[Amina_KSA 0]

Thank you so much!

Yes, our joint sponsor meets the poverty requirements so we're praying it goes smoothly...

I also read that they take age, education, etc into account when evaluating the likelihood of a possible immigrant becoming a ward of the government...so, I'm hoping the fact that my husband has two master's degrees, is in his 30's, etc...will help them to feel that he's going to be ok in America.

Ugh, this will be the longest week of our lives!!!