Affidavit of Support if I have no income?????

[imarockstar 0]

Hi everyone! We are preparing to begin our immigration journey. Fiance is a Canadian Citizen who has been working on TN in the US for 8 + years. Once he receives his next TN this spring (for a new company he will begin working for), we will marry here in the US and file for AOS, etc.

I am a stay at home mom to our son. I have not worked since we had our baby in June of 2007. My fiance has supported us and makes an excellent salary. I would prefer not to include my husband's income on my I-864 because I worry about immigrant intent. When he accepts a new job offer this spring and gets a new TN status, he will be declaring non-immigrant intent when he crosses the border (hence, why we haven't married yet)! But if I include his wages on an Affidavit of Support, he has to have a letter stating that his employment will be continued indefinitely. It is a stumbling block I would like to avoide.

My brother, also a USC, is very willing to complete an affidavit of support on my fiance/then husband's behalf and has plenty of income/assets, etc to meet and exceed the requirements.

My questions:

1. IS it okay that I, as the sponsor, have no income? Literally - no tax returns, etc for the past several years? I do have some money in savings accounts in my name (approx. $45K) but not nearly enough to meet the Affidavit of Support Requirements)? I am not and have never been on any type of public asistance. We want to have another baby as soon a he begins his new job in the spring, so I have no plans of going back to work in the near future, either. SO as long as we have my brother complete a clean affidavit of support, is this ok?

What do you think????

[EmVee 3]

I would prefer not to include my husband's income on my I-864 because I worry about immigrant intent. When he accepts a new job offer this spring and gets a new TN status, he will be declaring non-immigrant intent when he crosses the border (hence, why we haven't married yet)! But if I include his wages on an Affidavit of Support, he has to have a letter stating that his employment will be continued indefinitely. It is a stumbling block I would like to avoide.

I'm kinda confused... does he have to go back to Canada between now and when the new job starts?? If so, it might be tricky for him to cross back into the US, then marry you and AOS. Intent is already there, if you know what I mean.

However, as far as I'm aware the intending immigrant's wages can be used on the Affidavit of Support, once you have applied.

[imarockstar 0]

I'm kinda confused... does he have to go back to Canada between now and when the new job starts?? If so, it might be tricky for him to cross back into the US, then marry you and AOS. Intent is already there, if you know what I mean.

However, as far as I'm aware the intending immigrant's wages can be used on the Affidavit of Support, once you have applied.

I understand what you are saying about intent. We are just "researching" our options right now. There is always a chance he may choose to accept a job back in Canada and we would move there.......we also are not married as of now and have no date, etc set. Trying our best to avoid any immigrant intent.

Hoping to hear from others with info about the affidavit of support!

[trailmix 77]

Hi and welcome to VJ,

My fiance has supported us and makes an excellent salary. I would prefer not to include my husband's income on my I-864 because I worry about immigrant intent. When he accepts a new job offer this spring and gets a new TN status, he will be declaring non-immigrant intent when he crosses the border (hence, why we haven't married yet)! But if I include his wages on an Affidavit of Support, he has to have a letter stating that his employment will be continued indefinitely. It is a stumbling block I would like to avoide.

You should be concerned about this. Him stating at the border crossing that he has no immigrant intent - when he clearly does, is against U.S. law. If they think he is not telling the truth (and really he is not) he can be denied entry to the U.S. and incur a ban

You are not going to get, well you should not get - any replies here on VJ telling you this is ok. It's not. Plus you can't honestly think that people are going to tell you it's ok to break the law?

My brother, also a USC, is very willing to complete an affidavit of support on my fiance/then husband's behalf and has plenty of income/assets, etc to meet and exceed the requirements.

My questions:

1. IS it okay that I, as the sponsor, have no income? Literally - no tax returns, etc for the past several years? I do have some money in savings accounts in my name (approx. $45K) but not nearly enough to meet the Affidavit of Support Requirements)? I am not and have never been on any type of public asistance. We want to have another baby as soon a he begins his new job in the spring, so I have no plans of going back to work in the near future, either. SO as long as we have my brother complete a clean affidavit of support, is this ok?

Aside from that - no reason why your Brother can't be a joint sponsor. Shouldn't be a problem that you haven't worked. You can use assets you know, at 3 times the 125% level of the poverty guidelines. You are almost there, perhaps you can come up with a few more assets to meet that and can therefore avoid a joint sponsor, if you want to.

Edited May 8, 2010 by trailmix

[imarockstar 0]

Thanks TrailMix for your response. I appreciate your thoughts. I have read the information on this board in depth about the TN status to greencard through a a family-based petition.

Still hoping to get more responses regarding the affidavit of support from anyone out there with thoughts/advice. Thanks!

[thongd4me 69]

Thanks TrailMix for your response. I appreciate your thoughts. I have read the information on this board in depth about the TN status to greencard through a a family-based petition.

Still hoping to get more responses regarding the affidavit of support from anyone out there with thoughts/advice. Thanks!

The process to approve a petition involves verifying the income of the petitioner or a co-sponsor.

The beneficiary's income is not looked at, as he/she has no income in the US.

Once your fiancé is in the US, you will have joint income as a married couple,

but you have to complete the visa process first.

Please initialize your timeline, even if you haven't filed a petition yet.

It will show your friends what route you plan to take.

[imarockstar 0]

There must be some confusion in my post. Basically, what I am asking is this:

I have no income, but I will be petitioning for an AOS for my then husband (I am a USC, he is Canadian). Will me having no income be an issue if I have a co-sponsor(my brother, also a USC) who easily meets the financial requirements for the Affidavit of Support??

[Married2009 32]

No confusion, we understand completely. You and your SO plan to have hime come over on a TN, then skip all the other LEGAL steps and go straight to AOS.

[Married2009 32]

Oops, just reread my post, it should have been 'him', not 'hime'.

[imarockstar 0]

What I am looking for input/information on is the Affidavit of Support issue. If anyone has anything to add regarding the Affidavit of Support, I would apreciate it.

[EmVee 3]

No confusion, we understand completely. You and your SO plan to have hime come over on a TN, then skip all the other LEGAL steps and go straight to AOS.

He's already there on a TN, is my understanding... He'd just be leaving and coming back again. Which, for the record, is a BAD idea.

My husband's sister was his co-sponsor because he had been in college for the last two years, and that wasn't an issue. I'm sure if you don't meet the requirements, but have someone who does, it will be fine.

But I would advise you to do this NOW and not have your partner go back to Canada and then come to the US again to get married. That is not actually legal and it could end pretty badly.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,235]

You are putting the buggy in front of the horse.

1) Get married, then file for AOS. As a married couple, his income from US sources does count and once you file your taxes jointly, it gets even easier. Otherwise, your brother as a co-sponsor will work just fine. If you didn't file taxes, you need to have a valid reason. Valid in the eyes of Uncle Sam. If you do, that's cool.

[imarockstar 0]

Thank you so much JUST BOB - I really appreciate you answering my question. PS: Good luck on your upcoming journey through naturalization!

[trailmix 77]

Thank you so much JUST BOB - I really appreciate you answering my question. PS: Good luck on your upcoming journey through naturalization!

Actually, you know, the answer to your question (regarding the affidavit of support) is in the instructions for the I-864 (on page 2). This is an important document and you really should read all the instructions.

I don't mean that in a ...umm bad? way at all, just giving what, I think, is good advice.

Good luck.

[imarockstar 0]

Actually, you know, the answer to your question (regarding the affidavit of support) is in the instructions for the I-864 (on page 2). This is an important document and you really should read all the instructions.

I don't mean that in a ...umm bad? way at all, just giving what, I think, is good advice.

Good luck.

Thanks Trail Mix - I just spent the last few hours reading the instructions on some of the forms, including the I-864. You are right, that was great advice. THanks for your time!