Filling out I-130, have a few Qs

[Scylla 0]

Hello,

I've finally got all but one piece of info together for the I-130 to petition my husband to immigrate, so I'm starting to fill it out.

I have a few questions/concerns.

1. My middle name is too long to fit in the box if I type on the pdf. Would it be ok for me to just print the rest of the letters by hand?

2. My husband does not yet have an Alien Registration number. Do I put N/A there or leave it blank? I've read in other posts that it's preferable NOT to leave any boxes blank.

3. For Part C question 17. I'm not sure what this is asking. My husband and I currently have no children, so I don't need to put any information down for that. But should I be putting his information in this section again? I thought that it meant the spouse of the relative I'm petitioning (i.e. if he were not my husband, but an aunt or brother or some other relative with a spouse), but just want to make sure I'm understanding right.

4. My husband recently got a job after being without one since August 2008. However, this occurred after I had him fill out and sign the G-325A. (He was visiting me in January, the last time he was to visit me before we start the immigration process, we chose to do consular processing.) Would it be better for me to ask him to fill out, sign and send me a new G-325A with the job indicated? He doesn't actually start in said job until March, but I wonder if it will look better for his case if it is seen that he is gainfully employed.

Thanks to anyone who can help answer my questions, it's very appreciated.

Caliris

[Inky 1,110]

http://www.visajourney.com/examples/INS-Form-I-130.pdf

Example form.

Fill out what you can on the computer and print by hand what doesn't fit. That is fine, most people end up doing this or they attach a separate sheet to fit the rest on.

[Scylla 0]

Additional info for #4 above

My husband said his contract doesn't start until mid March so probably better to just fill it out as if he's currently unemployed since we want to send the i-130 by next week. I hope that's okay though. I just want to make sure I am providing the whole truth when I fill in these documents, but I also don't want to make a mistake and make my husband look bad.

Thanks Inky for the link.

Caliris

[Inky 1,110]

Being employed or unemployed wont hurt the case or anything, if the forms are correct from the time he filled it out then thats fine as well, He can always do up a new 325 form and bring it to the interview or you can do up a new one and send it to the NVC later on when you send the rest of the paperwork they request during that part of the process.

[Amy and Nick 37]

Hello,

I've finally got all but one piece of info together for the I-130 to petition my husband to immigrate, so I'm starting to fill it out.

I have a few questions/concerns.

1. My middle name is too long to fit in the box if I type on the pdf. Would it be ok for me to just print the rest of the letters by hand?

2. My husband does not yet have an Alien Registration number. Do I put N/A there or leave it blank? I've read in other posts that it's preferable NOT to leave any boxes blank.

3. For Part C question 17. I'm not sure what this is asking. My husband and I currently have no children, so I don't need to put any information down for that. But should I be putting his information in this section again? I thought that it meant the spouse of the relative I'm petitioning (i.e. if he were not my husband, but an aunt or brother or some other relative with a spouse), but just want to make sure I'm understanding right.

4. My husband recently got a job after being without one since August 2008. However, this occurred after I had him fill out and sign the G-325A. (He was visiting me in January, the last time he was to visit me before we start the immigration process, we chose to do consular processing.) Would it be better for me to ask him to fill out, sign and send me a new G-325A with the job indicated? He doesn't actually start in said job until March, but I wonder if it will look better for his case if it is seen that he is gainfully employed.

Thanks to anyone who can help answer my questions, it's very appreciated.

Caliris

1. Print anything that doesnt fit by hand.

2. If he has never had any type of visa with the US before he wont have an alien registration number, so just put N/A. You are right never to leave a box blank. Always put N/A or None

3. This is a ridiculously worded question! Take it literally. It would be the petitioners name put down in this box.

4. If he is starting I new job I would consider adding an attachment to the form just to explain, it cant hurt, and its always best to give all information so it doesnt look like youre hiding anything!

Good luck!

[Scylla 0]

Thank you for the help Amy and Nick.

I am wondering something else...

I have applied for college in Fall 2011. I do not know yet what city I am attending because I have yet to receive all of my acceptance letters. So it is possible my address (both mailing address, and the address my husband and I will live in) may change in the middle of the application process.

The address I am putting down though, is still my permanent address. (The home of my parents) So they will be present to receive my mail if I am not there. However if I wanted to change the addresses I put down on my I-130 at a later date, how would I go about that? What form or letter would I send and to where?

Thanks,

Caliris

P.S. I am an adult returning to college, so I'm not going to be living in a dorm.

Edited February 14, 2011 by Caliris

[Amy and Nick 37]

The best bet for the mailing address is to put down your parents and to leave it like that!

If you do feel the need to change it (ie if you will be a long way from your parents!) then you will be able to change the address easily. I believe there is a change of address form, but I also notice that when I log into my USCIS account for my case, there is a button to "change address online" so should be very simple!

Dont hesitate to ask all those (seemingly) simple questions! Its a daunting process, and I feel ive learnt so much in the last 4 months, but at the beginning i was a nervous confused wreck!

[Scylla 0]

Thank you all for the help so far.

I have a few more questions concerning the I-130.

1. I wanted to include a letter describing my relationship history, marriage and future plans with my husband, as part of the bona fide marriage requirement. I am wondering how long and how detailed I ought to make such a letter. My original draft is quite long. I am torn between offering as much info as possible so as to be honest, and offering concise info so as not to trigger RFEs.

2. I am reading more about RFEs and am wondering what common pitfalls there are that end up triggering one. Or is this not something that is easily predictable?

Nervous about getting everything right,

Caliris

[Amy and Nick 37]

The relationship history letter is a good idea, however I dont think you need to include future plans in it. The idea is to establish a bona fide relationship, so just focus on the past.

As for length, I would say it depends how long you have been together. ie, if youve been together 7 years its obviously going to be a lot longer than if youve been together a year! Be concise and to the point. Use it mainly as a map for when you have visited each other.

RFE's are a hard one. If you do a search in VJ you will find TONS that people have received. However, you are not from a high-fraud country, so like me, you have less to worry about.

Read the I-130 instructions VERY carefully and make sure you include everything required. Other than that it is just pot luck. Some people have sent only the marriage certificate as proof and have been approved. Others, like me, have completely front loaded their petition and have also been fine.

The main thing with a spousal visa is proof of co-mingling - his name on your lease, bills, bank account. Anything you can think of really!

[DrJPhilam 0]

Thank you all for the help so far.

I have a few more questions concerning the I-130.

1. I wanted to include a letter describing my relationship history, marriage and future plans with my husband, as part of the bona fide marriage requirement. I am wondering how long and how detailed I ought to make such a letter. My original draft is quite long. I am torn between offering as much info as possible so as to be honest, and offering concise info so as not to trigger RFEs.

2. I am reading more about RFEs and am wondering what common pitfalls there are that end up triggering one. Or is this not something that is easily predictable?

Nervous about getting everything right,

Caliris

1. I never included a detailed letter describing our relationship. The only thing I've included was marriage certificate aside from birth certificate of our daughter (that might not apply to you)... we included pictures with description of the photo and dates at the back. We also made sure that it was a timeline of our relationship. We had photos before we were married, at the ceremony, after the ceremony, vacation together. You might want to show more physical evidence than just a letter you drafted describing your relationship, but I'm not saying it wouldn't help. If you have emails or letters to eachother that might be good to add as well. Take a look at this link, there are more examples here on this link: http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/IR1_and_CR1_Immigrant_Visas#Evidence_of_Bona_fides_of_Marriage

2. That's a tough question. We didn't get any RFEs when we submitted our I-130. The only advice I have it to be accurate in filling out your application and don't lie on there. Follow the directions carefully and submit only what is asked. Don't leave anything blank always use N/A or None when the question does not apply. If information does not fit in the space provided on the form you can always attach a continuation sheet. Don't give yourself too much of a headache. If there are any questions about terribly worded instructions on these forms you can always ask someone on here. More likely than not, we've all had the same question!

Hope this helps! Good Luck!!!

[pushbrk 12,114]

Hello,

I've finally got all but one piece of info together for the I-130 to petition my husband to immigrate, so I'm starting to fill it out.

I have a few questions/concerns.

1. My middle name is too long to fit in the box if I type on the pdf. Would it be ok for me to just print the rest of the letters by hand?

2. My husband does not yet have an Alien Registration number. Do I put N/A there or leave it blank? I've read in other posts that it's preferable NOT to leave any boxes blank.

3. For Part C question 17. I'm not sure what this is asking. My husband and I currently have no children, so I don't need to put any information down for that. But should I be putting his information in this section again? I thought that it meant the spouse of the relative I'm petitioning (i.e. if he were not my husband, but an aunt or brother or some other relative with a spouse), but just want to make sure I'm understanding right.

4. My husband recently got a job after being without one since August 2008. However, this occurred after I had him fill out and sign the G-325A. (He was visiting me in January, the last time he was to visit me before we start the immigration process, we chose to do consular processing.) Would it be better for me to ask him to fill out, sign and send me a new G-325A with the job indicated? He doesn't actually start in said job until March, but I wonder if it will look better for his case if it is seen that he is gainfully employed.

Thanks to anyone who can help answer my questions, it's very appreciated.

Caliris

You've got some good answers but I just want to clarify on number 3 above. Read carefully, interpret literally and answer accurately. Your relative is your spouse. Their spouse is you. Their children are their children, so you name and info plus info on any children of the beneficiary. If none, enter "No Children".

[Scylla 0]

Thank you again everyone. All the information coming in is very useful.

I wanted to clarify what I am providing for bonafide marriage.

- Marriage certificate

- Joint lease at our last apartment

- Pictures, which span from before marriage to my husband's last visit to the U.S.

- 4 affidavits of proof of marriage (I have not notarized, but as I have read here it is not required) from my parents, my inlaws, and family friends

- Copies of passport pages showing we traveled across borders together

- Was also thinking of putting in a credit card statement, though we only have shared the card since a few months back. I'm a bit worried it will look bad cause there's a few thousand unpaid on it.

Unfortunately for me, we have lost our emails and IM logs for the most part, due to computer crashes and the fact I really was not logging conversations until recently. However, he and I actually did live together for six years. What happened was that I tried to immigrate to Canada but due to human error and following bad advice I ended up with a 1-year exclusion order after the long wait.

The letter I wrote was partly to explain that situation as I do not want it to be thought that I am hiding it. Also the fact I even went through 6 years trying to immigrate and make a life in Canada will, I hope, speak for itself as far as my loyalty and love for my husband is concerned. (I will also be providing supporting documents for that along with the letter of explanation.)

So I guess at this point I am just wondering whether the info I have is enough to prove bonafide marriage. I feel bad that I never saved things like receipts or chat logs. I wonder if it would make a difference or if what I have put together already will be enough.

As usual I am indebted to all of you for the helpful comments. I would be lost without this site!

Caliris

[Amy and Nick 37]

That sounds pretty good to me! The joint lease on the apartment is a definite bonus, and as its been a long relationship things like that will be a benefit. If you are worried about showing the credit card receipt, just show some kind of documentation that is is a joint acocunt instead. Joint accounts, like joint leases, are good, solid pieces of evidence!