I-864 RFE

[tom.in.chi 1]

Hey all

received my RFE today, and I clearly did a reasonably lousy job following the instructions on the proper filing of the I-864. I have the following questions:

The RFE says:

Please submit evidence that the household member on Form 1-864 [me, the non-US citizen]... was authorized to work in the United States. Examples include one of the following

A copy of Form 1-94, Arrival/Departure Record showing a non-immigrant classification that allows the intending immigrant household member to work lawfully in the United States. Examples include E-I, E-2, E-3, H-IB, H-IBI, H-I C, H2A, H-2B, H-3, I, L-I , TN.

I’m current in the US as a F1 (student) visa holder. All my employment in the US has been on campus- I’ve never worked more than 12 hours/week (in addition to my stipend).

• 1. What form should I submit to demonstrate that I’m legally able to work on campus? I already submitted my I-20AB to demonstrate that I’ve remained “in status” whilst in the US. Would it suffice just to include a copy of my I-20 with this section?
  

I’ve read other threads where people advise to exclude an alien’s income from this calculation if the sponsoring resident’s income is sufficient. My wife’s income easily exceeds the poverty guideline for a household of three, but we’ve filed joint tax returns for the three years we’ve lived in the US, so I though it would have been more strange for me to exclude my income from the visa application and then have a different number between my wife’s forms and the tax return.

As has been discussed elsewhere on the forum, there’s a disconcerting repetition in the forms. For instance, they discuss our failure to provide sufficient documentation for our income level, and then ask us to

Submit evidence of assets that meet the standards listed below or obtain joint sponsor. Assets standards must equal the stated difference between the sponsor's household income and 125% (l00% if military) of the federal poverty line.

So I guess I have two more questions.

• 2. Since they’ve already asked us to demonstrate that we have sufficient income, (via a separate section of the RFE, for which we’re going to submit IRS transcripts) should we go ahead and also complete this section, which is predicated on us having insufficient income?
  
• 3. If so, what discrepancy should we try to match with assets? That is, if we’ve used the IRS transcript to demonstrate an income last year of $70,000 (for example), how many assets should we evince to meet three times the difference between this income and three times 125% of $18,530 (the HSS poverty level for a family of 3 in the contiguous 48 states)? Should we just operate on a worst case scenario, assuming no satisfactory demonstration of income, and demonstrate assets of $69,500?
  

Thanks all, this forum has been a brilliant help thus far.

[Anh map 2,098]

If the US citizen's income is sufficient, do not complete any of the asset information. And don't include the beneficiary's income. Even though you file joint tax returns, the I-864 should only concern the USC's income. Sponsor shows the past years' income with tax transcripts along with copies of the USC's W2's.

For current year's income support the income claim with an employer letter and recent paystubs.

These I-864 FAQ may be helpful to you >>> http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3183.html

[tom.in.chi 1]

If the US citizen's income is sufficient, do not complete any of the asset information. And don't include the beneficiary's income. Even though you file joint tax returns, the I-864 should only concern the USC's income. Sponsor shows the past years' income with tax transcripts along with copies of the USC's W2's.

For current year's income support the income claim with an employer letter and recent paystubs.

These I-864 FAQ may be helpful to you >>> http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3183.html

Thanks so much for being so timely and precise.

If I may impinge on your expertise and generosity for another moment:

To follow your advice, I definitely allow some sections of the RFE (dealing with the legality of my work, and the volume of assets) to go unanswered. The officer at the NBC sees that we've satisfied one requirement (using IRS transcripts and an employment letter to evince my wife's income)and doesn't care that we've skipped the rest?

Further, is there any problem that this would contradict the other information already provided in my I-130 and I-485 forms?

Again, thanks, I really appreciate it. The stakes are high so please excuse my pedantry.

[Anh map 2,098]

The original I-864 had gaps that needed to be filled. A new, cleaner I-864 will not have those "gaps" and should demonstrate your spouse's ability to meet the requirements.

In your RFE cover letter list what you've submitted in place of the prior I-864 ( for example a new 864 with only income from the petitioner) and how that documents income that meets the requirement.