Bona Fide Marriage Evidence (a little complicated)

[californiagurl28 0]

Hello everyone! I'm new here. I'm trying to get ready to petition my husband, and I'm having a little trouble with evidence. Don't get me wrong, I read all of the primary and secondary evidence you can give, but I feel like our case is a bit complicated.

For one, we met online and I'm not sure we have many logs of the conversations anymore. Secondly, I changed phones a long time ago, so no phone logs. So, we met in January of 2010. We became friends very fast and talked every single day. About 5 1/2 months later, I decided I wanted to be in a relationship with him even though we never met. I just felt a connection. I visited two times (first time for 2 weeks, second for 3 weeks) and I still have the plane ticket receipts. I moved here on May 19th, 2011.

So, here's where it gets even more complicated as far as proof goes: I was never put on the lease. But, I DID get an ID shortly after(and I still have the receipt) that is the exact same address on the lease his mom had (which he was included in). We moved into a new apartment a few months ago, and I was the cosigner for the lease for his mother. Since he can't get a job because he's out of status, they only wanted myself and her on the lease. However, I did have him initial the bottom of all pages with us. I also put him on my bank account, so now it's a joint one. So, my question is, what can I do? Would sending in the first lease along with my ID (again, they have the same address)and the receipt/plane ticket when I moved here be good? What about the second lease if I got a letter from the apartment manager saying we both live here? And, if these both are OK, should I write up a short letter explaining the first lease and a picture of my ID/receipt my proof for living together?

Also, I'm just very nervous. Is anyone kind of introverted and had issues with the marriage interview? I know it's far off as we didn't even file yet, but I feel like people will only consider our marriage valid if we are this outgoing couple. I mean, I'm a low wage earner (didn't go to college yet), and we have a budget and just enjoy being at home with each other. I also don't have a great relationship with my family, and he barely has a relationship with his, so we don't have many "family pictures". We have only have 20 or so pictures of us because we both hate being in pictures. I'm also kind of young (21) and he is 25. Finally, I feel like our story might not be "believable". We met online, but it was in a chat room on an Anime site. And given the fact that we started our relationship before we met in person, and I only visited for a total of 5 weeks, I can just see how someone might question it. But, we are both kind of loners and it took us both by surprise that we met someone that fit so well. I mean, he's my best friend, and I feel like sometimes he's the missing part of me. We even finish each others sentences! But, I'm just not sure how to properly convey this to the person interviewing us.

So, would this all count against us? Are there any tips for proving our marriage is out of love? I think the only thing we may have going for us is the fact that I moved here and waited a year of living together to marry, and by the time we have an interview, we will be married 1 year and have been together 3 years.

Any advice is very appreciated, even if you can't answer my questions or are/were in the same position.

[indiana_sweetie 120]

I can't answer all of these but I will try---my comments in red.

Hello everyone! I'm new here. I'm trying to get ready to petition my husband, and I'm having a little trouble with evidence. Don't get me wrong, I read all of the primary and secondary evidence you can give, but I feel like our case is a bit complicated.

For one, we met online and I'm not sure we have many logs of the conversations anymore. Secondly, I changed phones a long time ago, so no phone logs. So, we met in January of 2010. We became friends very fast and talked every single day. About 5 1/2 months later, I decided I wanted to be in a relationship with him even though we never met. I just felt a connection. I visited two times (first time for 2 weeks, second for 3 weeks) and I still have the plane ticket receipts. I moved here on May 19th, 2011. Keep the plane ticket receipts and any other evidence you might have.

So, here's where it gets even more complicated as far as proof goes: I was never put on the lease. But, I DID get an ID shortly after(and I still have the receipt) that is the exact same address on the lease his mom had (which he was included in). We moved into a new apartment a few months ago, and I was the cosigner for the lease for his mother. Since he can't get a job because he's out of status, they only wanted myself and her on the lease. However, I did have him initial the bottom of all pages with us. I also put him on my bank account, so now it's a joint one. So, my question is, what can I do? Would sending in the first lease along with my ID (again, they have the same address)and the receipt/plane ticket when I moved here be good? What about the second lease if I got a letter from the apartment manager saying we both live here? And, if these both are OK, should I write up a short letter explaining the first lease and a picture of my ID/receipt my proof for living together? Out of status---someone else will need to weigh in on this

Also, I'm just very nervous. Is anyone kind of introverted and had issues with the marriage interview? I know it's far off as we didn't even file yet, but I feel like people will only consider our marriage valid if we are this outgoing couple. I mean, I'm a low wage earner (didn't go to college yet), and we have a budget and just enjoy being at home with each other. I also don't have a great relationship with my family, and he barely has a relationship with his, so we don't have many "family pictures". We have only have 20 or so pictures of us because we both hate being in pictures. I'm also kind of young (21) and he is 25. Finally, I feel like our story might not be "believable". We met online, but it was in a chat room on an Anime site. And given the fact that we started our relationship before we met in person, and I only visited for a total of 5 weeks, I can just see how someone might question it. But, we are both kind of loners and it took us both by surprise that we met someone that fit so well. I mean, he's my best friend, and I feel like sometimes he's the missing part of me. We even finish each others sentences! But, I'm just not sure how to properly convey this to the person interviewing us. You said you are a low wage earner, do you make 125% or more of the poverty level for a family of two? If not, you will need a co-sponsor. Your ages aren't that far apart. Lots of people meet online now days. 20 pictures in a good start. You have a long journey ahead of you, you can always take more pictures.

So, would this all count against us? Are there any tips for proving our marriage is out of love? I think the only thing we may have going for us is the fact that I moved here and waited a year of living together to marry, and by the time we have an interview, we will be married 1 year and have been together 3 years. I assume you are in the USA since you said he is out of status? I think that might be the main concern but I'm not the person to ask.

Any advice is very appreciated, even if you can't answer my questions or are/were in the same position.

[californiagurl28 0]

Thank you for replying! Yes, he is out of status, and I am the USC. His mother brought him here when he was 11 on a tourist visa and she never petitioned him. I already have a joint sponsor, and he is a good friend of my husband. He made $19,480 last year (he was still in college), and has had a job right after college for 7 months now. He makes $50,000 a year, so I'm sure this will not be an issue.

My main concern is with the evidence (mainly leases) and our story of how we met. I know a lot of people say expect that they automatically consider your marriage a fraud and the burden of proof is on us, so I just figured I'd get a feel for how people who don't know me consider all of this.

[KayDeeCee 4,891]

Just gather as much evidence as you can that you lived together, married and are living together as a married couple now. You do not need everything on the list of primary evidence, so just gather up anything and everything you personally have or can get. IDs showing same address on them, joint accounts of any kind(bank, insurance, health, etc.), joint utilities, your lease papers with an explanation and highlighting his initials on the papers, joint taxes, cards/letters addressed to you both, etc.

As for being worried about meeting online, you can get rid of that one. This is nothing new for the USCIS. MANY couples going through the immigration process met online. Good luck!

[californiagurl28 0]

Whoops. Can someone move this to Adjustment of Status from Work, Student, & Tourist Visas? I just realized it said "Family Visa" here. My husband came here when he was little on a tourist visa...

Also, Jay Kay, thanks for answering! This makes me feel better about my situation. That's a good tip on highlighting his initials, thanks!

Edited January 8, 2013 by californiagurl28