Engage Marry or end relationship?

[lomaca 0]

Hi All,

I have been dating my US bf for over 6 years now. I met him 6years ago on holidays. We genuinely love each other and want to be together. He is volunteering in the US at the moment so no money coming in. He has come to europe many times and I did a school visa for 2 years in the states before.

Problem I am currently in europe and he went back to the sates 3 months ago. We would like to be together and would marry. BUT he used to have a company, left money with a friend to pay the irs his taxes before he left to travel. His "friend" did not do this and now he would has to sort his irs debt out. As he is volunteering, he does not have money coming in currently.

So the questions......

Would a k visa work if he doesn't have job or enough money to "support us"?

If we applied could him in allot of trouble?

I am a qualified yoga teacher, beauty therapist and holistic practitioner so I could get work out there or even set up a practice.

How much money would I have to have in my bank account to support myself for k visa or marriage?

Hope someone can advise me but we're starting to think we might have to give up on us with the way our circumstances are right now. Neither of us want that but we don't know what else we can do.

Any ideas?

Thank you for reading,

Blessings.

[lost_at_sea 995]

Hi All,

I have been dating my US bf for over 6 years now. I met him 6years ago on holidays. We genuinely love each other and want to be together. He is volunteering in the US at the moment so no money coming in. He has come to europe many times and I did a school visa for 2 years in the states before.

Problem I am currently in europe and he went back to the sates 3 months ago. We would like to be together and would marry. BUT he used to have a company, left money with a friend to pay the irs his taxes before he left to travel. His "friend" did not do this and now he would has to sort his irs debt out. As he is volunteering, he does not have money coming in currently.

So the questions......

Would a k visa work if he doesn't have job or enough money to "support us"?

If we applied could him in allot of trouble?

I am a qualified yoga teacher, beauty therapist and holistic practitioner so I could get work out there or even set up a practice.

How much money would I have to have in my bank account to support myself for k visa or marriage?

Hope someone can advise me but we're starting to think we might have to give up on us with the way our circumstances are right now. Neither of us want that but we don't know what else we can do.

Any ideas?

Thank you for reading,

Blessings.

You can totally file for the K1, and you should read the guide about doing so:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/k1guide

Sounds like your main concern is support - yes, he would ordinarily be supporting you and have to prove as such, but since he cannot, he will have to find someone to co-sponsor you - maybe a family member? See the information on "affidavit of support". You won't be able to be the person providing the support, unless you're a secret millionaire.

His status with the IRS probably isn't an issue and won't "get him in trouble". That sounds like a totally separate issue that you probably want to work out a way to deal with, so you don't have that stress in your marriage. So long as you can meet the criteria for K1, you can go with that.

Also, your title for your forum post "Engage Marry or end relationship?" is a little harsh. I don't think you really want us to tell you to break up with him just because he has no money. No one here could possibly decide that for you. You may do any of those things, and there are legal and achievable ways to engage and/or marry him.

Edited April 4, 2013 by lost_at_sea

[QueenOfBlades 224]

I would recommend looking up the requirements for the I-864 Affidavit of Support which is the important one, and will be used when you adjust status in the US. Depending on what household size you have, the co-sponsor for the I-134 will have to meet the same requirements as the I-864. The I-134 is simply a statement of support, whereas the I-864 is a binding contract between the sponsor and the US government and is the important one.

Look at the requirements in the second link and get a co-sponsor who meets your minimum based on what household size you plan to have.

http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-864instr.pdf

http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-864p.pdf

Edited April 4, 2013 by QueenOfBlades

[CandZ 7]

Well for a moment never mind the rules/laws of the process, how will you two live without income ? You will not be allowed to work until you are approved for an Employment Authorization Document, which you cannot apply for until after you are married. This is why they will only take into consideration the US petitioners income and not yours. I can't imagine he will get in trouble, but you will not be approved. Let others chime in on this and don't just take my word to the bank, but here is my idea, he needs to get a job. You could send in your i129F application once he is employed since it will likely take 6 months or more to move to the next phase. By then he will be able to show income to support you, I would also recommend having a cosponsor since employment of 6 months might look shaky, a cosponsor will help your case get approved.

Other Idea...Does he have assets ? Research meeting financial requirements, there are other ways to show ability to financially support your spouse besides income.

Anything is possible, just be diligent in your thoughts and research.

[baron555 934]

Hi All,

I have been dating my US bf

Would a k visa work if he doesn't have job or enough money to "support us"?

Yes but he would have to find a cosponsor....that is not that hard, especially if he has family or friends that meet the income requirements.

If we applied could him in allot of trouble?

No

I am a qualified yoga teacher, beauty therapist and holistic practitioner so I could get work out there or even set up a practice.

Your income doesn't enter into the equation.

How much money would I have to have in my bank account to support myself for k visa or marriage?

Again, your savings doesn't enter in unless you transfer it to his bank account.....but to use savings as part of meeting the minimum poverty requirements it would have to be, I believe, 3X, the stated amount for your future household size.

Hope someone can advise me but we're starting to think we might have to give up on us with the way our circumstances are right now. Neither of us want that but we don't know what else we can do.

Any ideas?

I don't think all is over. Many here began with the same or less and made it work. It may delay things a bit.

[lost_at_sea 995]

The above comment is indeed correct from CandZ, if dramatic, that you will not be allowed to work immediately upon entering the US on a K1 (when you arrive on K1, you must get married within 90 days then file an "Adjustment of Status" and optionally apply for a temporary work permit and ability to leave the country - it takes 2 - 3 months to receive these).

If this aspect of it matters to you, you may which to consider instead marrying ASAP and filing the CR-1 visa. This gives you a green card immediately, and therefore the ability to work as soon as you land.

This is the guide for CR-1: http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

The downside to the CR-1 is it can sometimes take longer to receive than the K1, but with the current processing times, the gap in processing CR-1 vs K1 has closed considerably.

Edited April 4, 2013 by lost_at_sea

[NinaD 6]

You should look into the IRS thing too though. Anyone bringing a fiance(e) or family member to the USA has to provide an up-to-date tax transcript. It has to be from the previous year and show his income. If he didn't do his taxes, then he can't get the transcript, and then he can't sponsor you. Even if you have a co-sponsor because he doesn't make anough money on his own, he has to provide the tax document. Assets can be used to show that he can support you. Does he own a house or land or business now? Those can be use to help increase his "income".

Oh, and as the other person stated above, he should get a job and have the income rolling in now. He can also submit paycheque stubs as proof of income. So yes, him having a paying job is a VERY good idea!

Edited April 4, 2013 by NinaD

[QueenOfBlades 224]

Also regarding how much savings you will need; to clarify on the above post. Your co-sponsor will need to meet the required income as listed on the link I provided in my previous post. If they can't, your savings will need to match 3x the difference. So say, for a household size of 3, you'll need to earn $23,862 a year. If your co-sponsor only earned $22,862, you'd need $3000 worth of savings as it is 3 times the difference of $1000.

[NinaD 6]

I also wanted to comment on the title of your post.

Not to open a can of worms or anything...but...how come you are thinking about ending the relationship? Is it just that you feel that the process of emigrating is too daunting? Or are there other factors that you worry about? FOR EXAMPLE: You have been together for 6 years, but no ring yet, and he isn't employed... or is it that you will miss Ireland and he isn't willing to move there? If you are worried about the income in America, and he isn't willing to get a job maybe the voice in your head that made you write "or end relationship" in the title of this post is trying to tell you something. I am not saying that you should end the relationship...but think about why you are contemplating it at all.

Yes, the immigration journey is a tough one, but if you REALLY want to be with him and live and work legally in America, then it is worth it!

[Darnell 8,478]

Engage Marry or end relationship?

I vote for ending the relationship at the moment.

Give it about a 2 to 3 year break.

Then, if he wants you in the USA, he'll show you a portfolio that will support :

1. the prior years income amounts and

2. current year income and

3. a ton of assets

as this stuff is important for immigrating into the USA.

It smells to me, like he was successful once, and has dropped out of that realm to pursue some other interest. IMO, you need to let him finish his pursuit, get it out of his system. If it's indeed, true love, then taking a break whilst he's remaking himself is a grand thing, and it's actually quite empowering (to him) for you to 'allow' him the time to do this.

That's my 2 cents, aye? With it, and half a roll of toilet paper, we can clean the world, together.

Edited April 4, 2013 by Darnell

[lomaca 0]

Hey All,

Thank you all so much for the replies....Lovin' this site right now.

Your support is awesome.

Ok 1st on the "end relationship" title- Yes it's because it all feels so daunting, and he's good to get married etc but he's afraid he could get into trouble or I would incur his debt. Plus work in europe at the moment is difficult and you have language barriers. He loves volunteering where he is but if he stays there we can't really make things work( job, money, visa etc.) So a part of me wonders is it meant to be this hard, it's all a bit rocky....Ofcourse I love him and want to be with him, I guess it's easier in europe to get papers and be legal....

He did work after he came back from traveling for a few years and would have tax receipts for those and that was after he sold his company and his loser friend took his irs money. So I'll ask him more on this later....

Assets-sold everything, put allot $ into investments that didn't go well for him.

I like that idea tho I could wire a few grand into his account..

Candz on the where will we live etc. If we both volunteered for a little we would have free rent food etc while we got a job lined up and I was legally allowed work. But I hear ya....it lacks stability and security which influenced my title...

For some silly reason I thought we could be engaged and I could stay there for a year.....don't know where I got that from....

Appreciate the feedback all,

Will talk to him later and see how things unfold.

[lost_at_sea 995]

For some silly reason I thought we could be engaged and I could stay there for a year.....don't know where I got that from....

Sadly not while waiting on your visa. You'll still be able to travel there though on VWP, if you want, for shorter stays. And he can still travel to see you.

[NinaD 6]

He did work after he came back from traveling for a few years and would have tax receipts for those and that was after he sold his company and his loser friend took his irs money. So I'll ask him more on this later....

Assets-sold everything, put allot $ into investments that didn't go well for him.

I like that idea tho I could wire a few grand into his account..

He will still need the latest tax transcript. They will want to see last year's for sure (and may want up to three years of transcripts). So, if for example, you applied now they would want to see 2012, 2011, 2010. If he doesn't have enough income and,or assests then he must have a co-sponsor. I would not advise transfering money. I know you love and trust him...but unless he is going to pay off the back taxes with it...I wouldn't do it. You have even said that he has made bad investments etc... so don't lose control of your own money.

Honestly, at this point, I would ask him to emigrate to Ireland, marry him there and establish a life based on your employment and assests, then, after a few years you could go back to America and it would be a bit easier, although there would still be some hurdles. He will still need to fix the IRS thing too, AND files taxes while he is living abroad- he is still required to do that while earning income in another country.

Sounds like the first thing on the list is to file the back taxes. Then you could apply as a K-1 fiancee with a co-sponsor. OR, bring him to Ireland for now. Good luck.

[aws&ndd 103]

Just want to comment on the 'end relationship' part of your title.

First of all if you really love each other you should NEVER let these thoughts enter your mind no matter how dire your circumstances. This part of the process may seem very daunting, but this part is the easiest--except for waiting for the approval. You will encounter things far more daunting then this, well the point is never give up on your love. Find a way to make it work!!

[lomaca 0]

Thank you for this info-yeah he's been out of the states now for almost 3 years-I guess they would just take his most recent yearly tax returns-right? Also just thinking if his company operated under a different name then it may not affect us so much....hmmm

But yes getting the back taxes and getting a job are going to have to happen in order for him to be able to support us.

He does want to get his situation sorted and he doesn't want to have to depend on me so he's not so keen on Ireland plus he does like it where he is.....one way or another we will have to be making decisions.

Thanks for the advise.

He will still need the latest tax transcript. They will want to see last year's for sure (and may want up to three years of transcripts). So, if for example, you applied now they would want to see 2012, 2011, 2010. If he doesn't have enough income and,or assests then he must have a co-sponsor. I would not advise transfering money. I know you love and trust him...but unless he is going to pay off the back taxes with it...I wouldn't do it. You have even said that he has made bad investments etc... so don't lose control of your own money.

Honestly, at this point, I would ask him to emigrate to Ireland, marry him there and establish a life based on your employment and assests, then, after a few years you could go back to America and it would be a bit easier, although there would still be some hurdles. He will still need to fix the IRS thing too, AND files taxes while he is living abroad- he is still required to do that while earning income in another country.

Sounds like the first thing on the list is to file the back taxes. Then you could apply as a K-1 fiancee with a co-sponsor. OR, bring him to Ireland for now. Good luck.