Doubts about AOS

[DianaSa 0]

Hi everyone.

i'm married to an US Citizen. We both live in Portugal.

He was born in the US, but he came to Portugal at the age of 2 and he live is whole life here.

I don´t understand why he must live in the US. He just want to go back there and take me with him. How can i go if he doesn't live there? Can anyone help me?

Thank you

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

You need to get a spousal visa in advance. It is expensive and it takes a long time. You can't just move to the US because you are married. Good luck.

[belinda63 3,038]

He will probably need to travel to the US to obtain a residence and employment. He will need to prove you have a place to live in the US and the income to support you when you arrive. Read the requirements for a spousal visa and see what he will need to do. Highly unlikely you will travel together unless he has good friends or some relatives living in the US already.

[DianaSa 0]

You need to get a spousal visa in advance. It is expensive and it takes a long time. You can't just move to the US because you are married. Good luck

I already know a few things about the spousal visa.

I know that we must send the i-130 to the USCIS, but when our papers go to the NVC they ask for the AOS and i read that he must have domicile in the US.

[DianaSa 0]

He will probably need to travel to the US to obtain a residence and employment. He will need to prove you have a place to live in the US and the income to support you when you arrive. Read the requirements for a spousal visa and see what he will need to do. Highly unlikely you will travel together unless he has good friends or some relatives living in the US already.

He does have a cousin in the US. How can he help us?

[belinda63 3,038]

Domicile and income or an additional sponsor. That is why he most likely will have to move to the US and file for you later.

There is a lot of proof required to show he intends to live in the US. A good start would be seeing if he could live with his cousin while he establishes himself. Your husband will need a US address he is living at and other proof such as a driver's license, voter registration, bank accounts in the US, etc. to prove he intends to live there. He will also have to provide proof he makes at least 125% of the poverty level for his household size. If it is just two of you that would be around $20,000 per year (it must be US income) or that he has assets of about $60.000. His cousin can be a joint sponsor for him if the cousin meets the 125% poverty level for his household size plus you.

Edited June 9, 2014 by belinda63

[DianaSa 0]

We already have $60.000 in saving accounts, do we still need a joint sponsor?

we already talked about him move to the US and file for me later, but our embassy is in Paris, doesn't he need to travel to France for the interview?

Thank you

Domicile and income or an additional sponsor. That is why he most likely will have to move to the US and file for you later.

There is a lot of proof required to show he intends to live in the US. A good start would be seeing if he could live with his cousin while he establishes himself. Your husband will need a US address he is living at and other proof such as a driver's license, voter registration, bank accounts in the US, etc. to prove he intends to live there. He will also have to provide proof he makes at least 125% of the poverty level for his household size. If it is just two of you that would be around $20,000 per year (it must be US income) or that he has assets of about $60.000. His cousin can be a joint sponsor for him if the cousin meets the 125% poverty level for his household size plus you.

[NikLR 13,227]

Why would your embassy be in Paris when you live in Portugal?

Also the petitioner in this case doesn't need to be present at the interview.

You also have a ways to go before the interview.

And yes he must show he is attempting to re-establish domicile to the satisfaction of the consular officer at interview.

$60,000 USD is enough to not need a joint sponsor, however a consular officer can still ask for one.

[DianaSa 0]

We call to embassy in Lisbon and they said that the visa process its done in Paris.

They said that there was a centralization of services.

http://portugal.usembassy.gov/immigrant_visas.html you can see the info here

In Lisbon they also said that he must be at the interview.... ok.... now I'm confuse again...

Why would your embassy be in Paris when you live in Portugal?

Also the petitioner in this case doesn't need to be present at the interview.

You also have a ways to go before the interview.

And yes he must show he is attempting to re-establish domicile to the satisfaction of the consular officer at interview.

$60,000 USD is enough to not need a joint sponsor, however a consular officer can still ask for one.

Edited June 26, 2014 by DianaSa

[belinda63 3,038]

You are putting the cart way before the horse. Before you even think about the interview he needs to file the I-130 and associated documents and evidence (see the guides above). He needs to establish a domicile in the US. You have to show proof he is living or intends to live in the US prior to the interview time. In his case since he has not lived there in a very long time a copy of a lease, a home mortgage, or a letter from friends/family saying the two of you will be living there will be a start. He needs to open a US bank account and probably get a US driver's license.

It will take about one year after filing the I-130 before you go for the interview so don't worry about that part too much yet. Better to worry about getting prepared for the interview and everything you will need for it.

[NikLR 13,227]

We call to embassy in Lisbon and they said that the visa process its done in Paris.

They said that there was a centralization of services.

http://portugal.usembassy.gov/immigrant_visas.html you can see the info here

In Lisbon they also said that he must be at the interview.... ok.... now I'm confuse again...

You are correct, he will interview in Paris. As far as I know, Paris does not require the petitioner to be there. Some embassies do not even allow the petitioner to attend the interview. Others require the petitioner to be there. You'd have to inquire in your regional forum or in the embassy discussion to find out if Paris requires the petitioner's presence, but I doubt they do.

As stated before, you need to start from the beginning. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?autocom=custom&page=i130guide1

and work your way to the interview. Don't put the cart before the horse. (Unless you're a Porsche... )