Does Crowdfunding money count as Income or Asset?

[Chris and ZhiJia 146]

I am aware of the costs. Thank you for your concern.

But considering that our friends and family are all scattered across multiple countries... (I have family and friends all across the US, she has family and friends across Canada and the UK) trying to get a hold of them each individually and personally would be a logistical nightmare. To me, the small fee is there exactly to provide this service -- setting up a simple page all together that handles the complications.

Though I did consider setting up a Paypal page instead (I think Paypal's fees are still 3%, unless I am wrong). GoFundMe was just an example. Thank you for the information though, I will definitely consider it when choosing how to set this up.

https://www.paypal.com/webapps/mpp/paypal-fees

If the person sending the gift has a registered paypal account with funds in it, or has their bank attached to the paypal account, there are zero fees for sending money from within the US.

If the person resides in a foreign country the fee ranges from 0% to 2% variable by the banking source attached to the paypal account.

If the person chooses to gift the money using a debit or credit card the fee is 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction.

So depending on the source of the gift there could be a lesser fee or no fee at all compared to using GoFundMe.

[Ontarkie 15,136]

Since you don't need the money to help meet the requirements for AOS.

Why not call the cash gifts wedding gift? Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill.

[jameso 0]

https://www.paypal.com/webapps/mpp/paypal-fees

If the person sending the gift has a registered paypal account with funds in it, or has their bank attached to the paypal account, there are zero fees for sending money from within the US.

If the person resides in a foreign country the fee ranges from 0% to 2% variable by the banking source attached to the paypal account.

If the person chooses to gift the money using a debit or credit card the fee is 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction.

So depending on the source of the gift there could be a lesser fee or no fee at all compared to using GoFundMe.

Thank you so much! This info is so helpful, and just what I needed. I was going to look up the fees myself, so I really appreciate you going ahead and doing it for me! Saved me the effort.

I'm going to save this little snippet so that I can let all the family and friends know (since many reside outside the US).

[NuZayetsPogodi 117]

I agree that I think that money would count as a gift, and like others have said, I doubt you're going to get SO much money that it's going to send up a red flag. If you get thousands and thousands of dollars in donations, yes, that will look suspicious. For what it's worth, the IRS considers gifts from one person to another to be up to $10K a year. That's a load of cash!

With that said...

While I personally wouldn't use GoFundMe to pay for immigration costs, I don't see why people are upset over it. And I definitely do NOT understand, "Well if you can't pay for immigration costs, then you can't afford to support someone long term!" Bringing a fiance to the US is expensive. I don't see why it's that mind-blowing that you could support another person in your household long-term (e.g. your grocery bill will go up a little and you'll need to pay for their health insurance, but a lot of other bills will hardly be affected by another person under your roof) but coming up with about $1500-2000 or more for immigration expenses (including all the incidental costs of bringing a fiance to the US) can be a lot of money for people. What's wrong with asking for help from friends and family? And hey, if you think GoFundMe is being abused or if you think it's wrong for someone to ask for money to bring their intended and the love of their life to the USA, by all means, you don't have to donate!

[aaron2020 11,652]

I don't need a GoFundMe to pay the immigration fees -- I have the funds already. It's just a thoughtful idea, because my fiancee does have friends in this country who would love to be able to see her more frequently. And I'm sure they wouldn't mind parting with a small gift to help set us up on our new life together and start building our family. The funds aren't necessarily going all directly toward fees -- they'll be going into a savings account for various needs along the way. And of course I would make this fact clear (I'm not gonna scam my family and friends, that's dumb).

My general question is more so about how this kind of gift is looked at (in regards to the affidavit of support). If the CO were to ask where the extra deposits to my savings were coming from, and I said "gifts from family and friends to help us start our new life together," what would they think about that? They would think it's perfectly normal for a couple to get cash gifts from family and friends to start off a marriage. You probably know lots of couples who got gifts to start off their marriages this way, no?

Don't focus specifically on the "GoFundMe" idea (it was just an example), but more on the general concept of what crowd funding is -- one-time donations from family and friends.

I am aware of the costs. Thank you for your concern.

But considering that our friends and family are all scattered across multiple countries... (I have family and friends all across the US, she has family and friends across Canada and the UK) trying to get a hold of them each individually and personally would be a logistical nightmare. To me, the small fee is there exactly to provide this service -- setting up a simple page all together that handles the complications.

Though I did consider setting up a Paypal page instead (I think Paypal's fees are still 3%, unless I am wrong). GoFundMe was just an example. Thank you for the information though, I will definitely consider it when choosing how to set this up.

Yes, she will have access to a job once she's here. My family runs a local business which she can get instant employment (after she gains the legal right to do so).

I'm not so much worried about using this money for the I-864 requirements. More so worried about it coming up as suspicious and getting a denial because of it. That's my main concern. I understand that income is really what they are looking at, but in the event that I have to use my savings account as a listed asset, I am curious if they will question the source of the funds. (my goal is to not use assets or a co-sponsor, but I'm a realist, and sometimes life hits you with curve-balls to your income or health)

And I totally agree, there is no right or wrong way to use GoFundMe. It's just a personal funding service. Same with KickStarter or PayPal.

Yes, I don't expect the amount to be significant. Just in the same way I don't expect a savings account with 1% interest to be a significant source of income. But some money is better than no money, so why not try? Every penny helps.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed so far!

[jameso 0]

Since you don't need the money to help meet the requirements for AOS.

Why not call the cash gifts wedding gift? Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill.

I may not need the money for AOS, as my situation currently stands. In the past, I have been a part of unexpected mass company lay-offs, and also been victim to burglary -- I have learned to not take my current income/assets for granted. Life hasn't always been kind to me.

I am planning ahead for any potential problems that may occur. In the event that I have to use assets (savings, investments, property) I am just looking to know to what extent they will scrutinize the sources and what kinds of transactions cause red-flags. I think that these are reasonable questions.

I have considered calling the cash wedding gifts, but forgot to include that in the original post at the time. My mistake.

This process is new to me (both marriage and immigration), and I'm just trying to minimize the chance of RFE or denial. No need for the snarky comment, please.

[Ontarkie 15,136]

I may not need the money for AOS, as my situation currently stands. In the past, I have been a part of unexpected mass company lay-offs, and also been victim to burglary -- I have learned to not take my current income/assets for granted. Life hasn't always been kind to me.

I am planning ahead for any potential problems that may occur. In the event that I have to use assets (savings, investments, property) I am just looking to know to what extent they will scrutinize the sources and what kinds of transactions cause red-flags. I think that these are reasonable questions.

I have considered calling the cash wedding gifts, but forgot to include that in the original post at the time. My mistake.

This process is new to me (both marriage and immigration), and I'm just trying to minimize the chance of RFE or denial. No need for the snarky comment, please.

Wasn't meant to be snarky

You will want to look into what the requirements are for cash and assets. It's not the same as income.

[Chris and ZhiJia 146]

Wasn't meant to be snarky

You will want to look into what the requirements are for cash and assets. It's not the same as income.

slightly off-topic, but your comment here made me briefly read your name as Onsnarkie......

[jameso 0]

They would think it's perfectly normal for a couple to get cash gifts from family and friends to start off a marriage. You probably know lots of couples who got gifts to start off their marriages this way, no?

I'm still pretty young, and never been married before. I don't know many people my age who are been married (its becoming common to marry late in life, if at all), and I have not personally been a part of many weddings.

I've been to weddings for aunts/uncles when I was a child. As a kid, I wasn't really informed of the financial aspects of wedding tradition. So yeah, this is all really new to me. I really don't have a clue how weddings work and what are standard practices.

But if you say that the CO should generally look at wedding gifts as normal and natural, then I will take your word for it. Thank you for the info, you've been a huge help in figuring this out.

[Ontarkie 15,136]

slightly off-topic, but your comment here made me briefly read your name as Onsnarkie......

Lol I'm far from snarky 99% of the time anyway

[Penguin_ie 6,005]

Cash gifts as wedding gifts are perfectly normal in many cultures, yes. So if this is for AFTER the wedding, you can absolutely explain some recent money arrived in your joint account as wedding gifts; this would be far less "suspicious" than doing a gofundme before the K1 visa interview.