What to do when I don't have the income to solely support him?

[amishbaby 407]

I am new here with a few questions as I am not sure where else to turn to and thought this would be a good first place, other than an attorney and the research I have already done. The information is very conflicting though that I've been reading.

Me and my boyfriend met online via Facebook. He lives in Australia and I live in the US. As of right now, I live with my mom who is on disability and also working a part time job. I'm not employed as of right now, just make some side cash through my Etsy and eBay, and other side gigs I do as an entrepreneur so I do not make too much at this moment. I know that with a fiancee visa, there is a poverty guideline that I have to reach. For the fiancee visa it says 100% but for the green card it says it's 125% poverty guidelines. My problem is I am in university, getting my bachelors degree right now and school takes all my time, so I have not been working via an employer. I also won't graduate until 2020. My concerns are that I won't have the money to support him persay, but what if I combined the income I do have, with the income that my mom has? (she is willing to sponsor him.)

I am also wondering is my boyfriend allowed to use any of his assets to help get approved for the affidavit of support. I want us to get married but I am in fear of not having the funds to support him. I also don't know of any other people that would be willing to support him.

If I can't use his funds as an asset, is he allowed to send me money to my bank account so I can use that money as an asset for the affidavit of support?

I am wondering what it is exactly that I can do. I want to just go with it, get married, and if there are hurdles I want to get through them one step at a time... as there will always be some kind of challenge regardless. I don't want the limited income to put a damper on our relationship. I am just trying to figure out what I can do as for the money situation. If I can use any kind of assets of his, plus me and my moms income, or maybe assets of his that he sends me that I can apply to our income, that would work.

Thank you for those who answer this, and I hope I have made this as clear as possible. Me and my boyfriend have been together for almost a year. We aren't filing for the fiancee visa yet... he still has to come here, but we have talked about it and I want to be prepared and have as much information as possible prior to doing all of this.

Once again, I appreciate all responses.

[Meg&Andrew 297]

You cannot combine your income with that of a joint sponsor to meet the income requirement. You need to find a joint sponsor. Also, you can not have a large lump sum of money deposited into your account or this will be a HUGE red flag. That being said,You may add the cash value of your assets. This includes money in savings accounts, stocks, bonds, and property. To determine the amount of assets required to qualify, subtract your household income from the minimum income requirement (125% of the poverty level for your family size). You must prove the cash value of your assets is worth five times this difference (the amount left over).

• Exceptions:
  • If the person being sponsored is a spouse, or son/daughter (who is 18 years or older) of a U.S. citizen: The minimum cash value of assets must be three times the difference between the sponsor’s household income and 125% of the federal poverty guide line for the household

My best advice is just find a joint sponsor.

https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/green-card-processes-and-procedures/affidavit-support\

This may help you with some of your answers as well.

[amishbaby 407]

You cannot combine your income with that of a joint sponsor to meet the income requirement. You need to find a joint sponsor. Also, you can not have a large lump sum of money deposited into your account or this will be a HUGE red flag. That being said,You may add the cash value of your assets. This includes money in savings accounts, stocks, bonds, and property. To determine the amount of assets required to qualify, subtract your household income from the minimum income requirement (125% of the poverty level for your family size). You must prove the cash value of your assets is worth five times this difference (the amount left over).

• Exceptions:
  • If the person being sponsored is a spouse, or son/daughter (who is 18 years or older) of a U.S. citizen: The minimum cash value of assets must be three times the difference between the sponsor’s household income and 125% of the federal poverty guide line for the household

My best advice is just find a joint sponsor.

https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/green-card-processes-and-procedures/affidavit-support\

This may help you with some of your answers as well.

Maybe I am a little confused. I was looking at the form (I-864) and reading it seen that you could add those that are living in your house for extra income. I thought that if I am living with someone (mom), and she would be adding her income.. would make her a joint sponsor, or am I just confused on what a joint sponsor is?

Can you explain this to me a bit more? I don't know of any other people that could sponsor us. Just my moms income and whatever income I have, and we live together.

I was thinking of saving up money by opening up a bank account.... to help with the assets because I'm not sure when were gonna file this anyways.. so I have time to save up money for assets.

I figured out how much money just my mother makes alone without my income.

She makes $11,568 in income from her disability in a year. For work, she made $5,799 for the 2015 tax year. That comes out to $17,367. My income is only about 2,000-3000 from the 2015 year, if that.

So what you are saying then, would I be able to use just my moms income then since my income isn't much? Would she qualify as a joint sponsor?

Edited August 20, 2016 by amishbaby

[Meg&Andrew 297]

You will be the primary sponsor no matter what. Even with your income, and your mothers you made about 20,000. You need to be at the household size of 3 if your mother lives in the household with you. You have to include your fiance' in as a member as well which means you will need about 25,000. So you would still be under the poverty level by about $5,000. Is there anyone at all that you can think to help you with the sponsoring? Also, for future reference, with the K1 visa you will need to file the I-134 instead of the I-864 for the interview. When filing AOS you submit the I-864. I know this may sound crazy but have you thought of putting a hold on school for the time being, and getting a job? Or maybe getting a job in between the times that you aren't in school? I'm just trying to throw things out there for you, The income you have at the time of the interview is what matters.

[amishbaby 407]

You will be the primary sponsor no matter what. Even with your income, and your mothers you made about 20,000. You need to be at the household size of 3 if your mother lives in the household with you. You have to include your fiance' in as a member as well which means you will need about 25,000. So you would still be under the poverty level by about $5,000. Is there anyone at all that you can think to help you with the sponsoring? Also, for future reference, with the K1 visa you will need to file the I-134 instead of the I-864 for the interview. When filing AOS you submit the I-864. I know this may sound crazy but have you thought of putting a hold on school for the time being, and getting a job? Or maybe getting a job in between the times that you aren't in school? I'm just trying to throw things out there for you, The income you have at the time of the interview is what matters.

I asked a friend of mine, just waiting to hear back from him because he's on vacation. I'd like to talk to him in person about it if possible. But if he doesn't, my only other option is to look around for someone. I can keep looking and asking. Can't hurt. Thanks for the information on the form. I wasn't sure. There's so many different forms and different websites telling me different things. I'm a bit overwhelmed, haha! I was thinking about school, but I don't know how it works with my school. I'd have to look into it. Even so, I wasn't anticipating it. I definitely want to finish school first. But I might be able to pull a part time job on the side with my schooling. So that I don't have to stop going to school and can also start saving up money if it's necessary.

If I can't get a sponsor, I was thinking of using my assets as income if I save up. What if I wanted to just use assets, do they allow that? Like say I had money that's been sitting in a bank account, but don't have employment to use that as income to support him, would they accept my available assets if it's more than $25,000? Just a question I've been meaning to ask. Thank you for the information.

Also, if I did get a job... how does that work? Do I need to work for about a year before I can do anything, like file the fiancee visa? So that I can prove the income that I made in a year? My problem with getting a part-time job is it wouldn't earn me enough money even in a year to qualify for the fiancee visa. Mostly factory jobs around here. I made only about $9,000 when I worked 6 months in a factory position... and because I don't have any degrees yet, nothing pays good enough around here since minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. So that's why I asked about the assets. If I had enough in assets, can they accept that?

Thanks for the information once again, very informative and helpful!