Is it ok to put household member as joint sponsor instead of household member?

[Bengalita 12]

Hi. If a petitioner should have to use a someone as a joint sponsor for the beneficiary, I know that you could do it 2 ways. If the person wishing to serve as joint sponsor is actually a related family member living in the same household, then you can just put them as 'household members' and add their income to the petitioners and most of the time, the total household income between petitioner and 'household member' usually is more than enough to meet the Poverty Line expectations.

However, what if it's a family member living in the same household, but instead of putting him as a 'household member', the petitioner puts him as a joint sponsor.

The reason for this is that, even though the addresses show the same, the petitioner is actually going to be moving out soon, so technically, the would not be 'household members'. That's why the petitioner went ahead and filled out the I-864 to show the person as a joint sponsor but not as a household member.

I don't think that it should be a problem, because as long as whoever is serving as Joint Sponsor (or household member) meets the salary expectations and vows to fulfill their duties in this capacity, I would think USCIS would be satisfied with that.

What do you think? Thanks!

Edited September 29, 2016 by Bengalita

[gregcrs2 1,777]

Is the "household member" listed in your tax returns?

[Bengalita 12]

Is the "household member" listed in your tax returns?[/

No, the joint sponsor (who is also the relative and lives in the same house for the moment) is not listed as a dependent on the petitioners taxes. The joint sponsor is the petitioner's father, and in the past, gained residency status through his daughter. So they all know that the incomes need to also include them as dependents for USCIS purposes.

Here's the scenario.

USC woman is petitioning for husband and stepdaughter

She doesn't make enough money

She is asking her father and mother to act as joint sponsors (father as the joint sponsor and mother as the household member to her husband so their incomes join)

The incomes of petitioner's father and mother are enough to satisfy income requirements for a family of 5, which includes petitioner, her husband, the stepdaughter and father and mother, (since they are still under the USCIS obligation of daughter when she filed for them).

[KayDeeCee 4,891]

Are the husband and step child in the US and they are filing for AOS, or this is for I-130 petitions in order to get immigrant visas for them to enter the US? Either scenario is not about the K-1 visa, which is the forum this was posted in.

And yes, it makes no difference if they reside together or not. They can still be a joint sponsor. There is no requirement to be a household member and file an I-864A instead. Father can be joint sponsor and mother can file an I-864A to go along with her husband's I-864 for joint sponsorship.

[Bengalita 12]

Are the husband and step child in the US and they are filing for AOS, or this is for I-130 petitions in order to get immigrant visas for them to enter the US? Either scenario is not about the K-1 visa, which is the forum this was posted in.

And yes, it makes no difference if they reside together or not. They can still be a joint sponsor. There is no requirement to be a household member and file an I-864A instead. Father can be joint sponsor and mother can file an I-864A to go along with her husband's I-864 for joint sponsorship.

They are filing I-485's after having arrived with K visas.

There are no I-130's involved in this.

Ok, the second paragraph of your response cleared up my doubt. Thanks so much!