HELP! - Unique situation

[JLR-MPA 0]

Good evening, VisaJourney Members. 

 

I'm about to submit my immigrant wife's I-751 petition to remove conditions on her permanent residency. However, we have two unique situations and I am very worried about getting an RFE or a denial. 

 

Here are the two things I'm worried about:

 

1. We are a same-sex couple. Our son was born 5 months after we married. My mother is an attorney and informed me that I could not be on the birth certificate because I am not the "biological father." So we planned for me to adopt our son later. After we settled into our new life with a baby, we looked into adoption. It was too expensive for us since I am a graduate student and my wife is a stay-at-home mother. Our son is now 2 years old and we have never been hindered by the fact that I have not yet adopted him. So the adoption still has not taken place.

 

2. As a young couple in our twenties in low-paying positions (I am a grad student and my wife is a stay-at-home mother), we have had to live with a roommate to make ends meet in a fairly expensive college town. A family friend for many years agreed to be our roommate since we were comfortable with each other, he was accepting of same-sex partners, and was willing to live with a young child. We four (me, wife, baby, and family friend) lived together in an apartment for a year and it worked out very well. At the end of that year, we talked about moving to a bigger place. After looking around, we discovered that it was good investment to buy a house rather than rent since rent in our town was so expensive for three-bedroom apartments. Our roommate's parent's received a small inheritance from a deceased family member and they decided to give it to our roommate for a down payment on a house. However, our roommate would not be able to afford the monthly mortgage alone. We came to a mutually beneficial arrangement, in which he provided the down payment and I did all the leg work to purchase the house, then we share the mortgage. So we are co-owners on a house. Unfortunately, his parents did not like the idea of my wife being on the deed and mortgage because she comes from a very rural African town and has so little financial experience. Since they controlled the down payment money and we did not want to pass up this opportunity, my wife and I agreed to this. So now we all live in lovely home together, but my roommate/family friend and I are co-owners and my wife is not on the deed/mortgage.

 

 

The problem is that the I-751 requests both the birth certificate of any children born during the marriage and evidence of living together. I do not have evidence of us living together other than photographs and affidavits from family and friends. I have the birth certificate, but I'm not on it. So that seems like evidence against us.

 

Should I submit my application without reference to the birth certificate and our house and only address these things if I get an RFE?

Or should I submit explanations of why I don't have these things with my initial application?   

 

I'm wary of submitting explanations in our initial application, because I do not want to draw attention to our case and its unusual situation. 

 

Here is the evidence I do have and will be submitting: 

• Copy of federal tax return for 2016 showing status as “Married filing jointly”

• Copy of federal tax return transcripts (2015 and 2014), showing status as "Married filing jointly" 
• Copies of letters from the bank, bank statements, and bank cards (front) showing joint accounts (XXX and XXX Credit Union) and joint financial obligations and responsibility, over the course of the marriag
• Copies of XXX credit card statements and credit cards (front), showing <Cond. Perm. Res. Wife> as an authorized cardholder, further showing joint account, and joint financial obligations and responsibilities over the course of the marriage

• Copy of XXX credit cards (front), showing joint account.

• Copies of beneficiary letters for life insurance policies (XXX and XXX Life Insurance Company)

• Copies of Notices of Approval from Medi-Cal showing joint health insurance account

• Four Letters of Support/sworn affidavits by U.S. citizen family members, friends, and pediatrician, attesting to our relationship and marriage

• Photographs demonstrating consistent and continuous public affection, attendance, interaction, and identification as a married couple at family functions and in public, over the course of the marriage.

 

[Sukie 1,439]

I am also part of a same-sex couple where I am on the deed of the house and my spouse is not.  I simply provided an explanation of why that is in my cover letter.

 

You will not face issues of being a same-sex couple (especially being from California).  Just explain all the other stuff up front as best you can.

 

And, getting an RFE is not the end of the world.  If you have nothing more to send them if you get an RFE, it just means you'll definitely be interviewed, which should not be a problem in your case.

 

Just go for it!

 

Breathe!

 

Sukie in NY

[Ontarkie 13,915]

I'm still not on the deed to our house. It was no issue, we used drivers license and mail to show joint address. 

Just add other things - like bank, bills, joint cc's, I'm sure when you sit down and start thinking about things you can find all sorts of evidence. 

I even included vet receipts  

[JLR-MPA 0]

4 hours ago, Ontarkie said:

I'm still not on the deed to our house. It was no issue, we used drivers license and mail to show joint address. 

Just add other things - like bank, bills, joint cc's, I'm sure when you sit down and start thinking about things you can find all sorts of evidence. 

I even included vet receipts  

Thank you for your reply.

 

We just bought the house last year. So my driver's license does not have my new address and my wife does not have a driver's license. We live close to everyone we know. So we do not get much mail. We have letters from our health insurance provider, etc., but I've read that immigration does not consider this to be good evidence since it is easy to have one's mail sent anywhere one wants. We could easily receive mail at our home, but live elsewhere.

 

I'm still concerned about drawing unwanted attention to our case. In your opinion, should I submit the birth certificate and housing information with explanations in the initial application? Or not submit them and hopefully not get an RFE?

 

Thank you for your thoughts. 

 

[senthamarai 1]

Did you file tax returns jointly? If so, do you have copies of those? Do you have insurance? If so is your wife your beneficiary. These might help...

[NikLR 13,220]

Wills and medical powers of attorney would be helpful in your situation.  

[f f 725]

6 hours ago, jamierandol said:

We just bought the house last year. So my driver's license does not have my new address and my wife does not have a driver's license.

just go to the dmv and request a duplicate license and provide them the new address. I think it is $28 or so to get a duplicate license in california.

 

good luck

[JLR-MPA 0]

I'm going to go ahead and submit our son's birth certificate and the accompanying explanation of why I'm not on the certificate. 

I will go to the DMV and get a duplicate license as "f f" suggested above. Then I will submit the package. If I get an RFE, I will explain the best I can about the house. 

[neilsqueen 433]

1 hour ago, jamierandol said:

I'm going to go ahead and submit our son's birth certificate and the accompanying explanation of why I'm not on the certificate. 

I will go to the DMV and get a duplicate license as "f f" suggested above. Then I will submit the package. If I get an RFE, I will explain the best I can about the house. 

Can your wife get a state ID from the DMV?  That way it will show your same address.  Here in Maryland you can get one if you do not have a drivers license.

[f f 725]

42 minutes ago, neilsqueen said:

Can your wife get a state ID from the DMV?  That way it will show your same address.  Here in Maryland you can get one if you do not have a drivers license.

same is true in california. if I remember correctly I think it is the same form too just check a different box. and of course do not check any boxes relating to us citizenship or voting.

 

good luck

[Villanelle 4,121]

huh, well I dont know if the above posters actually read your post thoroughly enough. Because I see giant flags. And the more you post the bigger they appear to grow...

 

So to recap-

 

You are a female same sex couple. You live in a home with you, your wife, her biological child (she gave birth yes?- was it a donor or artificial insemination? You have proof of that? Because they will be interested in that to eliminate the suspicion of another relationship your wife may have had that overlapped with yours- and to USCIS you are the step-parent. You have no legal claim to the child currently) AND you live with a friend/roommate who is male.

The deed to the home was acquired AFTER your marriage and the deed and mortgage holders are YOU and this man. 

You have to remember ROC is your wifes process. It is her form not yours. She needs to demonstrate that she has a valid bonafide marriage. Now lots of US spouses actively participate in the ROC and do the leg work, fill out forms, gather evidence etc. Sometimes they even write the cover letters. USCIS will evaluate you both, but its her form at the end of the day. 

 

So you have the red flag of one spouse purchasing property and taking out a loan with a 3rd party. To complicate it the immigrant is claiming a same sex relationship and the 3rd party is of the opposite sex and not related to either of you. So it will raise suspicion about if the marriage is truly bonafide. If USCIS was to do a home visit what will they find? Does the man clearly have a separate bedroom? Is the bedroom you and your wife share clearly just for you and your wife? Do you guys have a separate bathroom from him? (I hope you dont find these questions offensive, its not my intention. These are just things that USCIS will potentially check- so Im asking to see if there are any other issues you may have and be unaware are issues) 

I mean a roommate is one thing. Lots of people have roommates. Even married couples can live with roommates. But he is not a roommate anymore. He is a co-owner. You made a significant commitment (mortgage) with a 3rd party and not with your wife. Is there anyway to add your wife on to the deed at this point? I understand there was an issue with the parents, however now that the property is bought- would they know if you added her to it? Would he be okay with adding her to it? (just throwing it out there)

 

Moving on- people have mentioned the DL issue. Your spouse is most likely going to need a form of ID for this process. USCIS uses the DLs or non drivers IDs for a few things. One- it shows the persons signature; they use this to compare to the forms to make sure it was signed by the person. (more of an issue for the US spouse- you know so the immigrant doesnt forge their name on a joint petition). Its also used to demonstrate shared address. With out a DL or non driver ID you will have to provide additional evidence of having the same shared address. So theres really no reason to not obtain her a non drivers ID. It can be used for ID purposes outside of immigration as well. 

 

----

You have a few options for how to handle the ROC packet. You can lay out everything upfront and let them deal with it. This means explaining about the housing situation and the child not having been adopted etc. Send in all the proof you can about everything. OR you can send in what you listed above and leave out the fact that you have a mortgage with another individual. Youll still want to address the child however since the form asks about children. Leaving stuff out is a slippery area. It can be viewed as misrep in a way. That you didnt give them all the info relevant but it can be easily argued that your mortgage situation is not relevant since its her form and its your personal finances so it wasnt included. -and honestly I dont think youre ever going to have to argue why you didnt send it in to begin with.  

 

You may get an RFE if you dont include your housing situation, you may not. If you send a lot of other evidence about having a joint residence they may not ask for more. But it is notably missing from your evidence list along with utility bills and such. Sometimes people who live with their parents (as a married couple to save money) do not include leases or bills and and are RFEd for such unless they provided a statement explaining they live with family/parents and have none. 

What are you leaning towards doing? Submitting what you listed (plus anything more you can find) and seeing if its enough or laying it all out there in the beginning?

 

[Lullaby123 4]

I agree with Damara. You decided to buy a house with someone other than your spouse or family member is a huge red flag, and you all live in the same house. I wouldn't share a property with my cousin, and how would his family trust you enough to let you co-own the house? You should see a lawyer. It's very risky to mention the house in the package. 

[Joanna Magdziarek 3]

Sorry jamierandol I don't want to came out as rude but your situation is super shady to me. There are few big red flags you and your wife have a baby but you have no rights to the baby? You bought a house with a friend and your wife is not list on the mortgage? And you have no evidence to show you are living together? 

You better find a good lawyer and don't try to do it yourself, because for me this case look like a lot of trouble so better don't screw it up trying to save money because you can get your wife and yourself in big troubles.

[JLR-MPA 0]

Part of my concern is that I don't feel UCSIS is that open to non-traditional marriages and circumstances. I also see how my two unique situations are red flags and that is why I am worried.

 

With regard to my step-son, there were legal barriers preventing my putting my name on his birth certificate. I will explain it to UCSIS as best I can, citing the legal statute. However, I never think of him as a step-son. He is simply my son. We have a letter from his pediatrician discussing both of our (my wife and my) involvement in his care during the last year and a half and affidavits from family and friends. 

 

With regard to the house, I felt at the time that buying a house with a third party would be a red-flag, but my wife and I discussed it and we did not want to pass up the opportunity to own a home. The third party owner is a family friend. He has his own bedroom. My wife and son and I share one bedroom and then we have an office that I use in order to keep all my projects and documents away from our son's eager little hands. 

 

Joanna (from a previous post), my wife and I do have evidence of living together, it is just not a legal lease or house title. 

We have:

·     -Letter of support from our son's pediatrician, showing his name and address

·      - Affidavits from family and friends referencing visiting our family at our one residence.

·       -Two life insurance letters and policies showing our address

·        -credit card statements showing our address

·       - Bank statements showing our address

·        -Health insurance policy info showing our address

·        -Envelopes addressed to both of us at our home

·      - Photos of our family at home

 

 

 

[Joanna Magdziarek 3]

Jamierandol,

It was not my intention to offend you. Just try to look at your case from immigration officer side. Your evidence of you two living together is weak (non of this is issued by government / state) she should have at least state id and you shoud have driving license something what is issued by government to show the same residency. I was assuming that you ask the questions becouse you feel like your evidence is not strong enought, if you feel diferent way go for it I wish you guys luck. My post was to put you your case from diferent perspective and suggestion about lawyer just for your consideration. Good luck!