Confused about this email from NVC

[za3bour 2]

Greetings

 

I recieved today an email from NVC that said this 

========================================================================================

______CORRESPONDENCE INSTRUCTIONS:_________________________________
When reviewing your case, we noticed that your sponsor might not have a principal residence or be
domiciled in the United States. A sponsor must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident who lives
in the United States and plans to stay indefinitely.

 

If your sponsor is living outside the United States temporarily, they must show:
 They left the United States for only a limited time,
 They intend to keep their residence in the United States, and
 Evidence of continued ties to the United States.
You will need to bring proof of your sponsor's domicile to your visa interview.

 

=========================================================================================

Can you please explain to me what does this mean? My wife is an american citizen and we're both living in Saudi Arabia. She left USA when she was 4 years old.

 

She is the sponsor and also my friend who is living in USA will be a co-sponsor as well. So what does this statement mean?

 

Thanks a lot

[Andsco 89]

Well you said your wife is your sponsor but your wife is not currently in the States and I believe she doesn't have an official residence in the States? in that case you should probably find another main sponsor or contact them and tell them that your co-sponsor is from the States and currently live there and see what they say from that point. 
It makes me feel by what I read that they won't accept your wife as sponsor for not living there in general (it doesn't matter if she's from the States as long as she doesn't live there officially). Does she has continued ties to the US? if so then you guys should show it.

[za3bour 2]

Just now, Andsco said:

Well you said your wife is your sponsor but your wife is not currently in the States and I believe she doesn't have an official residence in the States? in that case you should probably find another main sponsor or contact them and tell them that your co-sponsor is from the States and currently live there and see what they say from that point. 
It makes me feel by what I read that they won't accept your wife as sponsor for not living there in general (it doesn't matter if she's from the States as long as she doesn't live there officially). Does she has continued ties to the US? if so then you guys should show it.

Greetings

Thanks for the prompt answer.  My friend who is living in the USA will sponsor us, he submitted the tax info and he is also a US citizen. My wife can not sponsor me alone because 1, she dosent work, 2, she doesnt' live in USA.

 

We are intending to immigrate and live there. What makes me confused is that they didn;t say I need to submit anything, they just said I need to bring this info with me to the interview.

Tarek

[Andsco 89]

2 minutes ago, za3bour said:

Greetings

Thanks for the prompt answer.  My friend who is living in the USA will sponsor us, he submitted the tax info and he is also a US citizen. My wife can not sponsor me alone because 1, she dosent work, 2, she doesnt' live in USA.

 

We are intending to immigrate and live there. What makes me confused is that they didn;t say I need to submit anything, they just said I need to bring this info with me to the interview.

Tarek

Hello Tarek,

Did you make clear from the beginning that your friend will be the one sponsoring? If yes, I would make sure to take a moment and call the NVC and ask them about the whole situation. I am most certain that they will be able to give you an answer about the whole thing and maybe then they tell you that the sponsor has to send a letter or anything to make sure this person claims to be the one helping you both or something. The NVC is open until really late at night so I would take some time before they close or before they open in the morning to call them as it is the only times I found less people and the fastest time for them to answer. 

[za3bour 2]

2 minutes ago, Andsco said:

Hello Tarek,

Did you make clear from the beginning that your friend will be the one sponsoring? If yes, I would make sure to take a moment and call the NVC and ask them about the whole situation. I am most certain that they will be able to give you an answer about the whole thing and maybe then they tell you that the sponsor has to send a letter or anything to make sure this person claims to be the one helping you both or something. The NVC is open until really late at night so I would take some time before they close or before they open in the morning to call them as it is the only times I found less people and the fastest time for them to answer. 

Greetings,

 

Will I have sent an email to the immigration lawyer who has sent the information, hopefully it's not a mistake that will delay our case.

 

Thank you for your help

[JFH 12,189]

Your wife is your sponsor. That cannot be changed. For a spousal immigrant visa the USC spouse MUST be the sponsor. The sponsor MUST live in the USA or show that they will be going there permanently to live before or on the same day as the immigrant spouse, no later. They must show that they have somewhere to live there (even if they are renting a room from a family member). 

 

The previoud respnses given to you are not correct. You cannot have someone else as your sponsor. You can have a joint sponsor - in fact, you will NEED a joint sponsor - but your wife is your sponsor and must meet the requirements of domicile or intent to domicile in the USA. A spouse is always the sponsor even if they are not working and don't have a dime in the bank. 

 

Where will you be living? What work will your wife be doing? They need to see that this is a permanent move and that you will be settling there.

Edited May 9, 2017 by JFH

[za3bour 2]

6 minutes ago, JFH said:

Your wife is your sponsor. That cannot be changed. For a spousal immigrant visa the USC spouse MUST be the sponsor. The sponsor MUST live in the USA or show that they will be going there permanently to live before or on the same day as the immigrant spouse, no later. They must show that they have somewhere to live there (even if they are renting a room from a family member). 

 

The previoud respnses given to you are not correct. You cannot have someone else as your sponsor. You can have a joint sponsor - in fact, you will NEED a joint sponsor - but your wife is your sponsor and must meet the requirements of domicile or intent to domicile in the USA. A spouse is always the sponsor even if they are not working and don't have a dime in the bank. 

 

Where will you be living? What work will your wife be doing? They need to see that this is a permanent move and that you will be settling there.

Thank you very much, you are a life savor.

 

You are correct, my wife is the sponsor and my friend is a joint sponsor. As I mentioned my wife is a house wife, she used to work previously but not any more (as an art director). She is planning to work in USA.

 

As for me I'm an electrical engineer and I'm also planning to work. We are planning to live in Santa Cruz for sometime which is where my friend lives until I found a job. We might move to portland since my wife's sister lives there.

 

We are both planning to work, we have two kids who will be in school. We are intending to move to USA, it will be our permanent location.

 

She did sign a paper that she didnt work in the last 3 years and that she didn't file any taxes. 

 

So if I may rephrase my question, in the letter i recieved they didn't say they need any document they just said bring to the interview. Does this mean we need to bring documents that shows our intentions to live there (e.g. info about rent, info about school, info about potential jobs) which I already have with me.

 

thanks again

[JFH 12,189]

Yes. Bring documents to the interview that show you have made enquiries about schools, contacted rental places for apartments, that your wife has applied for jobs, anything that shows you are making concrete plans to live there. 

[Ontarkie 13,976]

~~Moved to IR1/CR1 from Bringing Family Members of USC - As this is a spousal visa process.~~

[za3bour 2]

I received the following information from the lawyer. He didn't really add much !

 

Quote

you need to work on this issue before any interview is scheduled on your behalf and your children, because at the interview the Consul will ask to see ALL and ANY proof that your wife lives in the United States and that she has proof of domicile in the United States.

 

[za3bour 2]

4 hours ago, JFH said:

Yes. Bring documents to the interview that show you have made enquiries about schools, contacted rental places for apartments, that your wife has applied for jobs, anything that shows you are making concrete plans to live there. 

Thank you. I will work on that. 

[JessieABC 159]

6 hours ago, za3bour said:

I received the following information from the lawyer. He didn't really add much !

 

 

 

Some additional information that may help to clarify re-establishment of domicile in the United States:

• http://lawandborder.com/issues-for-u-s-citizens-expats-in-filing-the-form-i-130-immigrant-petition-for-alien-relative/
• https://citizenpath.com/proving-country-of-domicile-i-864/

Quote

The petitioner must show that she/he spends a preponderance of time in the U.S. This time spent in the U.S. needs to be over a period of time. In other words, the petitioner must show that the petitioner is truly maintaining a residence in the United States, not just traveling for a couple of months at a time and then returning [abroad].

 

Although there is no time frame [required] to establish residence, it must be convincing evidence of continued ties to the United States and that the petitioner has, in fact, taken up residence in the United States. Evidence that the sponsor has established a domicile in the United States and is either physically residing there or intends to do so before or concurrently with the applicant includes, but is not limited to, the following:

 

(1) opening a bank account;

(2) transferring funds to the United States;

(3) making investments in the United States;

(4) seeking employment in the United States;

(5) registering children in U.S. schools;

(6) applying for a social security number;

(7) voting in local, state or federal elections

(8) leases, mortgages, utility bills, telephone bills, etc. established in the petitioner’s name. Provide a photo of the petitioner holding a current newspaper with the date clearly visible standing in front of a U.S. post office and color copies of all pages of the petitioner’s international passport[ ] with page numbers clearly visible.

Hope that helps!

[za3bour 2]

5 hours ago, JessieABC said:

 

Some additional information that may help to clarify re-establishment of domicile in the United States:

• http://lawandborder.com/issues-for-u-s-citizens-expats-in-filing-the-form-i-130-immigrant-petition-for-alien-relative/
• https://citizenpath.com/proving-country-of-domicile-i-864/

Hope that helps!

Thank you very much, it definitely helps. I've been reading about this since yesterday and I found also good threads here at the forum. The trick part is that my wife didn't live in USA for a long time and never lived there as an adult so she didn't have most of what is required.

 

However, it seems that things like trying to open a bank account online (we tried but failed so far), trying to register kids at schools, getting shipping quotations, finishing what ever arrangements you have overseas, etc should be enough. It all depends on the Counselor of course and whether he/she is convinced.

 

[za3bour 2]

I received this today 

 

Quote

The NVC received all documentation necessary to complete processing of your case. Your case is now waiting for a visa interview to be scheduled at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA. All parties to this case will be notified when an interview is scheduled.

Any idea how much time we're talking about? 2 months? 4 months? We are trying to expedite this because we won't kids to be in USA before schools starts. 

[Nattie_Bry 102]

Key point for spousal visa is for "reunion" purpose supposedly, not sure how they will interpret it if interview happens before your wife moves back to USA.