Help needed: IR1 from Canada

[darth vader 133]

Hi,

 

My husband (Indian citizen) and I (USC) live together in Canada. We are planning to apply for an IR1 visa for my husband to move to U.S. with me. We have a had a previous k1 visa denial or withdrawal (please see this link for details). We have lived in Canada together for over two years now, we went to graduate school together and have degrees from same school. We married in India in presence of my husband's family and my husband's sister's friend. We couldn't afford a lavish wedding hence kept it to only his family. We did get a NOC from New Delhi consulate prior to marrying.

 

Given that we had a previous k1 that was denied and that we couldn't afford a lavish wedding, we are being very cautious this time. We want to send in as much information as possible with our I-130.

 

Here is my understanding of how this works, please correct me If I am wrong:

 

1. We sent I-130 to chicago lockbox. (My domicile address is in PA, not sure if that makes a difference).

2. We get NOA1 once the I-130 petition is approved. (~6 months)

3. We get NOA2 once the NVC approves the petition and sends it to Montreal consulate (no additional document required by NVC).

4. Husband gets the DS forms to fill and interview at Montreal

My questions about sending out I-130 are as follows:

 

1. We only had my name on the lease of the university apartment where we lived, so we got a signed letter (scanned copy over email) from the rental agent at the university apartment building confirming that we indeed lived there. Is that OK? Can the print of the original email chain be considered as evidence of the letter being real (both our emails and rental agents email are at the university email ids)?

 

2. We got a letter of support from my father who lives in PA (signed and dated but notarized) for proof of bonafide marriage, is that OK or it has to be notarized? We'll get similar letters from my husband's parents as well.

 

3. We are thinking of getting a similar letter of support from a common friend we made while we attended the university. The letter would say that he met us at university and knows how we met and when and where we got married from talking to us. Should we include that?

 

4. We are thinking of sending our joint bank account's statements (downloaded online), is that OK or they have to be official?

 

5. Other than that we are thinking of getting as many utility bills/phone bills etc in both our names from now on so we can have them with us at the interview. Is it ok to take such evidence?

 

6. Can my husband interview at Montreal consulate?

 

7. Does a letter of expression of interest in our case by the Senator's office help?

 

8. Does everything has to be notarized or as original as possible for the I-130 application or scans are fine?

 

9. We have photos at campus events together, trip to New Delhi (for NOC before marriage, visited India gate), our photo at the hotel with my husband's family, wedding photos, we should have our photo with my family before we interview. Does that sound enough?

 

Please make sure you read about our precious k1 experience before you answer here. Thanks!

[Lemonslice 5,323]

8 minutes ago, darth vader said:

 

6. Can my husband interview at Montreal consulate?

If he has legal status in Canada (work/study/residence permit), then yes.

 

I suggest you keep your questions to one thread so other members have the background information. 

[JFH 12,196]

44 minutes ago, darth vader said:

Hi,

 

My husband (Indian citizen) and I (USC) live together in Canada. We are planning to apply for an IR1 visa for my husband to move to U.S. with me. We have a had a previous k1 visa denial or withdrawal (please see this link for details). We have lived in Canada together for over two years now, we went to graduate school together and have degrees from same school. We married in India in presence of my husband's family and my husband's sister's friend. We couldn't afford a lavish wedding hence kept it to only his family. We did get a NOC from New Delhi consulate prior to marrying.

 

Given that we had a previous k1 that was denied and that we couldn't afford a lavish wedding, we are being very cautious this time. We want to send in as much information as possible with our I-130.

 

Here is my understanding of how this works, please correct me If I am wrong:

 

1. We sent I-130 to chicago lockbox. (My domicile address is in PA, not sure if that makes a difference).

2. We get NOA1 once the I-130 petition is approved. (~6 months)

3. We get NOA2 once the NVC approves the petition and sends it to Montreal consulate (no additional document required by NVC).

4. Husband gets the DS forms to fill and interview at Montreal

My questions about sending out I-130 are as follows:

 

1. We only had my name on the lease of the university apartment where we lived, so we got a signed letter (scanned copy over email) from the rental agent at the university apartment building confirming that we indeed lived there. Is that OK? Can the print of the original email chain be considered as evidence of the letter being real (both our emails and rental agents email are at the university email ids)?

 

2. We got a letter of support from my father who lives in PA (signed and dated but notarized) for proof of bonafide marriage, is that OK or it has to be notarized? We'll get similar letters from my husband's parents as well.

 

3. We are thinking of getting a similar letter of support from a common friend we made while we attended the university. The letter would say that he met us at university and knows how we met and when and where we got married from talking to us. Should we include that?

 

4. We are thinking of sending our joint bank account's statements (downloaded online), is that OK or they have to be official?

 

5. Other than that we are thinking of getting as many utility bills/phone bills etc in both our names from now on so we can have them with us at the interview. Is it ok to take such evidence?

 

6. Can my husband interview at Montreal consulate?

 

7. Does a letter of expression of interest in our case by the Senator's office help?

 

8. Does everything has to be notarized or as original as possible for the I-130 application or scans are fine?

 

9. We have photos at campus events together, trip to New Delhi (for NOC before marriage, visited India gate), our photo at the hotel with my husband's family, wedding photos, we should have our photo with my family before we interview. Does that sound enough?

 

Please make sure you read about our precious k1 experience before you answer here. Thanks!

A couple of points (and I only skimmed through it):

 

- plenty of additional documentation is required by the NVC for a spousal visa (unlike the K-1 fiancé visa). I suggest you read through the process thoroughly so that you know which documents are needed and you can start gathering them. 

 

- letters of support from family members are close to meaningless. They certainly don't "prove" a bona fide marriage. That would only he possible if your father could read your mind. There is no "proof" of a bona fide relationship or marriage. No one can prove their intentions. You can demonstrate them with evidence. Too many people here think they have "proof" of a bona fide relationship. This leads to complacency. Think of it as evidence that you are using to try and convince someone the relationship is genuine. You have the gold medal of evidence anyway - living together for two years. Focus on that rather than wasting time with meaningless letters from your father (what father is going to write a bad letter for his daughter anyway? Of course he's going to say wonderful things about the two of you! He's your dad and he'd do anything for you.)

[nightingalejules 678]

 

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

 

Given that we had a previous k1 that was denied and that we couldn't afford a lavish wedding, we are being very cautious this time. We want to send in as much information as possible with our I-130.

It appears from your earlier experience that you weren't actually denied, you just didn't complete the application. Either way, now you're applying for a different visa, with the same person, so it shouldn't affect you too much one way or another.

 

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

 

Here is my understanding of how this works, please correct me If I am wrong:

 

1. We sent I-130 to chicago lockbox. (My domicile address is in PA, not sure if that makes a difference).

2. You'll get NOA 1 when the petition is "scanned in" to the system at USCIS

3. You get NOA2 once the I-130 petition is approved. Having the I-130 approved basically means you are now allowed to apply for the actual visa

4. Your approved I-130 is sent to NVC, where you pay more money, fill in the actual visa application and submit more evidence. Since you're applying from Canada, you can do this online, and send everything as PDFs by email. (SOOOO much easier than having to send everything by mail.)

5. You get a "Case Complete" from NVC, and they send your file to the US Consulate in Montreal. They assign your husband an interview time.

6. He has his visa medical exam done, attends his interview (you can attend too, but you don't have to), and hopefully get approved. They keep your husband's passport to put the visa in.

7. Your passport is returned to you with the visa in it.

My questions about sending out I-130 are as follows:

 

1. We only had my name on the lease of the university apartment where we lived, so we got a signed letter (scanned copy over email) from the rental agent at the university apartment building confirming that we indeed lived there. Is that OK? Can the print of the original email chain be considered as evidence of the letter being real (both our emails and rental agents email are at the university email ids)?

You'll be fine with just the letter.

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

2. We got a letter of support from my father who lives in PA (signed and dated but notarized) for proof of bonafide marriage, is that OK or it has to be notarized? We'll get similar letters from my husband's parents as well.

 

3. We are thinking of getting a similar letter of support from a common friend we made while we attended the university. The letter would say that he met us at university and knows how we met and when and where we got married from talking to us. Should we include that?

As you've already heard, these "affidavits of support" don't carry too much weight with USCIS... but go ahead and include them.

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

4. We are thinking of sending our joint bank account's statements (downloaded online), is that OK or they have to be official?

Just the statements will be totally sufficient. We didn't have this since we didn't have joint accounts. But online statements are fine.

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

5. Other than that we are thinking of getting as many utility bills/phone bills etc in both our names from now on so we can have them with us at the interview. Is it ok to take such evidence?

Bring whatever you want - they may or may not look at it. 

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

6. Can my husband interview at Montreal consulate?

Yes, as long as he has status there.

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

7. Does a letter of expression of interest in our case by the Senator's office help?

Couldn't hurt, but probably not necessary.

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

8. Does everything has to be notarized or as original as possible for the I-130 application or scans are fine?

Look at the instructions for the I-130. Most things they don't want originals of. If it doesn't specifically say they need originals, don't send them because they won't be returned. If you're doing the NVC portion online everything will be scans (obvs) but you bring the originals to the interview.

1 hour ago, darth vader said:

9. We have photos at campus events together, trip to New Delhi (for NOC before marriage, visited India gate), our photo at the hotel with my husband's family, wedding photos, we should have our photo with my family before we interview. Does that sound enough?

It's a ****ton more stuff than hubby and I sent, and we got the visa just fine.

 

One other note, though... the Montreal consulate is famous for being extra picky about the USC (you) re-establishing residency. We also were living in Canada and brought things like a moving quote, hubby's union membership, voter registration card, info about his bank accounts in the US, etc to prove that he had made plans to move back. Unless you have enough US income to file the Affidavit of Support, you will also need a joint sponsor who has sufficient income for that. They won't accept your Canadian income.

 

[jle2234 68]

My husband (USC) and I (Canadian citizen) had been married three years when we applied for IR-1, and four years by the time my interview rolled around. I did my interview in Montreal, as your husband likely will.

 

Like you, my husband and I were living together in Canada when we applied. He was going through his Canadian immigration when we purchased our home in Canada, so the home title and mortgage were solely in my name. It was not a problem when immigrating to the U.S. Likewise, by the time of my interview, my husband had already resumed domicile in the U.S. (he had to go ahead of me to start a new job). We provided utility bills with only his name on them to confirm U.S. domicile. No problem there, either.

 

We also had a small wedding, and that was likewise not an issue. In fact, we were only ever asked for our wedding date and place -- no other details were needed that I recall. Our wedding was in Canada.

 

I do think it's good to provide as much evidence as possible. But if there are no red flags in your case, a small wedding or a single name on a lease don't seem to be a problem.

[darth vader 133]

On 11/23/2017 at 11:18 AM, jle2234 said:

My husband (USC) and I (Canadian citizen) had been married three years when we applied for IR-1, and four years by the time my interview rolled around. I did my interview in Montreal, as your husband likely will.

 

Like you, my husband and I were living together in Canada when we applied. He was going through his Canadian immigration when we purchased our home in Canada, so the home title and mortgage were solely in my name. It was not a problem when immigrating to the U.S. Likewise, by the time of my interview, my husband had already resumed domicile in the U.S. (he had to go ahead of me to start a new job). We provided utility bills with only his name on them to confirm U.S. domicile. No problem there, either.

 

We also had a small wedding, and that was likewise not an issue. In fact, we were only ever asked for our wedding date and place -- no other details were needed that I recall. Our wedding was in Canada.

 

I do think it's good to provide as much evidence as possible. But if there are no red flags in your case, a small wedding or a single name on a lease don't seem to be a problem.

The USCIS website says that they require notarized affidavit of support. The letter(s) of support we have aren't notarized. We have several ohotos together and evidence of living together for more than two years and going to same school together etc.
 

Do we really need notarized affidavit of support?

 

Edited November 28, 2017 by darth vader

[nightingalejules 678]

Honestly, I don't know. If it says they need to be notarized, then get them notarized. Back when we applied, they didn't specify notarized, so we just had a couple of letters. It seems that they might have changed their requirements.

[darth vader 133]

5 minutes ago, nightingalejules said:

Honestly, I don't know. If it says they need to be notarized, then get them notarized. Back when we applied, they didn't specify notarized, so we just had a couple of letters. It seems that they might have changed their requirements.

Actually, it says 'affidavit sworn or affirmed' but not 'notarized':

 

####################################################################################

Affidavits sworn to or affirmed by third parties having personal knowledge of the bona fides of the marital relationship (Each affidavit must contain the full name and address, date and place of birth of the person making the affidavit, his or her relationship to the petitioner of beneficiary, if any, and complete information and details explaining how the person acquired his or her knowledge of your marriage) ######################################################################################################## Does affidavit mean a signed letter (our letters of support do contain the full name and address, date and place of birth of the person making the affidavit, his or her relationship to the petitioner of beneficiary)? Thanks!

Edited November 28, 2017 by darth vader

[nightingalejules 678]

There you go. So theoretically the letter should contain something like the words "I swear (or I affirm) that everything in this letter is true, to the best of my knowledge. But even if it doesn't, since the letters (and yes, basically an affidavit is just a written statement of facts, so the legalese equivalent of a letter) are secondary evidence, what you have is probably fine.

 

[darth vader 133]

We received a letter from the embassy via our senator's office, saying the following-

 

#####################################################################

Our records indicate that Mr. xxxxxxx’s petition was returned to the National Visa Center (NVC)
on February xx, 2015, after the U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai received a withdrawal request
from the petitioner. Once NVC receives the petition, it will return it to the approving U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office with a request for revocation of the case.

#####################################################################

Does it confirm that we withdrew the case? What does ' request for revocation' mean ?

Edited November 29, 2017 by darth vader