Financial Requirements for CR-1 Visa

[SonofBaraka 1]

My filipina girl friend and I have lived together in Thailand since 2013 at my condo(own) in Thailand. We will be officially married in Thailand in mid-February,2019 and she will immediately apply for DCF expedited process for the CR-1 visa. My adjusted gross income for 2018 was $26,298. The federal poverty level for all 50 states in 2018 was $12,140. 25% above that is approximately $15,175. Although I spend 10 months a year in Thailand, I own a condo in the States and my total income of $128,000 comes from U.S. based property which I own and rent and on which I pay federal and state taxes. As my wife's sponsor, is there any other proof of income(in addition to my  2017 1040 return) I need to prove I can support her?

By the way, does she need her birth certificate, in addition to her passport, to prove her identity? Does she need a notarized letter from my Thai condo showing she is staying in my condo and has been staying there since 2013?

Edited January 21, 2019 by SonofBaraka
correct for grammatical mistakes

[SalishSea 16,770]

1 hour ago, SonofBaraka said:

My filipina girl friend and I have lived together in Thailand since 2013 at my condo(own) in Thailand. We will be officially married in Thailand in mid-February,2019 and she will immediately apply for DCF expedited process for the CR-1 visa. My adjusted gross income for 2018 was $26,298. The federal poverty level for all 50 states in 2018 was $12,140. 25% above that is approximately $15,175. Although I spend 10 months a year in Thailand, I own a condo in the States and my total income of $128,000 comes from U.S. based property which I own and rent and on which I pay federal and state taxes. As my wife's sponsor, is there any other proof of income(in addition to my  2017 1040 return) I need to prove I can support her?

By the way, does she need her birth certificate, in addition to her passport, to prove her identity? Does she need a notarized letter from my Thai condo showing she is staying in my condo and has been staying there since 2013?

That federal poverty level (for two people) does not look right.....

[SonofBaraka 1]

3 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

That federal poverty level (for two people) does not look right.....

https://www.payingforseniorcare.com/longtermcare/federal-poverty-level.html

 

Check it out. The figure I quoted was for ONE person - me.

[SalishSea 16,770]

2 hours ago, SonofBaraka said:

https://www.payingforseniorcare.com/longtermcare/federal-poverty-level.html

 

Check it out. The figure I quoted was for ONE person - me.

You need to include her as well!

[SonofBaraka 1]

48 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

You need to include her as well!

125% of the combined figure of $16,450 = $20,575. Will that be more than enough to avoid providing additional financial information?

[millefleur 5,035]

You need to include the household size for 2 people, you and your spouse. Seems like you have enough for a household of 2, you can also list assets such as property but it cannot be the main property you intend to live in.

 

Any proof of living together is going to help in the case of DCF. It wouldn't hurt to get a notarized letter explaining that she lives together with you in an apartment you own there.

 

Also, since you are currently living abroad, you will have to do an extra step: intent to re-establish domicile in the US or proof of domicile in the US. You will have to prove that you intend to also move back to the US to get a CR-1 visa approved.

[SonofBaraka 1]

20 minutes ago, millefleur said:

You need to include the household size for 2 people, you and your spouse. Seems like you have enough for a household of 2, you can also list assets such as property but it cannot be the main property you intend to live in.

 

Any proof of living together is going to help in the case of DCF. It wouldn't hurt to get a notarized letter explaining that she lives together with you in an apartment you own there.

 

Also, since you are currently living abroad, you will have to do an extra step: intent to re-establish domicile in the US or proof of domicile in the US. You will have to prove that you intend to also move back to the US to get a CR-1 visa approved. 

In response to your obviously important points, I'll try to respond in kind. The only way I can offer the household size is to submit a layout of the 1-bedroom, 565 sq.ft. condo and proof of ownership(both of which I have documents)

I can write a notarized letter stating she lives with me since 2013.

Proof of domicile is in the above documents.Just how can I prove I intend to move back to the U.
S.? Be specific, since I'm retired and can live anywhere.

[millefleur 5,035]

13 minutes ago, SonofBaraka said:

In response to your obviously important points, I'll try to respond in kind. The only way I can offer the household size is to submit a layout of the 1-bedroom, 565 sq.ft. condo and proof of ownership(both of which I have documents)

I can write a notarized letter stating she lives with me since 2013.

Proof of domicile is in the above documents.Just how can I prove I intend to move back to the U.
S.? Be specific, since I'm retired and can live anywhere. 

Oh, I wouldn't worry about physical size of your apartment...it's more for taxation reasons, the US calculates the poverty level by how many people live in a household, i.e. how many people will file under the same tax return. When you fill out the I-864, you will have to put "2" under household size, you and your spouse.

 

Owning property in the US is not proof enough to show you live or intend to live there. Especially for DCF filers, it's really important to prove that you intend to move back to the US, as the purpose of a CR-1 visa is to live in the US.

 

The "proof of domicile" part will come after your I-130 is approved, but you will need to have it as they will ask and it's good to start gathering evidence for that. Check here for an example of things you can use to prove this:

 

 

Edited January 21, 2019 by millefleur

[SonofBaraka 1]

4 hours ago, millefleur said:

Oh, I wouldn't worry about physical size of your apartment...it's more for taxation reasons, the US calculates the poverty level by how many people live in a household, i.e. how many people will file under the same tax return. When you fill out the I-864, you will have to put "2" under household size, you and your spouse.

 

Owning property in the US is not proof enough to show you live or intend to live there. Especially for DCF filers, it's really important to prove that you intend to move back to the US, as the purpose of a CR-1 visa is to live in the US.

 

The "proof of domicile" part will come after your I-130 is approved, but you will need to have it as they will ask and it's good to start gathering evidence for that. Check here for an example of things you can use to prove this:

 

 

I'm sorry, but reading about the Halton Family and Re-establishing Proof of Domecile hasn't given me the kind of information I need to prove we intend to live there. All I have to offer is my condo, my Louisiana's drivers license, my car registration and insurance. As I said I'm retired, so I can't show proof of employment or offer of employment for my wife. What more can I say or show to convince the interviewer we are moving to the U.S.?

[millefleur 5,035]

7 hours ago, SonofBaraka said:

I'm sorry, but reading about the Halton Family and Re-establishing Proof of Domecile hasn't given me the kind of information I need to prove we intend to live there. All I have to offer is my condo, my Louisiana's drivers license, my car registration and insurance. As I said I'm retired, so I can't show proof of employment or offer of employment for my wife. What more can I say or show to convince the interviewer we are moving to the U.S.? 

It's a good idea to write a kind of cover letter regarding your intention to re-establish your domicile in the US. Other things you can include are: voter records showing you have voted recently and voter registration, any possible documents showing you will leave Thailand (in my case, I had a Russian work visa that was going to expire, I also submitted my contact and that I was leaving my job, then I switched over to a short-stay Russian visa), and in general you can just explain your plan in a cover letter that you've been living in Thailand but intend to move back to the US. I don't know how strict the Consulate is there concerning re-establishment of domicile, but you should write a letter explaining your plan and include everything you mentioned plus anything else that supports the idea that you will leave Thailand and return to the US.

 

 

Edited January 21, 2019 by millefleur

[Nitas_man 3,100]

On 1/21/2019 at 6:13 AM, SonofBaraka said:

I'm sorry, but reading about the Halton Family and Re-establishing Proof of Domecile hasn't given me the kind of information I need to prove we intend to live there. All I have to offer is my condo, my Louisiana's drivers license, my car registration and insurance. As I said I'm retired, so I can't show proof of employment or offer of employment for my wife. What more can I say or show to convince the interviewer we are moving to the U.S.?

We didn’t have any property when we moved back to the US.

I used my parents house as a throwdown address, had my car, bank account, car insurance, drivers license, my vonage and AT&T cell phone, and credit cards all addressed there.

I told the consulate that this is where we were moving back to and we’d find something permanent when we got back.  

It’s that easy. You don’t need a letter, or a long-winded explanation, or anything else.  We’ve left and returned twice.  

 

Household size:  how many people live in your immediate household

 

How much you need for the support affidsvit:

 

https://www.uscis.gov/i-864p  OR take that annual income, multiply it times 3, and declare liquid assets (they really like cash in the bank) for that amount.

 

Reason to go home?  Mine was I was homesick and tired of being where we were.  You have a lot more reasons.  Tell ‘em you miss the hurricane parties and gumbo.  You don’t need “proof” you’re moving back.  Good luck!

Edited January 28, 2019 by Nitas_man

[millefleur 5,035]

24 minutes ago, Nitas_man said:

You don’t need “proof” you’re moving back.

This is just straight up false. The official instructions on the I-864 say:

 

2. You [petitioner] are living abroad temporarily.
If you are not currently living in the United States, you must provide proof that your trip abroad is temporary and that
you have maintained your domicile in the United States. Examples of proof include:
A. Your voting record in the United States;
B. Records of paying U.S. state or local taxes;
C. Having property in the United States;
D. Maintaining bank or investment accounts in the United States;
E. Having a permanent mailing address in the United States; or
F. Other proof such as evidence that you are a student studying abroad or that a foreign government has authorized a
temporary stay.

Edited January 28, 2019 by millefleur

[Nitas_man 3,100]

8 minutes ago, millefleur said:

This is just straight up false. The official instructions on the I-864 say:

 

2. You [petitioner] are living abroad temporarily.
If you are not currently living in the United States, you must provide proof that your trip abroad is temporary and that
you have maintained your domicile in the United States.

Like I said, we did this not once but twice.  We did it last year. 

You only have to prove “intent to domicile”. The bar for that, as it turns out, is pretty low.  

Read my list again and read the “official instructions”.  You still see a problem?

Edited January 28, 2019 by Nitas_man

[millefleur 5,035]

Just now, Nitas_man said:

Like I said, we did this not once but twice.  We did it last year. 

You only have to prove “intent to domicile”. The bar for that, as it turns out, is pretty low.  

There have been multiple cases on VJ of people being refused for not showing enough evidence of "intent to re-establish" domicile:

And many others of you search here on VJ. Just because the bar was "pretty low" in your case doesn't mean that will be the case for others. It's best to follow what the official instructions of the I-864 say and to be aware that folks are refused for not having enough evidence in regards to this issue.

 

[Ryan H 3,790]

~~~Closed for review~~~

 

***Thread back open; one post violating the TOS (abusive language) removed; Administrative Action taken.***

Edited January 28, 2019 by Ryan H