I-134: concerned date of value of savings accounts, personal property, and stocks and bonds

[Hemutian 68]

I-134 Affidavit of Support

Part 3 Items 4, 5, 6 ask for balance of savings and checking accounts, value of personal property, and market value of stocks and bonds.

 

My questions:

a) These values fluctuate from day to day. Should I list the values as of today, the day I'm filling out the I-134? I have statements from my bank and broker which list these values, but those statements are written before today, so the values they state are different than the values today. Should I fill out the I-134 with the values on the letters that my bank and broker gave me? I'm just worried that this might be misrepresenting myself. The market just took a big hit these last couple days, so the market value of my stocks and bonds is lower than in the letter from my broker. Or does the CO realize that these things fluctuate, so any of the above answers is acceptable?

b) Should I only list the value of bank accounts for which I have an accompanying signed letters from said bank? I have two bank accounts. One responded to my request for a letter, the other did not. Should I just list the value of the bank account for which I have the letter, or list the combined value of both?

c) Should I list the value of my car under "personal property"? Do I need to include proof of purchase of my car? Do I need to account for the fact that the car is 5 years old and not worth the same as when I originally purchased it?

d) Do I list mutual funds in Question 6 on "stocks and bonds"? 

e) For the "list of stocks and bonds" which is required in additional information, Do I just need to list the names of the stocks, or do I need to list the names, the dates of purchase, the quantity of stocks, the value per stock, and the total market value?

Edited August 24, 2019 by Hemutian
clarification

[payxibka 10,044]

1 hour ago, Hemutian said:

I-134 Affidavit of Support

Part 3 Items 4, 5, 6 ask for balance of savings and checking accounts, value of personal property, and market value of stocks and bonds.

 

My questions:

a) These values fluctuate from day to day. Should I list the values as of today, the day I'm filling out the I-134? I have statements from my bank and broker which list these values, but those statements are written before today, so the values they state are different than the values today. Should I fill out the I-134 with the values on the letters that my bank and broker gave me? I'm just worried that this might be misrepresenting myself. The market just took a big hit these last couple days, so the market value of my stocks and bonds is lower than in the letter from my broker. Or does the CO realize that these things fluctuate, so any of the above answers is acceptable?

b) Should I only list the value of bank accounts for which I have an accompanying signed letters from said bank? I have two bank accounts. One responded to my request for a letter, the other did not. Should I just list the value of the bank account for which I have the letter, or list the combined value of both?

c) Should I list the value of my car under "personal property"? Do I need to include proof of purchase of my car? Do I need to account for the fact that the car is 5 years old and not worth the same as when I originally purchased it?

d) Do I list mutual funds in Question 6 on "stocks and bonds"? 

e) For the "list of stocks and bonds" which is required in additional information, Do I just need to list the names of the stocks, or do I need to list the names, the dates of purchase, the quantity of stocks, the value per stock, and the total market value?

Why are you listing stocks and bank accounts?  Do you not have enough current income?

[Hemutian 68]

6 minutes ago, payxibka said:

Why are you listing stocks and bank accounts?  Do you not have enough current income?

My income is well over the required income threshold.

I'm aware that folks on here seem to be of the opinion that if you meet the income requirement, you should leave assets out of it.

But I feel that due to my particular circumstances, I should ignore this advice and go ahead and list my assets anyway.

 

Why? Here are some reasons:

 

a) I'm currently not employed. I feel like this fact could make the CO apply extra scrutiny on me and my ability to support my fiancee.

 

b) The income that I do have, most of it comes from capital gains and dividends based on my stock portfolio. So it seems like providing information on my stock portfolio would go hand-in-hand with my income, mutually reinforcing, you know?

 

c) I've got plenty of documentation/proof of my assets that I can submit along with my Affidavit of Support, such as 1099s, signed letter and annual portfolio report from my asset manager

 

d) With the new immigration policies put in place by the Trump Administration, and the fact that my fiancee comes from a very poor background with no assets and very low income, they're going to be scrutinizing her much more than before the new policy. With that knowledge, I feel that my being completely upfront about not just my income but assets as well at this stage is in her interest, by putting it all on record, and hopefully when it comes time for AOS and we're married and our household income is joint, this will make things smoother for her

 

e) The I-134 form asks what the value of my stocks is. If I left that item blank, I would not be being truthful. The form does not say "if you already meet the requirements through income, don't bother listing your stocks". It asks for everything. I can't see how filling out both would hurt. It only strengthens my affidavit, doesn't it?

 

I really don't understand the reasoning of those who say "don't list assets" unless they're worried about privacy, or don't want the "added trouble" of gathering extra documents, or don't want to reveal their assets to their fiancee. I've already revealed my assets to my fiancee, so I don't have that issue. And I'm here, with her, physically in Guangzhou, waiting for the interview, and I have all the documents that back up my assets with me, so there's no "added trouble" in providing any of this stuff. 

[payxibka 10,044]

It's actually because they are reading the consulate instructions and following them instead of following uscis instructions because the consulate sets their own policy 

[Nitas_man 3,100]

 

1 hour ago, Hemutian said:

My income is well over the required income threshold.

 

e) The I-134 form asks what the value of my stocks is. If I left that item blank, I would not be being truthful. The form does not say "if you already meet the requirements through income, don't bother listing your stocks". It asks for everything. I can't see how filling out both would hurt. It only strengthens my affidavit, doesn't it?

 

I really don't understand the reasoning of those who say "don't list assets" unless they're worried about privacy, or don't want the "added trouble" of gathering extra documents, or don't want to reveal their assets to their fiancee. I've already revealed my assets to my fiancee, so I don't have that issue. And I'm here, with her, physically in Guangzhou, waiting for the interview, and I have all the documents that back up my assets with me, so there's no "added trouble" in providing any of this stuff. 

It’s mostly the added trouble LOL

 

However as we passed through embassies  on assets only (twice, one 1-864 and one I-134) I hadda do it.

 

My experience is that a summarized year of bank and investment account statements suffices for proof of cash flow and assets.  I did not provide any letters from any financial institutions and we were not asked for any.  Each set of bank statements had a summary of end of month value and deposits by month.  

 

My statements did not include a breakdown of individual holdings and I did not list them.  That IS a lot of trouble.  

 

Total listed value matched end of previous month.

 

I left fixed assets section blank in all cases.  Things like current registration and vehicle titles were down in the proof of ties section.

Edited August 24, 2019 by Nitas_man

[Hemutian 68]

45 minutes ago, payxibka said:

It's actually because they are reading the consulate instructions and following them instead of following uscis instructions because the consulate sets their own policy 

Are there consulate-specific instructions on how to complete the I-134? Because I haven't seen any.

Our consulate is Guangzhou, China, and the instructions on how to complete the Affidavit of Support are totally boiler-plate, with instructions to visit the general USCIS and State Department FAQs for any specific details.

There is nothing in my consulate's instructions telling me not to list stocks/assets if my income is already over the threshold. 

[Nitas_man 3,100]

10 minutes ago, Hemutian said:

Are there consulate-specific instructions on how to complete the I-134? Because I haven't seen any.

Our consulate is Guangzhou, China, and the instructions on how to complete the Affidavit of Support are totally boiler-plate, with instructions to visit the general USCIS and State Department FAQs for any specific details.

There is nothing in my consulate's instructions telling me not to list stocks/assets if my income is already over the threshold. 

You have the records - list them.  I did the same - way back on my original I-134, but I only provided 1 statement for each asset.  I never listed personal property.  I spent zero time worrying about whether the reported balance matched the closing balance on the day of interview.  

Edited August 24, 2019 by Nitas_man

[payxibka 10,044]

11 minutes ago, Hemutian said:

Are there consulate-specific instructions on how to complete the I-134? Because I haven't seen any.

Our consulate is Guangzhou, China, and the instructions on how to complete the Affidavit of Support are totally boiler-plate, with instructions to visit the general USCIS and State Department FAQs for any specific details.

There is nothing in my consulate's instructions telling me not to list stocks/assets if my income is already over the threshold. 

And nothing telling you too.  You simply must decide for yourself what amount of evidence is sufficient to demonstrate financial ability.   Once you have done so you can choose to stop.  No such thing as extra credit.   

[RandyW 149]

YOU are responsible for explaining your financial circumstances to the visa officer, above and beyond what is contained in the Affidavit of Support. I always advocate including career and job prospect information in addition to the AOS.

 

https://www.nilc.org/issues/economic-support/public-charge-changes-to-fam/

 

Quote

Federal law allows immigration authorities to deny entry to the U.S. to non–U.S. citizens who are likely in the future to depend on the government for subsistence by relying on cash assistance or long-term care at government expense (i.e., people who are likely to become a public charge). In making a public charge determination, the government must look at a person’s age, health, family situation, income, resources, education, and skills, and may also consider an affidavit of support or contract signed by a sponsor promising to support the immigrant. This “totality of the circumstances” test requires the government to look at all the factors together. It is a forward-looking test that may not be based solely on what happened in the past.

 

[payxibka 10,044]

1 minute ago, RandyW said:

YOU are responsible for explaining your financial circumstances to the visa officer, above and beyond what is contained in the Affidavit of Support. I always advocate including career and job prospect information in addition to the AOS.

 

https://www.nilc.org/issues/economic-support/public-charge-changes-to-fam/

 

 

The above relates to immigrant visas.  I864 is very different than the i134.

[Crazy Cat 39,220]

Self deleted.....misread a post

Edited August 24, 2019 by missileman

[Hemutian 68]

42 minutes ago, Nitas_man said:

You have the records - list them.  I did the same - way back on my original I-134, but I only provided 1 statement for each asset.  I never listed personal property.  I spent zero time worrying about whether the reported balance matched the closing balance on the day of interview.  

Thanks for actually answering my original question. 

[Hemutian 68]

2 minutes ago, missileman said:

Then you MUST list assets because your current annual income is zero.

Um, no. Just because I'm not employed doesn't mean I don't have income. I have income in the form of capital gains and dividends. I report it as income on my tax returns every year. I pay taxes on it. My tax transcripts list it as income, the same as income from any salaried job. 

[Crazy Cat 39,220]

Just now, Hemutian said:

Um, no. Just because I'm not employed doesn't mean I don't have income. I have income in the form of capital gains and dividends. I report it as income on my tax returns every year. I pay taxes on it. My tax transcripts list it as income, the same as income from any salaried job. 

My bad.....Please see my edited post....on first reading, I missed the passive income......

Edited August 24, 2019 by missileman

[Hemutian 68]

32 minutes ago, RandyW said:

YOU are responsible for explaining your financial circumstances to the visa officer, above and beyond what is contained in the Affidavit of Support. I always advocate including career and job prospect information in addition to the AOS.

 

https://www.nilc.org/issues/economic-support/public-charge-changes-to-fam/

 

 

Unfortunately, I don't actually get an opportunity to speak to the visa officer as the Guangzhou consulate does not allow the petitioner into the building on the interview date. Do you mean that I should include a written statement explaining my financial circumstances in addition to listing my ample income and assets on my I-134 and including bank statements and tax returns? I kind of thought that the I-134, bank statements, and tax returns speak for themselves here.

2 minutes ago, missileman said:

My bad.....Please see my edited post....on first reading, I missed the passive income......

Okay.