A few questions about proofs...

[Anna Ko 0]

Hi again,

 

I have a few questions:

 

1. I know it says I need to submit proof starting with the day we got married, but should I mainly focus on the 2 years following my AOS? Or do I also need to re-submit all the proof I had already shown when I first applied?

 

2. How many bank statements do I need to submit? I was thinking of submitting just the first page of each month's statement. Again, can I start with the date a was approved for my green card?

 

3. If I received bank statements by mail, should I submit those in the "proof that we live at the same address" section? Since they have both our names and addresses.

 

4. Can I submit original letters (i.e. statements), or do I need to photocopy everything? 

 

5. I wasn't able to order a tax transcript in time. Is it ok if I just print the entire document for both years on turbo tax and submit that?

 

Thanks!

Edited August 28, 2021 by Anna Ko

[Ane21 16]

4 minutes ago, Anna Ko said:

Hi again,

 

I have a few questions:

 

1. I know it says I need to submit proof starting with the day we got married, but should I mainly focus on the 2 years following my AOS? Or do I also need to re-submit all the proof I had already shown when I first applied?

 

2. How many bank statements do I need to submit? I was thinking of submitting just the first page of each month's statement. Again, can I start with the date a was approved for my green card?

 

3. If I received bank statements by mail, should I submit those in the "proof that we live at the same address" section? Since they have both our names and addresses.

 

4. Can I submit original letters (i.e. statements), or do I need to photocopy everything? 

 

5. I wasn't able to order a tax transcript in time. Is it ok if I just print the entire document for both years on turbo tax and submit that?

 

Thanks!

Hello, you may check one of the topic currently open (ROC August filer) to learn more, people share what they included in their packets. I am an August filer too so below are what We submitted as evidence, started from the day we got married.

1. Copy of mortgage/house deed showing joint ownership of property.

2. copy of JOINT savings and checking accounts with statements (quarterly) - I guess to show expenses couple made together.

3. Copy of health, dental and visual plans.

4. copy of federal and state tax return 2019 and 2020

5. Copy of insurance showing I’m the beneficiary vice-versa 

6. Copy of utility bills

7. photos, travel itineraries, etc from the day we married.

[Anna Ko 0]

1 minute ago, Ane21 said:

Hello, you may check one of the topic currently open (ROC August filer) to learn more, people share what they included in their packets. I am an August filer too so below are what We submitted as evidence, started from the day we got married.

1. Copy of mortgage/house deed showing joint ownership of property.

2. copy of JOINT savings and checking accounts with statements (quarterly) - I guess to show expenses couple made together.

3. Copy of health, dental and visual plans.

4. copy of federal and state tax return 2019 and 2020

5. Copy of insurance showing I’m the beneficiary vice-versa 

6. Copy of utility bills

7. photos, travel itineraries, etc from the day we married.

How do you get quarterly statements? The only option for me is monthly on my bank's webpage. Do I have to go in in person?

[Ane21 16]

1 minute ago, Anna Ko said:

How do you get quarterly statements? The only option for me is monthly on my bank's webpage. Do I have to go in in person?

Not necessarily quarterly, it’s just that if I printed the monthly statements it’s going to be so thick, we just chose to submit every 3rd month or one showing the most expenses.

[Anna Ko 0]

2 minutes ago, Ane21 said:

Not necessarily quarterly, it’s just that if I printed the monthly statements it’s going to be so thick, we just chose to submit every 3rd month or one showing the most expenses.

And you started with when you got married or just after you received your Green Card?

[Ane21 16]

3 minutes ago, Anna Ko said:

And you started with when you got married or just after you received your Green Card?

All evidence for ROC starts on the day we got married. This is to prove that our marriage is bonafide and entered in good faith.

[Ed&Midori1031 330]

3 hours ago, Anna Ko said:

How do you get quarterly statements? The only option for me is monthly on my bank's webpage. Do I have to go in in person?

Out of the 4 quarters of the year, just pick one of the 3 months out of each quarter to cover the entire year. 

[Sukie 1,440]

PRINT ALL PAGES OF BANK STATEMENTS!  And yes, I meant to yell.  I know it's a lot of paper, but if your statement has 8 pages, print all 8 pages.  You have no idea how many people get RFEs because they only printed the first page.  USCIS wants to see the transactions showing how you co-mingle your funds, and transactions are rarely on the first page of a statement. 

 

And yes, the instructions clearly state from the date of your marriage.  Don't skimp.

 

Best of luck!

 

Sukie in NY

[JeanneAdil 6,239]

14 minutes ago, Sukie said:

PRINT ALL PAGES OF BANK STATEMENTS!  And yes, I meant to yell.  I know it's a lot of paper, but if your statement has 8 pages, print all 8 pages.  You have no idea how many people get RFEs because they only printed the first page.  USCIS wants to see the transactions showing how you co-mingle your funds, and transactions are rarely on the first page of a statement. 

 

And yes, the instructions clearly state from the date of your marriage.  Don't skimp.

 

Best of luck!

 

Sukie in NY

yes,  when statements say 1 of 4  even if 4 is an ad about banking offers,   they want all 4

[Scandi 3,977]

19 hours ago, Anna Ko said:

Hi again,

 

I have a few questions:

 

1. I know it says I need to submit proof starting with the day we got married, but should I mainly focus on the 2 years following my AOS? Or do I also need to re-submit all the proof I had already shown when I first applied?

 

2. How many bank statements do I need to submit? I was thinking of submitting just the first page of each month's statement. Again, can I start with the date a was approved for my green card?

 

3. If I received bank statements by mail, should I submit those in the "proof that we live at the same address" section? Since they have both our names and addresses.

 

4. Can I submit original letters (i.e. statements), or do I need to photocopy everything? 

 

5. I wasn't able to order a tax transcript in time. Is it ok if I just print the entire document for both years on turbo tax and submit that?

 

Thanks!

1, The whole marriage is what they ask for, so that's what you send.

 

2, We sent every single bank statement from our joint checking account. That's 6-8 pages each month for 2+ years. You can send less if you absolutely want to (just skip a few statements in between), they need to cover the entire marriage AND need to have all pages. 

3, Assembly your package however you like, put the statements wherever you want, just make sure everything matches the cover letter (in terms of numbers, order etc) if you have one. We had a separate tab for financial stuff, that included bank statements, credit card statements, money markets etc,

 

4, Don't know what kind of letters you're talking about. Photocopies are what most prefer to send as evidence for several reasons, but you can send in all originals you don't mind losing, you won't get them back. If your package goes missing on the way to USCIS you lose everything and have to start over again, which can be trickier if you no longer have the originals. 

5, Create an IRS online account and print the transcripts. If you filed jointly with your spouse s/he can also create an account and print them. Takes a few minutes.