Completing I-134 and confused about supporting evidence!

[Rocio and Patrick 8]

Hi all, 

 

I've got my interview this upcoming Monday, and my fiancé and I are finalising his I-134, but I'm confused as to what documents will qualify towards the evidence we need to present. Anyone who has gone through it can list the documents you presented with the package, and if you would do anything different? 

 

I'm seeing conflicting information online about what works and what doesn't.

 

Thank you!

[MalloryCat 651]

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/forms/i-134instr.pdf

 

the best thing to include is the most recent tax return transcript, you can get those here https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript

 

you can also include a statement from your employer

"Statement(s) from your employer on business stationery showing:
A. Date and nature of employment;
B. Salary paid; and
C. Whether the position is temporary or permanent"

 

and/or 3-6 months of consecutive paystubs and W2

 

but tax return transcripts are the best evidence

[Rocio and Patrick 8]

11 minutes ago, MalloryCat said:

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/forms/i-134instr.pdf

 

the best thing to include is the most recent tax return transcript, you can get those here https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript

 

you can also include a statement from your employer

"Statement(s) from your employer on business stationery showing:
A. Date and nature of employment;
B. Salary paid; and
C. Whether the position is temporary or permanent"

 

and/or 3-6 months of consecutive paystubs and W2

 

but tax return transcripts are the best evidence

Hey!! Thank you for sharing all that!! Does that mean that we don't need to present every document listed in the instructions you linked to? I was looking through them last night, and that kicked off my confusion 😅

[MalloryCat 651]

correct

when my husband (then fiance) had his interview, they only wanted the tax return transcripts

they didn't look at the paystubs, W2, or employment letter. but its better to have it then to not have it. just in case they do ask for it

[Rocio and Patrick 8]

18 minutes ago, MalloryCat said:

correct

when my husband (then fiance) had his interview, they only wanted the tax return transcripts

they didn't look at the paystubs, W2, or employment letter. but its better to have it then to not have it. just in case they do ask for it

Amazing, thank you so much!! Super helpful 🙏

[Edward and Jaycel 1,657]

I don't know how strict your embassy is with the I-134 but when Jaycel went for her interview, she went with the form completed and signed by me, my most recent tax transcript, a letter from my employer and the most recent 3 months of pay stubs. The Consular Officers have a wide latitude in what they can ask for and I didn't want her to be lacking anything. Best of luck and let us know how it goes!  

[Fr8dog 331]

you will find during your journey that there are a lot of views on how to file and what to include. regardless the general rule is "bring everything you can find with you". (personally I never front loaded applications as it was all mail in, sending paper was expensive and Dutch are cheap)

 

For income related documents, Tax transcripts have been the preferred documents for a long time. They show income and are proof you have actually filled your taxes. Everything else is basically secondary evidence.

Instructions of the USCIS usually list examples of what is acceptable. So you can pick and choose if you don't have some of them.

 

I have noticed throughout the years that a lot of it also depends on where you interview and what nationality you have. Being Dutch made it easy everybody considers us low fraud. And during almost every interaction with USCIS staff I was asked more questions about Amsterdam then anything else.

 

Check the reviews of the consulate on this site. They will give you an idea of what to expect and after an interview please place a review yourself.

 

[tomgndallas1 10]

Still waiting for our interview but here is what I provided. 

 

Tax Transcript

Company Offer Letter with Position and Salary

Last Couple of Months of Pay stubs

Print of statements from both Fidelity 401K/IRA and Charles Schwab investment account

Summary of Account statement from Chase that showed account open date, average balance, current balance. Signed by bank officer. 

[Rocio and Patrick 8]

On 5/28/2025 at 5:36 PM, Edward and Jaycel said:

I don't know how strict your embassy is with the I-134 but when Jaycel went for her interview, she went with the form completed and signed by me, my most recent tax transcript, a letter from my employer and the most recent 3 months of pay stubs. The Consular Officers have a wide latitude in what they can ask for and I didn't want her to be lacking anything. Best of luck and let us know how it goes!  

Thank you so much!! I've got such a stack of documents printed at this point and my fiancé sent me all those docs you mention and more, haha. Interview is on Monday, so crossing fingers 🤞

[Rocio and Patrick 8]

On 5/28/2025 at 7:15 PM, Fr8dog said:

you will find during your journey that there are a lot of views on how to file and what to include. regardless the general rule is "bring everything you can find with you". (personally I never front loaded applications as it was all mail in, sending paper was expensive and Dutch are cheap)

 

For income related documents, Tax transcripts have been the preferred documents for a long time. They show income and are proof you have actually filled your taxes. Everything else is basically secondary evidence.

Instructions of the USCIS usually list examples of what is acceptable. So you can pick and choose if you don't have some of them.

 

I have noticed throughout the years that a lot of it also depends on where you interview and what nationality you have. Being Dutch made it easy everybody considers us low fraud. And during almost every interaction with USCIS staff I was asked more questions about Amsterdam then anything else.

 

Check the reviews of the consulate on this site. They will give you an idea of what to expect and after an interview please place a review yourself.

 

You're right! I wonder how the location of the interview will affect the documents. I am doing mine in Sweden, I assume that's a pretty low risk country in the Embassy's eyes, but I'm from South America so maybe that will make them ask for more 😅
I'll definitely add a review of how it goes as there aren't many now, it's so hard to find information on some embassies so I want to help the next person out! 

[Rocio and Patrick 8]

16 hours ago, tomgndallas1 said:

Still waiting for our interview but here is what I provided. 

 

Tax Transcript

Company Offer Letter with Position and Salary

Last Couple of Months of Pay stubs

Print of statements from both Fidelity 401K/IRA and Charles Schwab investment account

Summary of Account statement from Chase that showed account open date, average balance, current balance. Signed by bank officer. 

Yes!! That sounds like you also needed some of those documents based on what sources of income/assets your U.S. partner included in the form. Thank you and good luck when it's time for your interview!

[Fr8dog 331]

7 hours ago, Rocio and Patrick said:

You're right! I wonder how the location of the interview will affect the documents. I am doing mine in Sweden, I assume that's a pretty low risk country in the Embassy's eyes, but I'm from South America so maybe that will make them ask for more 😅
I'll definitely add a review of how it goes as there aren't many now, it's so hard to find information on some embassies so I want to help the next person out! 

 

It used used to matter a lot. I found Amsterdam very relaxed and easy to work with. I also truly believe that they look at body language during your time in the waiting area. Nervousness and stress are easy to spot if you're trained for it. And some nervousness is to be expected but being overly concerned may be interpreted as trying to hide something. You'll be fine I'm sure

 

[OldUser 9,267]

On 5/29/2025 at 8:53 AM, tomgndallas1 said:

Still waiting for our interview but here is what I provided. 

 

Tax Transcript

Company Offer Letter with Position and Salary

Last Couple of Months of Pay stubs

Print of statements from both Fidelity 401K/IRA and Charles Schwab investment account

Summary of Account statement from Chase that showed account open date, average balance, current balance. Signed by bank officer. 

One clarification. There's several types of tax transcripts on IRS website: account transcripts, wage & income transcripts and so on.

 

What is immigration interested in is tax return transcript.

[Rocio and Patrick 8]

Update: After getting a 221(G) letter (not related to the affidavit of support) I got the approval today! 2 days after my visa interview. The officers did not ask me for the I-134 forms at all 😅 but if they did I'm sure I would've had all they needed. Thanks everyone for your help!