US Immigration from Russia

Hello,

I had some problems with moving on my case at USCIS. My immigration officer asked me to pay off my tax obligations for 2019 and provide an official letter from IRS confirming that.

1) How long does it take to process payments? I made payments last week and it yet be posted.

2) How can I request IRS the letter my officer asked about?

Thank you!

Hello all,

There's a lot of misinformation out there about the requirements for tourist visas or about what documents you need to submit during the interview. One of the biggest misconceptions is the requirement of a so-called "sponsorship letter" (or "letter of invitation", or other such similar names) wherein the American who wishes the applicant to apply/visit them submits a letter with information about "sponsoring" or otherwise inviting the applicant.

Q: Am I required to submit a "sponsorship letter" or "letter of invitation" with my visitor visa application?

A: No, you are not required to.

Source from the Department of State website:

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visitor.html

Quote

Note: Visa applicants must qualify on the basis of the applicant's residence and ties abroad, rather than assurances from U.S. family and friends. A letter of invitation or Affidavit of Support is not needed to apply for a visitor visa. If you choose to bring a letter of invitation or Affidavit of Support to your interview, please remember it is not one of the factors used in determining whether to issue or deny the visa.

Q: Can I submit such a letter if I want to?

A: Yes, you can. However, keep it mind that the CO is not required to look at it during the interview. Even if you bring such a letter with you to the interview, the CO has the right to refuse to look at any supporting documentation if they have already made their decision based on other factors. Feel free to bring as many supporting documents as you like, but don't be surprized if the CO turns them away or does not even ask to see them.

Q: If I decide to submit such a letter, will it help get the visa approved?

A: It is up to the CO to decide based on the strong ties and overall circumstance of the applicant if they are approved or not. If you apply without the "sponsorship letter" and are rejected, do not assume the reason for the rejection was the lack of such a letter. CO's are mostly interested in looking for strong ties to the home country that help the applicant overcome the burden of intent to immigrate. You are always welcome to reapply again with or without the "sponsorship letter" but keep it mind since it is not required, it can in no way guarantee approval for a visa.

Q: I want my relative/friend to visit me in the US. I will be the one paying for their trip here. Is there anything I can do to ensure that they get a visa?

A: Every applicant must apply on their own merits and show strong ties. As mentioned above, you are welcome to provide supporting documents showing that you are inviting this person to the US and will pay for their trip, but the CO is not required to consider it during the interview.

Q: I know someone who was approved and they brought a "sponsorship letter" with them. Isn't that proof that it means you will get approved if you provide one?

A: Every case is determined and approved according to the individual applicant's unique scenario. Just because someone was approved and they had such a letter does not mean it was the deciding factor for the approval. There is no "sure fire" way to guarantee approval of a tourist visa.

Q: I want my fiance(e)/spouse to apply for a tourist visa. What are the chances that they get approved? Is there anything I can do to increase approval chances for them, such as write a letter of support/sponsorship?

A: No, there is nothing you can do to increase chances of approval for a spouse or finance(e) of a US citizen. Keep in mind that being married or engaged to a US citizen significantly increases the suspicion of intent to immigrate, so getting approved for a tourist visa in these circumstances is extremely difficult. Bring as much evidence of strong ties as possible to the interview but keep in mind the CO is not obligated to look at it during the interview or consider it when making the decision. A "support" or "sponsorship" letter is not a requirement but may be submitted with said evidence.

TL;DR: There is no requirement for a "sponsorship letter" for visitor visas. You can submit one if you like, but the CO is not obligated to look at it or consider it when making the decision to approve or deny a visitor visa.

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Please note that the Affidavit of Support Form I-864 s not only not required for a visitor visa, but submitting one can make the applicant appear like they have intentions to immigrate to the US, which could increase suspicions of the applicant's intent (as the I-864 is used to sponsor family members to immigrate to the US.) Thus, do not ever submit an Affidavit of Support when applying for a visitor visa as it is completely irrelevant to the visitor visa process and could increase suspicion of intent to immigrate.

Since the embassy in Moscow is just about shut down, has anyone had a spousal visa interview there recently? I saw one post where someone transferred interview to Poland. But wouldn t the Russian citizen have to have a Schengen visa to travel to the US Embassy in Poland to get the interview? What is US immigration doing about Russian citizens needing interviews? Where else can Russian citizens get CR-1 interviews?

Our case is at the NVC and I am tracking the current case review progress as published on

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/nvc-timeframes.html

This gets updated every Monday and I have noticed that the progress has gone down dramatically.

On 7/6 they were reviewing documents submitted on June 2nd

On 7/12 they were reviewing documents submitted on June 4th

On 7/19 they are reviewing documents submitted on June 6th

Their progress is 2 days per week. How is this sustainable? It means the backlog is getting longer instead of shorter.

I am wondering if this is something that is related to the summer (NVC employees taking vacation) or is it a structural problem?

My fianc is filling out an i-864 and, as a recent graduate, does not currently make enough to submit alone. So, his Mother is filling out an i-864a as a household member who earns over the poverty line considering their household size.

So our question is: on the i-864a, his Mother is including tax return transcripts for the most recent 3 years. BUT she filed joint federal income tax returns with her husband who is not intending on filling out an i-864 because his mother earns enough on her own. Does she need to include her W-2 s and 1099 s for each year even though she s including transcripts? Do we need to include his Father s transcripts and other forms even though his income isn t being included for sponsorship? Do we have to have his Father submit an i-864a just because both of his parents filed their tax returns as joint spouses?