bigGlasses

Thanks, this is very helpful.

I had actually not thought about FIL doing an I-864a at all. I had totally forgotten about how in the US married couples are (can be) taxed as one entity. Does this depend on whether they file as "married filing separately" or "married filing jointly"? If they file separately she will have a separate tax return and everything will be clear anyway?

Hi all, I'm filing for IR-1 through London (DCF). I130 just in post/mail so working on understanding what I need for next stage.

My husband is not able to financially sponsor me so my mother-in-law has agreed to be a joint sponsor. I need some help making sure I advise her how to get 'household size' correct on the form. This is our situation:

MIL (working) lives with her husband (my father-in-law, retired) and their adult son (my brother in law, working). Additionally, on i130 we indicated that my husband and I would be living with them when we enter the USA. We have no kids.

From what I understand but want to double-check, her two adult children do not count toward her family size, even though one of them lives with her, and the other (my husband) may be living with her when I have my interview, unless she claims them as such on her taxes. Therefore, assuming BIL is not a dependant on her taxes, her family size is 3 (her, me, and father in law). This means that working BIL does not have to be mentioned at all on i864 and does not have to file an i864a. Is this right?

If he is a dependant on her taxes, her family size is 4, right? In this case, must we get BIL to fill out an i864a? MIL would be able to show income of over 125% of poverty line for 4, so can BIL skip i864a?

My husband's family size on his i864 is 2, regardless of where we intend to live or do live in the US, right?

3 years tax returns vs 1 year tax returns for both husband and MIL -- what's the benefit of providing 3 years? I'm sure we could get 3 years if we had to, is there any benefit?

Other evidence -- what should I be including to prove MIL's income? I know proof of employment is necessary but I just want to make sure I'm really clear with her to get the right thing. Should this be a letter from her employer, and is that enough?

On 26/02/2018 at 3:18 PM, Wuozopo said:

 

The guide on Visa Journey may be out of date. This is the embassy instruction page. https://uk.usembassy.gov/visas/family-immigration/how-to-apply-2/

 

Scroll down to the third paragraph where your procedure Steps 1-4 are found. Then back to the top to go to the information links numbered 6-10...medical, documents, what to expect at interview, etc. The FAQs and Additional Resources in the right column are useful too.

Thank you, I will read this carefully too.

And thanks all, it seems like I should have plenty of time!

Thank you! This is so helpful. We certainly won't need a year, it's just good to know that we won't feel rushed during the process. We'd better get started!

Hi all, thanks for such a helpful site.

My husband (USC) and I (UKC) are considering starting the process of moving to the US from the UK imminently. We would be applying for IR1 using DCF London. I've read the DCF London guide very carefully and it's so helpful but I still have a question related to the process.

Once our I-130 is approved, is there a maximum amount of time I can take to do the medical, collect evidence, submit DS-260, etc?

Basically if the answer is 'no' we would choose to submit I-130 ASAP now and get the process started. But if the answer is 'yes' we need to consider more carefully exactly when to submit giving ourselves enough time to be prepared for the next stage. I do understand that the longer we take, the longer it will take me to be in the US.