ambientgirl

Thanks for sharing that with us - its just amazing

that was beautiful

thank you for sharing it with us.

Wishing you both a wonderful life together.

I Google .

Yup, addicted to googling! LOL

But always good for a laugh is Mirror Google, give it a try

http://elgoog.rb-hosting.de/index.cgi

Can anyone tell me if it really takes the full estimated 6 weeks to get your police reports back in the UK??

I know you can't be specific but a hint as to your time frames would help me loads!!

Thanks so much

It's probably best to assume it will take the full 40 days, from what I understand. We're at nearly 3 weeks now and I'm not holding my breath to see it before April 24th! We had a long discussion about this last week, might be of use: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=61492

They are required to have it to you in 40 days (or atleast that is what the lady at the police station told us)

Ours took 34 days to get to us.

Get it done early. We did ours before we even filed for our I-130.

* Shopping Trolley - I hate those evil things

* Hard Water (limescale) I can not wait to be able to wash my hair and have healthy hair again

* American comments like '' Everything and everyone is BIG in America or how arrogant Americans are, or '' Does every house really have a swimming pool and a gun in the house'' LOL Always makes me smile.

* Paying to Park, even if its only for 10 minutes

But, there are so many things about the UK that I will miss. I've enjoyed my years here but its time to go home and see how hubby does in another country. This should be fun! LOL

...and now it's slowed down again! The website said that as of 26 March they were processing petitions submitted 10 January. And now it says as of 30 March they were processing petitions submitted...10 January. Way to go!!!

(I'm just peeved because our petition was received 17 January. )

Hang in there - you are so close now

Im just wondering how much of a delay its going to be now that London is accepting applications from 7 countries. Its got to have some sort of affect on the time process. Ive just recently filed so I have a long wait ahead but a wait that is oh so worth it

I saw WILD HOGS this weekend - very funny!

It has John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and many more big names in it.

Its about a group of middle age men taking a road trip on their motorcycles.

Its worth seeing. Especially if you have a hubby in his 40's LOL

http://wildhogs.movies.go.com/

My brother saw it and said it was very funny. I want to see it, I'm a huge Travolta and Tim Allen fan

You have to see it! It was great to actually enjoy a movie from beginning to end. I haven't found a good comedy that I have truly enjoyed in such a long time.

I've always enjoyed Travolta and Tim Allen Films and with them teamed up with Martin Lawrence and William Macy its just a great cast to enjoy!

I saw WILD HOGS this weekend - very funny!

It has John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and many more big names in it.

Its about a group of middle age men taking a road trip on their motorcycles.

Its worth seeing. Especially if you have a hubby in his 40's LOL

http://wildhogs.movies.go.com/

lucyrich is correct.

Hold on to your husband's passport and save yourselves the money. It'd be a waste as it's good for another 8 years.

If you look at the photo page of your husband's passport, there should be a barcode with letters and numbers at the bottom (much like a US passport). This is sufficient as what happens is before boarding any US-bound plane, the Department of Homeland Security officer will swipe this barcode and all pertinent information will show up on the screen. Much like what happens when a teller gets you to swipe your driver's license at a bank.

My Irish husband had his passport issued in 2001 with this barcode and he has been in and out of the US about 10 times since with no problems.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU I just love this site. So many wonderful helpful people.

We were told that as an EU citizen you cannot enter the US if you don't have the biometric passport with the chip. The new passport was a requirement from the US to the EU as part of the visa waiver program.

Thank you both for your reply. I wasn't sure but I guess its better to be safe and apply for another passport so we have the micro chip in his UK passport. Just another added expense to this whole process but oh so worth it.

Thanks!

What's wrong with the research project evidence or the RO residency card? CIS doesn't care if you're a dual.

You have no record of your entry? (pp was not stamped or scanned at entry?)

Just read this post and I was kinda curious because I am a USC but also a US/UK Dual Citizen Passport Holder. I have been living in England for 3 years.

Every time I enter England I do so on my British Passport, so neither of my US or UK passports are Stamped or Scanned.

I am about to start the I-130 process, will that cause any problems with showing my status in the UK? I do have a UK job and bank account.

I just thought it was interesting when you mentioned showing record of your entry. I guess with my passports they dont. When I go back to the states on Holiday, they do scan my American Passport and say 'welcome home', that always makes me laughs cause I dont live there anymore. LOL

Just curious. Thanks

hi there,

My husband is a UKC who renewed his passport back in Feb 2005 - he does NOT have the new Biometric UK Passport with the micro chip in it.

Does that matter or do they require him to have that as part of the I-130 process?

Wasn't sure if we have to apply for another passport.

May sound like a daft question but dont want any problems with traveling and moving to the US.

Thanks

hi all,

quick question about I-130. (maybe its daft on my part, lol )

It ask if your Relative has ever been in the US? Do they mean, Lived or Visit? Just curious that I filled it out correctly.

Thanks.

HI Again,

Its me! LOL

I have started my tax forms so hopefully I can get them sent off so there wont be any problems with my I-130.

My question is since I haven't filed my taxes for the past three years and I am doing that now - I married in 2006 - so on my 2004 and 2005 tax returns do I put my maiden name or my married name? I know that sounds kinda daft, but, I have already changed my Social Security number in 2006 to reflect my new married name.

So, I'm not sure what name I should put on them if they are going to match it up with my social security number or does it even matter?

Thanks again!

I'm not a tax expert, but I would have thought it doesn't matter for your US taxes that the UK tax year isn't over. The IRS is interested in what you earned in 2006, not what you earned in the 2005/2006 UK tax year. So you would calculate how much you earned in 2006 by looking at your 2006 payslips.

Thanks for everyones advice - I guess you can get so overwhelmed when you have all this paperwork in front of you and you dont want to make a single mistake to delay your process. It really is wonderful to be able to seek the advice and comfort of others who understand and appreciate what you are going through.

I wish everyone great success.

When I filed mine, I did January to December, not April to March the UK tax year.

Thank you so much for your assistance. I wish you both the best. I've been reading your posts and have found them so helpful. I'm originally from Massachusetts and hopefully moving back there once everything is done

All the best!

HI all,

Been here since Dec. 2003 - filed my 2003 taxes with the US and haven't filed since! OOPS! Didn't really think that I needed to but of course you learn and now that we are in the process of starting the I-130 process I need to include 3 years of tax documents.

So, here I am trying to file my taxes for the past three years and I have a question. Because of the British tax year being from April to April - how do you figure out your American Tax year? Do you go April to April or do you have to break it down from January to December, an American tax year?? Probably a daft question, but I just dont see anything about it anywhere.

I haven't made much, only worked parttime for spending money - so I have no real income to report. Unfortunately, I made over the american limit so I do have to file. I have no deductions, ie, property,children, etc, so just simply report my income. I just need to figure out what income I'm reporting. lol

sorry if this question is daft or has been asked before, but I have been reading the post and haven't seen anything mentioned about this.

My husband and I didn't marry until April 2006 - do I have to file Married then or can I still file single for year 2006?

If you were married as of Dec 31 2006, you are 'married' for all of 2006 for tax purposes. You must file as married, but you will have a choice of married separate, or married joint. You can find many threads about how to file with a spouse who does not live in the US if you do some looking (try the CR/IR forum).

You can submit your tax returns and W-7 to IRS in London and they will forward it to the US. Keep copies for yourself, and copies to submit.

I'm glad it's been useful to you--I think everything you need to know has been written down here at one time or another!

Thank you again for your information. I'm going to have a good read this weekend and sort all this out. The only problem that I can see is being in the UK our 2006 tax year doesn't end till this April. So I dont have my tax info yet for this year. So would they accept the 2005 as our last year of taxes?

This forum has been a wonderful help and I hope that I will also be able to contribute to someones journey. Hope you have a great weekend.

hi there,

It states on the forms to include a passport picture with each G325a -

My question is : Is this an American Passport Photo or a regular UK Passport Photo, or does it matter?

thanks

A few gentle corrections...

Yes, USCs are required to report their worldwide income by filing a US tax return. There are foriegn income exclusions, so you are not taxed twice until you are over the $80K/year or so mark.

'Acting' as if you haven't had a job isn't a good idea, if you have had one, and lost tax returns are never a valid excuse--you can always order copies of your past returns' transcripts from the IRS.

There is no such thing as a "co sponsor" or "so signer" for the I-864. There are Sponsors (USC petitioning spouse) and Joint Sponsors. Plese see "What Is a Joint Sponsor?" from the I-864 instructions. Joint Sponsors do NOT have to share a household with the petitioner or beneficiary.

Bank funds are one form of asset. There are specific guidelines for assets in the form instructions, but in addition to cash, you may use other vehicles that can be converted to cash (if needed). Investment accounts are one popular option.

The required amounts are in I-864P; the figure quoted for the "cosigner" does not apply.

OP: the tax returns do not have to be provided for a while yet; you can start your petition even if you do not yet have the returns completed. There is info on this for you in the DCF Guide.

If you'll be presenting an I-864 from your Dad, he can mail it to you to take to the visa interview. It does not need to be notarized. He may put the I-864 in a sealed envelope for your spouse to present at the interview if Dad wants to keep it private.

If you have a job offer, especially if you can document it, it is a good idea to include that information at the interview.

good luck!

WOW!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! Your message was extremely helpful and much appreciated. Ive been trying to learn everything that I need to do, sometimes it just gets so mind blowing but I want to be prepared.

Its wonderful that you have taken your time to provide me with much needed information. Thanks again.

Hope you have a great weekend.

Don't forget the ITIN for your husband since you have to file married and he doesn't have a social security number. You include the W7 application with your returns and send it all to the Texas address in the W7 instructions.

thank you for your information. My husband and I didn't marry until April 2006 - do I have to file Married then or can I still file single for year 2006? Do I have to send it to the Texas address or will the IRS in London take these forms?

Your help is much appreciated.

Techincalyy you are supposed to file your taxes even if you're living overseas . . .if you have a few extra months to spare to file them and then file for your visa I would do so.

otherwise if you wanna act like you havent had a job in few years or that you've lost your ta returns or what not you have several other options like having a parent or relative co-sign you I-864 / I 864-A

Keep in mind you are theoretically supposed to be living with that person (the cosigner) when you plan on going back to the states.

If you plan on using bank funds to show that you can pay for your spouse then acording to a consular officer I spoke with you need to have 3 times the amount required or lacked (if you dont earn enough to fully cover the amount). I believe the amount you need to earn a year is 16,000 USD if filing for just your spouse and something like 20,000 if you are going to file with a cosigner.

This basically means that you need to have 48,001 USD in the bank in order for the embassy to say ok you have enough money to pay for him.

Fofire

Thank you for explaining that, you have been very helpful. I am one of the many who hasn't filed my taxes while living overseas, but mind you I have only done parttime work and actually fall under the amount of not filing, but, I'm going to still file them this weekend. Will that really delay my process by several months then?

We wont be having 48.000 USD in my bank so I guess I'm going to have to look into having my father co sponsor him but does my father fill out the form and mail it himself to the Consular or is that something that he can send me and does it have to be notorized? Since he is in the US and i'm in the UK.

Also, what if I am have a job to start once we move to the US, will they consider a letter from the company stating how much I will be making as income, since I wouldn't have a w2 or paystub with them yet?

Thank you so much, you have been wonderful

There are a lot of resources here for your FAQs--all of us living overseas have had to deal with this and we've written our experiences down for others' benefit.

Please look for the Guide at the top of the page (there is one for DCF), read the form and its instructions, and have a look through the past posts here.

The DCF process is shorter than any other marriage-based method of immigrating.

thank you for your information, it was very helpful. I'll go and see if I can find out about the amount of money we are bringing over will cover it.

much appreciated

Is this regarding certain Embassy(s)? I am in the process of getting ready to send my forms to London - is this a bad idea then? I am a USC who is married to an Englishman. I have been married almost one year but have been living here in the UK since 2003. I am also a dual citizen of the US/UK, does that make a difference?

thanks

Not to worry, ambientgirl. You are one of the lucky ones as petitioners within the UK are still allowed to file in London as it's considered a USCIS office. Proceed as normal and follow the instructions on the US Embassy London website.

As for your Affidavit of Support query, you have to make sure that you filed taxes with the IRS regardless of whether you were living in the UK since 2003, especially for year ending 2006. The federal 1040 plus Form 2555 will apply in your case. If you also have savings back in the US that brings you above the poverty level for a household of 2 people, you can show that on the I-864 as well. If this is the case, you might not need a co-sponsor. Don't quote me on the latter. Perhaps someone else here can advise you on that.

Check out Kimberly+Dave's thread about filing with the IRS. It should be on page 1 or 2 in this forum.

You're so lucky, but I'll still wish you luck anyway.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Sooooo Much for your quick response. You have been wonderful. I didn't want to send out my papers to have them sent back to send to the US for processing.

I'm going to try to find the Kimberly and Daves thread to check out the Tax IRS info.

Hopefully we can do our own affidavit of support but if not, hopefully someone has the info that I need about it???

I wish you luck with your process.

thanks again

Hello All,

I have a question regarding Affidavit of support. I am married to a British Citizen and have been living in the UK for the past 3 years. We are in the process of starting our I-130 but I am concern about this. Since I have been out of the US for over 3 years, I dont have any US income or W-2s to show that I can support my husband. I do still have a bank account in the US but that is it.

We do have plenty of money to bring with us to the US but does any of that count towards the Affidavit of support? Do I have to get a sponsor, and if so, how do I get the sponsors information, since I am out of the country? Do they have to file it in the US or are they allow to file it to the American Embassy in London were we are filing? We are doing direct consular filing.

This is a little confusing for us because trying to read through the board most people are going thru the K1, I129f process, but we are already married and now it looks like our process may take longer?

I am so glad that I have found this forum and I wish everyone great success with their process.

thanks