Edddie&Beatrice

Congratulations -- you deserve to feel happy!  All the best to you.

UPDATE 
Today I have received the 10 years green card.  I am extremely happy and thank you all for your responses. I thank God it feels like a long journey that has just ended. 

UPDATE 
Today I have received the 10 years green card.  I am extremely happy and thank you all for your responses. I thank God it feels like a long journey that has just ended. 

UPDATE 
Today I have received the 10 years green card.  I am extremely happy and thank you all for your responses. I thank God it feels like a long journey that has just ended. 

Congrats! So it took close to 2 years?

UPDATE 
Today I have received the 10 years green card.  I am extremely happy and thank you all for your responses. I thank God it feels like a long journey that has just ended. 

Yes.  Absolutely.

The ADIT stamp goes into your passport.

Your status as a legal resident does not expire when your Green Card expires.  Only the evidence of status expires.  If you need evidence of your status, make an appointment for an ADIT stamp or request one be sent to you by mail.
 
Absolutely not.  You are a legal resident until a judge says otherwise.

Here's my advice, hopefully you will find it to be helpful.  I won't say anything more about the importance of meeting multiple times prior to getting married, to see if this is really something you want, and to know if the chemistry is there before making such a big commitment.  Others have done enough of that already, and you know the risks from personal experience.  If she resides in Brazil, the required visa interview (in 1-2 years if all goes well) will be in Rio de Janeiro at the US consulate.  There is no other option for Brazilians.  From the date of filing the initial I-130 petition with all required documents (including marriage certificate and evidence of spending time together in person), the process could take longer than two years, so plan for that and hope it goes a little faster.  Each case is different and there are many unknown details that could come up.  Given what you have shared so far (have not yet met in person), I strongly suggest that if you decide to file the I-130 after only meeting once in person, that you visit her as often as you can while waiting for the I-130 to be adjudicated (12-18 months), and submit documents (original boarding passes, passport stamps, hotel receipts, a few photos) to support those additional visits at the NVC stage of the process, after the I-130 has been approved.  Continue to visit her in Brazil while waiting for the visa interview.  She can take that new evidence with her, to show the interviewing officer.  I made periodic trips to visit my husband in Brazil seven times before his spousal visa interview.  We also did some co-mingling of finances (shared credit card, IRS tax transcripts as married filing jointly, look up W-7 form).  You will also need to file a separate I-130 for her child and have legal documents to show that the child's father has given the wife permission to eventually take the child out of Brazil.  You have a long, frustrating, expensive process ahead of you.  Patience is key.  Good luck!

This thread has saved me. I thought we should not send $85 but now I know we should. thank you all

This thread has saved me. I thought we should not send $85 but now I know we should. thank you all

You skipped the section right above that, which states:
 
Biometric Services Fee. 1. Conditional Resident. Each conditional resident and conditional resident dependent included in the principal petitioner’s Form I-751 is required to submit a biometric services fee with this petition, in addition to the required filing fee. (See the What Is the Filing Fee section of these Instructions.)
 
You are a conditional resident, hence the application to remove conditions. 

Update, our tax amendment was successful, and we got more tax refund. We waited for about one year for the tax refund but it was worth.

I will not say never but if your dates all line up…. there should be no issue 
 
Its also not just a waste of time and money, it actually adds to the confusion and contradiction and is counter productive to your I 90. 
 
 
According to your timeline you were over 2 years at entry. 

Update, our tax amendment was successful, and we got more tax refund. We waited for about one year for the tax refund but it was worth.

Update, our tax amendment was successful, and we got more tax refund. We waited for about one year for the tax refund but it was worth.

So well explained the example is great. thank you so much

An LPR reports their worldwide income. They do not necessarily pay taxes on all of it depending on different factors. 

I agree that foreign earned interest is reportable the same as interest earned in the US. 
 
You report the foreign interest just like interest from US bank accounts. Schedule B part 1. Also you indicate in Part 3 that you had a foreign account. 7a is Yes. The others may or may not be Yes depending on your situation.
 
How much is a small amount of interest?  In certain situations you can claim foreign tax credit on foreign tax paid using Form 1116. But if the small interest is $10-20, then it’s not worth diving into Form 1116 to avoid 25 cents in US tax.

A green card holder generally must report and pay tax in the same manner as a United States citizen, which means that they report and pay tax on their world-wide income and file a Form 1040.
 
Kenya does not have a tax treaty with the US and she has been here since July so,  yes, the interest income is added to tax returns

As an LPR she pays taxes on her world wide income. Also the foreign taxes she pays are a tax credit against USA taxes owed. 
 
Example
 
* assume 10 percent tax in Africa 
 
* assume 22 percent tax in USA 
 
* assume $100 interest 
 
So USA tax is $22. This is offset by a $10 tax credit.  She pays $12 to IRS.  
 
The bigger issue is that is her foreign financial assets exceed $10,000 at any time inbthe tax year, she must file an FBAR.  If she doesn’t then the USA can penalize her and take significant chunk of her deposits. 

You became the permanent resident the day you entered the US (listed as Resident Since) date on your GC. Since that day was past your 2 year anniversary, it shouldn't have been conditional.
 
You can just file i90 online checking uscis error option and you'll get a 10 yr GC.
 
There might be other links as well but it's well stated in the link below.

https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-we-grant-your-green-card/conditional-permanent-residence/removing-conditions-on-permanent-residence-based-on-marriage
 
Your permanent resident status is conditional if it is based on a marriage that was less than two years old on the day you became a permanent resident. We give you conditional permanent resident status when you are either admitted to the United States on an immigrant visa or adjust your status to that of a permanent resident.
 
 
 
 

See 8 C.F.R. § 235.11(b): "Correction of endorsement on immigrant visa. If the alien is subject to the provisions of section 216 of the Act, but the classification endorsed on the immigrant visa does not so indicate, the endorsement shall be corrected and the alien shall be admitted as a lawful permanent resident on a conditional basis, if otherwise admissible. Conversely, if the alien is not subject to the provisions of section 216 of the Act, but the visa classification endorsed on the immigrant visa indicates that the alien is subject thereto (e.g., if the second anniversary of the marriage upon which the immigrant visa is based occurred after the issuance of the visa and prior to the alien's application for admission) the endorsement on the visa shall be corrected and the alien shall be admitted as a lawful permanent resident without conditions, if otherwise admissible."