Greg

My mother-in-law wants to bring her cousin to live in the U.S., and
she has asked my wife and I to sign an affidavit of support as joint
sponsors for her cousin.

I've read about the legal requirements related to this and what our
responsibilities would be. However, can anyone explain to us what the
real risks are to us and our assets if we were to go forward with
this. Assuming a worst case scenario, how badly could we get screwed
if things were to go really bad. I've never met this cousin, and
while I have no reason to assume he/she might do anything dishonest or
unknowing that could negatively impact us, I can't be sure.

Obviously, I'm reluctant to say no to my mother-in-law, but I'm also
concerned about any potential exposure to finacial and legal risks as
well. Thanks for any input.

Joachim Feise

Greg wrote on 10/11/2004 23:04:

    > My mother-in-law wants to bring her cousin to live in the U.S., and
    > she has asked my wife and I to sign an affidavit of support as joint
    > sponsors for her cousin.
    >
    > I've read about the legal requirements related to this and what our
    > responsibilities would be. However, can anyone explain to us what the
    > real risks are to us and our assets if we were to go forward with
    > this. Assuming a worst case scenario, how badly could we get screwed
    > if things were to go really bad. I've never met this cousin, and
    > while I have no reason to assume he/she might do anything dishonest or
    > unknowing that could negatively impact us, I can't be sure.

It is not just about doing anything dishonest. For example, he might be
without health insurance and get in a bad accident. The sponsors would
then be responsible for his medical bills, if his reserves are depleted.
That's the worst-case scenario I can think of right now...

-Joe

Hnchoksi

    >Subject: Affidavit of Support risks
    >From: [email protected] (Greg)
    >Date: 10/12/2004 2:04 AM Eastern Standard Time
    >Message-id: <[email protected] >
    >My mother-in-law wants to bring her cousin to live in the U.S., and
    >she has asked my wife and I to sign an affidavit of support as joint
    >sponsors for her cousin.
    >I've read about the legal requirements related to this and what our
    >responsibilities would be. However, can anyone explain to us what the
    >real risks are to us and our assets if we were to go forward with
    >this. Assuming a worst case scenario, how badly could we get screwed
    >if things were to go really bad. I've never met this cousin, and
    >while I have no reason to assume he/she might do anything dishonest or
    >unknowing that could negatively impact us, I can't be sure.
    >Obviously, I'm reluctant to say no to my mother-in-law, but I'm also
    >concerned about any potential exposure to finacial and legal risks as
    >well. Thanks for any input.

Can we assume she wants to sponsor the cousin for a family-based green card?
If so, that is impossible. Cousins cannot be sponsored. Also, unless you know
this person and implicitly trust them, don't do it. You will be responsible for
them until they become a citizen or work for 40 qualifying quarters (10 years
at the least).