john26

Hello,

My wife and I are considering to file for an immediate relative visa to the US embassy in London.

My wife is a US citizen, who has resided here in the UK for 4 and a half years. We have been married for 5 years.
From reading the affidavit of support forms, we are concerned at the level of documents that we need to file it successfully. I have read on the US consular website, that my wife will need W2 tax return forms for 3 years, but as she has lived here and worked here for nearly 5 years she has not got such papers. Another thing that came to our attention is the fact that she has lived here so long, the consul will consider her to have given up her residency in the US. We can provide proof that we are intending to move to the US and make it our permanent home, or to be considered domicile.
The affidavit of support mentions that we can use a joint sponsor if we fall below the poverty line rule, and we already have a joint sponsor if necessary.

From that information, do you think that there will be a problem with our application?
The whole thing seemed easy at first, but it now seems like a nightmare!

Thanks for any help.
John.

Noorah101

Hi John,

As long as you have a US mailing address, and a joint sponsor, you shouldn't have any problems that I can foresee. The joint sponsor is a USC and resides in the USA, right?

By the way, your wife was still supposed to file US tax returns, even though she's working in the UK, to my understanding. She should look into filing back taxes.

Best Wishes,
Rene

john26

I never knew that about the tax returns..! I'll get on to sorting that out tomorrow..
The joint sponsor is her father, and he lives in the US, plus he has wages that are way above the poverty line. I think we should be ok there, but from reading the US embassy website my wife has to meet certain conditions to be a sponsor. I thought that with her living here in the UK for nearly 5 years, they may think she has given up her residency? We have plans to buy/rent a house over there, and I can get a letter from the owner to say we are negotiating it. Just hope it's enough evidence for them..

BTW, is a mailing address in the US important?

Noorah101

I think the US mailing address is important, yes. That's where they will be sending your green card soon after your arrival

After living in the UK for 5 years, I'm pretty sure your wife would qualify in the UK's eyes to allow her to file the I-130 right there in the UK. As far as sponsor's conditions, I'm not sure which conditions you mean. A USC is always a USC, even if they live overseas for a while. Do you mean where it might say something like "must reside in the USA"? I think you should be OK since the joint sponsor will be covering for her, and he does reside in the USA.

Those are my thoughts, anyway....

Rene

john26

lol good point!

The sponser conditions I mentioned are on the US embassy site, I'll post an extract:

"The sponsor must satisfy the consular officer that he/she has not given up his/her permanent residence in the United States to establish a residence abroad; i.e. he or she has maintained his/her principal residence in the United States with the intent to maintain that residence for the foreseeable future. Lawful Permanent Residents must further demonstrate that they have maintained their legal permanent residence status. The decision will be on a case-by-case basis."

The part that concerns me is that my wife has been here in the UK for nearly 5 years on an indefinite leave visa.
Do you think that the consul would have a problem with her being here that long?

Noorah101

Did your wife maintain any type of mailing address in the USA? P.O.Box? Is her mail coming to a friend's house in the USA? Or does she only receive mail in the UK, and no longer in the USA?

I'm really not sure how the embassy will see it. You can send them an email, tell them your situation, and see if they'll accept it....that's the only way I can think of to find out.

Perhaps someone here who has gone through London with a similar circumstance can shed some light.

Rene

john26

Thanks for your help, appreciate it

Hope there is someone in the UK who's gone through the same.

ian-mstm

It's important to note that his wages must be over 125% of the poverty level *for the number of persons living in his household plus you*. If he has a wife and 3 kids still living at home, then he would need to earn 125% of the level for 6 people (5 in household + you). This may or may not be an issue.


She is your wife, she must be your sponsor... it's not optional. This is why a joint sponsor is required if she herself doesn't meet the criteria.

Ian

john26

Thanks for the reply

My wife's father earns $500 a week after tax, which is about $24000 a year, it may be more.. and he lives on his own.
Will that be enough?

hcj1440

The answer is actually on the embassy's website, right after the section you quoted (I think)... you just needed to keep reading! Your wife just needs to convince them that she is moving back to the US for sure -- by establishing a US residence now, finding a job, that sort of thing. I think documentation of your house deal would be pretty good evidence. Anyway, full quote from embassy web page below.

http://www.usembassy.org.uk/cons_new..._domicile.html

What if I have not maintained a residence in the United States?

If you are acting as a joint sponsor you are required to show that you have maintained a residence in the United States. However, in cases where a sponsor may have abandoned his or her residence in the United States to live abroad, may have not resided there since a child, or in some cases, may never have resided there, he or she will not automatically be disqualified to act as a sponsor. In such cases, the question becomes do you intend to reestablish a residence in the United States. If this is indeed your intention and you can prove that you have or intend to re-establish U.S. residence, it may be possible for you to act as a sponsor.

You may meet this requirement by showing that you have taken or will take a credible combination of steps to make the U.S. your immediate principal place of residence. Such steps may include finding employment, locating a place to live, registering children in U.S. schools etc. In addition, you should make arrangements to abandon your residence in the United Kingdom; for example obtaining a valuation of your property from an estate agent.

john26

Thanks for that. I just pick up on the bad side of things

Ok, here is a few more questions:

Our house is rented, so estate agent valuations are out.. Could I provide notice of termination of the rental agreement?

When would it be feasible to actively look for employment? At the moment it would be difficult to get a job over there as I have no guarantee of of a visa, so employers will probably not take the chance. How could I prove that I am looking for work?

I could get a letter from a person over in the states, concerning a house that we are thinking of buying. Would that be helpful?

I'm probably just stressing out here over trivial matters, but it's the 'unknown' side to it that gets to me.

hcj1440

I haven't done DCF but have dealt with USCIS on this side of the pond. I would say that in general, try to go with the spirit of what they're asking for. So as far as not having a real estate valuation to sell your UK property, what they're asking for is documentation of wrapping things up to move back to the US. Giving notice on your UK lease seems like a good example of getting ready to leave the UK -- in fact, are you sure you want to give notice before you get your visa? You never know, there might be a delay...

As for employment, you do not need employment, your wife does. She's the one who needs to establish that she is moving back to the US. If she does not intend to work in the US, then focus on the other aspects of re-establishing her US residency.

If you are in negotiations for a property in the US, that seems like good documentation to me of re-establishment of her US residency.

john26

Thanks for your help, set my mind at ease. for now

ian-mstm

More than enough! Oh, after tax is irrelevant... USCIS is interested in gross (not net) earnings.

Ian

meauxna

Read everything the Londons Consulate's webspace says about 'domilicile'; that is going to be the issue. Then search some more.

Work, school for kids, banking, a US residence lined up etc are examples of ways to show that you plan on actually living in the US. Your wife should not have to go to the extreme of actually moving over ahead of you (although that is one remedy) but if her paperwork does not indicate some of these ties to the US, she could be asked to produce them. Or rather, you would, at your interview.