AragornandArwen

Hi,

My wife (USC from Arizona) and I (UKC) have been married for 3 years and she has been living with me in the UK since Oct 06. For family reasons she is having to move back to the US for what may be several years. For logistical reasons we have realised it will make more sense to relocate to the US. We are aware that we will need to pursue the CR-1 route. We have two main questions which we would like to pick your collective brains with:

a) My wife (USC) has a chronic disability. I, the UKC, am her carer. She is unable to work and consequently is unable to meet the 125% state poverty line income requirements to be my sponsor. We have no co-sponsor, and the credit crunch crunched up our savings. Is any leeway given to carers of disabled USCs when making their application.

b) As we have been married for 3 years is there anything we should be aware of when completing a CR-1 form in relation to marriages that are over 2 years old?

Thanks for any info you could provide and any experiences you are able to share.

Noorah101

Not to my knowledge, no. If your wife does not meet the I-864 income or asset requirements, she can use a joint sponsor. That said, whatever is yours is hers (since you're married). I know you said you don't have savings, but do you own any property that you'll be selling? The ConOffs lately have been frowning on using an asset which is your primary residence, but if you'll be selling yours before the I-864 is due...you'll have that much in the bank. Or, if you (the UKC) are receiving an income that will continue from the same source once inside the USA (like retirement income or pension), that can also be counted on the I-864. Does the USC receive any disability income from the USA?

Did you search very hard for a joint sponsor yet?

There actually is no "CR-1 form". The visa application is the same no matter how long you've been married. When the ConOff realizes your marriage is more than 2 years old, you'll receive an IR-1 visa (as opposed to the conditional CR-1), and after you arrive in the USA, your green card should be the 10-year one.

Rene

AragornandArwen

Thank you for your prompt reply Rene. Hope you are enjoying the wonderful lifestyle of Az.

Your reply confirms what we thought/feared.

As we rent our property we do not own anything to sell. We are also considering looking at employment as an option for me too. I have a UK law degree and may look at opportunities for study in the US to convert my qualification into a US one. Other than that I may look to undertake further studies here in the UK into other career fields which may give me skill sets which would open up other employment opportunities in the US.

My wife is a semi-retired ordained minister and health issues allowing in the future she may look to charter her own Church.

As regards joint sponsors my wife only has her mother who does not qualify for sponsorship over there on I-864 income grounds.

We are however determined and have a healthy positive open mindedness to all opportunities.

Noorah101

In case you were not aware, the joint sponsor does not have to be a family member. It can be anyone who is a USC or US PR, age 18+, living in the USA.

Maybe she has some friends or contacts through church that can help?

Rene

jeffreyhy

A&A,

I see something of a contradiction here, or at least an ambiguity. Is she able to work or not? Is she retired or not?

As far as your employment opportunities in the USA, the employment situation in general in the USA remains grim. Rene to told you what the requirements for a joint sponsor are for immigration, let me add one more requirement for the more practical purpose of avoiding starvation - the joint sponsor must not only promise to support you, they must be willing to actually give you the support they promised.

Regards, JEff

AragornandArwen

Thank you for the kind suggestions Rene. Unfortunately my wife has very limited contacts in the US. The ones she does have are not willing to be a co-sponsor as they are a little paranoid when it comes to legally signing up for anything.

For clarification Jeff, she has been unable to work for several years now due to her medical condition which means she is in very poor health on most days with occasional days were she is in better health. Consequently she is unable to work, this has even been confirmed in writing by her Doctor's surgery and in court issued documentation.

Her setting up a Church would be on a purely voluntary non-profit basis, so is more of a vocational thing, a "calling" if you will. She is a qualified Spiritual Guidance Counsellor and this would be able to help and guide others as best she could on her healthier days.

I hope this clarifies the nature of both her disability and her spiritual office for you.

As she herself says "one never retires from spiritually ministering for others, even from one's sick bed".

Regards


Chris

Noorah101

Unfortunately, in order for you to immigrate to the USA, you will need to submit an I-864. Your wife does not qualify financially, so if you can't find a joint sponsor or you don't have enough in assets, then you simply won't be immigrating. The I-864 is required.

Rene

Bluegrass Lass

If your wife has no assets/income and you cannot find a joint sponsor, then you cannot immigrate on a marriage-based visa. Your only other option is an employment-based visa. An employment based visa will be a long and difficult process, as you will need to find an employer willing to hire you and sponsor you for a visa. That will not be an easy task at all - esp given current economic troubles.

Also, you can only remain in the US on an employment visa for a limited number of years, and then you either have to get your employer to sponsor you for a green card, or hope that your wife can sponsor you for a green card by that point. Otherwise, if neither an employer or your wife could sponsor a green card, you would have to return back to the UK.

Maybe your wife needs to begin looking into how to acquire disability benefits once she returns to the US. I believe she can use disability income on the I-864. So if she can find out how much her disability income would be, and it will satisfy the income requirement on the I-864, then your best solution would be for her to 1) return to the US while you stay in the UK, 2)file for her disability, 3) then she files the paperwork to then bring you over to the US.

If her disability income will not qualify her, then I would guess that the employment based route would have to be your only other option.

Rete

For a family of two you need just under $19,000 US. If your wife is disabled, would she also be considered disabled in the US and qualify for social security disability? If so, that might be enough to meet the 125% of the poverty guidelines for a family of two.

If that is not possible, then you would have to find employment when you get here, but getting here is the problem. You can't get employment until you are in the US and have the right to work which means you need your IR Visa.

Your wife has absolutely no relatives and/or friends who would be willing to land it on the line for you by completing an I-864? If not, then there is little you can do other than to stay in the UK, work, save and when you have enough assets apply for your IR Visa.

jeffreyhy

A&A,

Thanks for the clarification, although that much personal detail was not required. My point was that you had made conflicting statements, something you want to avoid when dealing with immigration.

Regards, JEff