Bluegrass Lass

Just wanted to ask some q's about the I-864.

(1) I currently meet the income requirements to sponsor my hubby, but I didn't in 2002 and 2001. Could this be held against me, and force me to find a co-sponsor (very difficult to do)?

(2) After reading over the instructions, it lists a bank letter as needed if I'm using Assets as Evidence, but a bank letter is not listed under Evidence of Income. Can I assume, then, that since I'm only using income & no assets to meet the requirements, that a bank letter is not necessary?

Cheers!
Jamie (married for 9 whole days now!)

jeffreyhy

Jamie,

1) Maybe. It depends on how the office where you will interview, and how the interviewing officer, views things.

2) Fair assumption. Unless your income comes from the bank.

Regards, JEff

Bluegrass Lass

Ok, so now I have another question.

On the sample I-864 that is filled out on visajourney: http://www.visajourney.com/examples/INS-Form-I-864.pdf, in Section 4 - Sponsor's Household Income the tic box for having filed a single tax return for the most recent year is marked. But also the tic box stating that W-2's and 1099's are included is checked off as well.

I was under the impression that W-2's and 1099s are only necessary when you are including a tax return that was filed jointly, and the sponsor needs to separate out his/her income. So why would someone who filed single need to include W-2s? It's not a big deal because I can include them if necessary, I'm just looking for some clarification on whether or not I need to dig these out.

Cheers,
Jamie

katina

In our case, at least:

1. The same was true for me, and although others have had no problems with this situation, at the interview I was told I had to get a co-sponsor. We weren't expecting this to happen at the interview [in Baltimore], but it did... At the AOS interview the officer basically said she'd approve the case when she received the co-sponsor's I-864 -- and she did.

2. I didn't include a bank letter with the I-864 for AOS and that was fine in our case.

Congrats on the wedding!

KimJ

Hi Jamie -

The instructions I got with the I-864 said that I had to include the last 3 years worth of tax returns and W-2's. I filed as single the last 3 years, too. The instructions said that as of May 1, 2004 tax *transcripts* would be required. So if you don't have them, you might want to order them from the IRS (they're free). You can find the number on their website.

As an aside: I also provided a letter from my employer stating the date I started, my income, and that I was a 'regular, full-time employee'. I also included copies of my last few pay-stubs.

I think that was it...

Kim

jeffreyhy

sfg,

The instructions for the I-864 clearly indicate that W-2s are required in the case of a joint return when only 1 of the parties to the return is sponsoring. It is silent on the need for W-2s otherwise, so it is reasonable to assume that W-2s are not required for a single filer.

But, remember always that the officer reviewing a case is empowered to ask for as much information as they feel is necessary to satisfy themselves on the issue at hand. If the officer wants to see W-2s to corroborate what was reported on the tax return (s)he can ask for them.

It would seem that this happens often enough that it's probably a good idea to include W-2s with the tax returns or tax transcripts.

Regards, JEff

KimJ

To clarify something on my previous post: the instructions I was referring to were sent as an addition in the I-864 packet.

So, even though what JEff states above is true, the additional instructions I received stated to include what I posted earlier.

Bluegrass Lass

Thanks Kim and Jeff for the replies! One should definitely never assume when dealing with USCIS offices. Kim, did you get your additional I-864 instructions with your I-485 package, or was this something that was sent to you later on before the interview?

Jamie

Noortje

Hi,

A question from me too...
I'm not American... so, what is the difference between tax returns and tax transcripts?

And in case they are two different things, so it's best that we include tax returns, tax transcrips and W-2's even though there was never a jointly filed tax return?

Thanks.

jeffreyhy

Noortje,

A tax return (aka Form 1040 with associated schedules and forms as necessary) is filed by the tax payer with the IRS (Internal Revenue Service).

A tax transcript is a cryptic file that the IRS creates that contains the essential information from a taxpayer's return.

For immigration purposes, either a tax return or a tax transcript serves the purpose of documenting what the US citizen told the government his income was. Since it's not a good idea to lie to the IRS, this should be a pretty reliable source of information.

Regards, JEff

Noortje

Thank you for your answer, Jeff.

Noortje

So then, the tax returns and W-2's are enough as proof.
Thanks.