Evidence of Intent to Re-establish Domicile

[LauraDP 10]

My husband is a US citizen but has been resident in the UK since 1991. My four children and I are UK citizens.

It seems that one of the things my husband will have to do is provide evidence of an intention to re-establish domicile in the US. Logistically and financially it would be almost impossible for him to move back to the US first of all and then have us join him, making him accepting a job prior to the completion or near completion of the immigration process for myself and our children problematic. Is it possible to demonstrate intent in some other way than having employment in the US? It may sound lame (I am sure it does) but would some sort of statement or declaration of intent be enough? We would not want to commit, for instance, to a rental agreement without my husband having gained employment in the US and we could not enrol our sons in school in the US until we knew where it was we were going to be resident (ie county or school district). However, nor can my husband accept a job in the US without knowing that the children and I would be accompanying him or, at the very least, following behind a short while later yet, if I am understanding it correctly, the immigration process would have to have begun a good while earlier.

This feels a bit like being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

I would love to learn a bit more about the evidencing of an intent to return to the US from those of you who have been through this part of the process already.

Thanks in advance for any replies. I assure you they will be most appreciated.

Laura

[Anh map 2,098]

My husband is a US citizen but has been resident in the UK since 1991. My four children and I are UK citizens.

It seems that one of the things my husband will have to do is provide evidence of an intention to re-establish domicile in the US. Logistically and financially it would be almost impossible for him to move back to the US first of all and then have us join him, making him accepting a job prior to the completion or near completion of the immigration process for myself and our children problematic. Is it possible to demonstrate intent in some other way than having employment in the US? It may sound lame (I am sure it does) but would some sort of statement or declaration of intent be enough? We would not want to commit, for instance, to a rental agreement without my husband having gained employment in the US and we could not enrol our sons in school in the US until we knew where it was we were going to be resident (ie county or school district). However, nor can my husband accept a job in the US without knowing that the children and I would be accompanying him or, at the very least, following behind a short while later yet, if I am understanding it correctly, the immigration process would have to have begun a good while earlier.

This feels a bit like being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

I would love to learn a bit more about the evidencing of an intent to return to the US from those of you who have been through this part of the process already.

Thanks in advance for any replies. I assure you they will be most appreciated.

Laura

A statement or promise will not be enough. You folks are going to have to establish some sort of domicile. If he has relatives in the US that may be a viable path to follow, as well as establishing bank accounts, driver's license, etc.

[canadian_wife 1,819]

I understand your frustration, Montreal is incredibly strict about domicile, requiring the USC move ahead of the beneficiary and establish a residence and evidence of a job.

For London, I don't think they are that strict, what about a lease? Even if it is with friends or family? What about evidence of looking for work (often if you apply online you'll get a confirmation note or a response from a company confirming receipt of a resume) perhaps evidence of moving companies?

Good luck

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Here is a good thread to read: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/164618-proving-domicile-when-not-living-in-the-us/

[LauraDP 10]

Thanks for your responses and the link to the other thread.

We would be hard pressed to sign up to a rental agreement prior to selling our house here which we would not be able to do until Chris has secured a job in the US which he cannot do unless we are some way into the timeline for myself and the kids emigrating. Logistically and financially we could not make it work with him moving out more than a few months ahead of us.

If Chris was to have some sort of evidence that he has been networking as a means of then applying for jobs would that be enough or does he actually have to have accepted a position? I ask because he may well apply through a Federal Jobs clearing house and he has already got evidence that he is establishing the parity of his UK professional qualifications with those in the US.

Chris has family in the US but they are in California and our plan would be to settle in either Maryland or Virginia (as Chris' plan is to work for Federal Government as that is akin to the job he does in the UK). Would the family in CA still be able to provide some sort of evidence? Alternatively, we have a good friend in the US who Chris could stay with when he goes out in advance of the rest of us. He rents, however, so would a letter from him stating that he is allowing Chris to live with him as a guest be enough? It would be once Chris moves over that we would sell our own house and Chris would look for somewhere permanent for us to live.

We have a loose plan to visit the US next year on vacation so I assume it would be possible for Chris to open a bank account in the US since he is a citizen and has a SSN. How much would we have to deposit, however, for the bank account to be evidence of intent? We would not be able to shift a vast sum from our UK account since we need that money to a) live off in the interim and b) fund our immigration both in terms of paperwork and shipping.

I don't mind telling you that I am feeling a bit despondent about this whole process and we are still at the very early stages. I don't know how we can ever make this work logistically, practically and financially since it seems we have to commit everything we have to an insecure plan since we cannot be certain of Chris getting a job that pays enough or of the kids and I being granted immigration status on the right timeline if at all. Did all of you feel like this at first? I am so overwhelmed by the dense beaurocracy of it all. I get that no country wants to let people in willy nilly but the information is so hard to process and grasp.

Thanks again for being so kind as to answer my queries.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Laura,

the process is certainly overwhelming, especially at first, but you can and will figure it all out. Just know that it is normal to be overwhelmed, and eventually most everyone figures it all out. The domicile question will be best answered in the DCF forum (direct consular filing). Also, it seems like you haven't looked into DCF yet. This process goes very fast, so you could wait until your husband found a job and then file. You are lucky here because London still allows DCF and most places in the world no longer do. Have you looked into the DCF forum yet? It's just below this one.

[LauraDP 10]

We have briefly looked into DCF and established we could not do it at our Consulate in Edinburgh but can do it in London at the Embassy. What I cannot seem to ascertain is to what extent the DCF process would speed up the process, what the difference in timeline would be. I will certainly check out the DCF forum when I get time later today - my kids are at me to watch a movie with them right now.

Thanks again for all the advice.

Laura

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

We have briefly looked into DCF and established we could not do it at our Consulate in Edinburgh but can do it in London at the Embassy. What I cannot seem to ascertain is to what extent the DCF process would speed up the process, what the difference in timeline would be. I will certainly check out the DCF forum when I get time later today - my kids are at me to watch a movie with them right now.

Thanks again for all the advice.

Laura

Edinburgh does not process immigrant visas anyway, so no matter what you do, you will interview in London. DCF takes maybe one or two months (or less?), the normal process takes 9-12 months.