I-864 using assets (DCF Moscow)

[sashitaski 3]

Has anyone tried to use only assets to meet the requirements for the I-864 in Moscow?

I am a student and therefore have no income. My dad is the joint sponsor. The problem is that he was just laid off (in January). Before that, his salary was much more than what was required for the I-864 (about 4 times more). So we decided to use assets (5X 125% of what is required). The assets include 401k, stock, and his investment portfolio. All of them can be converted to cash in less than a year. He is still receiving severance from his previous job, as well as actively searching for a new one. His tax returns for the last three years show a high, stable income.

Also, he used my mom's income as a household member. She does not make enough to meet the requirement, but at least this will show that she currently has a job.

So we have included proof of all assets, the last three pay stubs from his job, severance pay stubs, my mom's information, and an explanatory note explaining that he is using assets since he just lost his job due to the economic crisis.

It seems that, in theory, we have met the criteria for the I-864, but I understand that using only assets is tricky and doesn't always work.

How good/bad are our chances? This was quite unfortunate and came as a shock for all of us. Of course it would be best to find another sponsor, but so far I haven't been able to.

Any thoughts?

[dimanuni 1]

I have the same question, and no one has replied to me yet on Visa Journey! So please let me know what you find out. Also, I was just researching online, and on the USCIS website, there is nothing which prohibits completely replacing the income with Assets = to 5x. But other website seems to say it is tricky.

I wonder if this is the type of question you could email the consulate about? I'm considering doing that. What do people think about doing that??

I'm looking forward to learning from your experience!

Good luck, Rebecca

[txladykat 1]

i actually inquired about this to the denmark embassy last week. My mother has income, but we only wanted to use her assets so I asked if she should list the income in addition to the assets if we were not using them to qualify. they said no, just list the assets and that should be sufficient. I thought assets had to be 3 times if they were a USC and 5 times if it was belonging to the immigrant?

[sashitaski 3]

i actually inquired about this to the denmark embassy last week. My mother has income, but we only wanted to use her assets so I asked if she should list the income in addition to the assets if we were not using them to qualify. they said no, just list the assets and that should be sufficient. I thought assets had to be 3 times if they were a USC and 5 times if it was belonging to the immigrant?

Well, at least we have some hope! But there should be some people out there who have actually gone through this---anyone?

In terms of 3 times vs. 5 times, I believe that 3 times is enough if it is the spouse's assets, but if it's the joint sponsor's, it should be 5 times. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

[MargotDarko 0]

i actually inquired about this to the denmark embassy last week. My mother has income, but we only wanted to use her assets so I asked if she should list the income in addition to the assets if we were not using them to qualify. they said no, just list the assets and that should be sufficient. I thought assets had to be 3 times if they were a USC and 5 times if it was belonging to the immigrant?

Well, at least we have some hope! But there should be some people out there who have actually gone through this---anyone?

In terms of 3 times vs. 5 times, I believe that 3 times is enough if it is the spouse's assets, but if it's the joint sponsor's, it should be 5 times. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

You are right that it's 5 times when it's the joint sponsor.

To the OP - if your mother's income is pretty okay and the assets are five times the total needed not just the difference between your mother's income and the total needed, it sounds like you're good to go! Technically, they would only need to show five times the difference between your mother's income and the requirement. For example, if her income is $15,000 and you need to show $25,000 annual income, the assets only truly need to be $50,000 USD. Using investment money is a bit iffy right now, but if he's show way over what's needed, I wouldn't worry.

Edited February 11, 2009 by MargotDarko

[sashitaski 3]

An update for those of you in a similar situation:

My husband's interview was today and he was approved!

They accepted the co-sponsor's paperwork, which included the assets I described above, a letter explaining his situation, the last three pay stubs from his last job, and his last three severance pay stubs.

They didn't question anything. I think this is because we were well prepared, everything was well documented, and they could see that the co-sponsor, before losing his job, had a high, stable income.

Anyway, good luck to the rest of you using assets!

[dimanuni 1]

Thanks for the update and congratulations!!

[txladykat 1]

Did you have to provide tax returns for the co-sponsor? my mother is using assets only as a co-sponsor, and I don't want to use her tax returns unless we have to.

[sashitaski 3]

Did you have to provide tax returns for the co-sponsor? my mother is using assets only as a co-sponsor, and I don't want to use her tax returns unless we have to.

Yes, tax returns are a requirement for the I-864, which the co-sponsor also has to fill out.