US Domicile

[eclipsezero 0]

We have applied and received or NOA2 for I-130 last week.

I have been reading about US domicile. I've lived in the UK for about last year and a half since my wife and I were married. I am planning to return to the US once my wife receives her visa - she will come a couple months later as she has to finish employment, etc. However, I have been reading that being that I currently don't live in the US (I have bank accounts, voted and have a unexpired drivers license btw) I might have trouble proving my domicile. Would there be any benefit for me to return to the US prior to my wives interview? We had originally thought it would be a good thing for me to be there at the interview but I guess that does not matter?

[canadian_wife 1,822]

When your wife gets her visa and you, as you plan, return to the US with her, where do you intend to stay? With parents? Friends? You can use their address as a domicile.

Good luck.

[Bobby+Umit 161]

Domicile

Domicile is a complex issue and must be determined on a case by case basis. To qualify as a sponsor, a petitioner who is residing abroad must have a principal residence in the U.S. and intend to maintain that residence for the foreseeable future. Lawful permanent resident (LPR) sponsors must show they are maintaining their LPR status.

Many U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents reside outside the United States on a temporary basis, usually for work or family considerations. "Temporary" may cover an extended period of residence abroad. The sponsor living abroad must establish the following in order to be considered domiciled in the United States:

He/she left the United States for a limited and not indefinite period of time,

He/she intended to maintain a domicile in the United States, and

He/she has evidence of continued ties to the United States.

An American citizen or LPR spouse or dependent who has maintained a residence in the U.S. and/or whose spouse/parent works in one of the categories listed below would also qualify as a sponsor.

What kinds of employment abroad can be counted as U.S. domicile?

Employment by the U.S. government

Employment by an American institution of research recognized by the Attorney General

Employment by an American firm or corporation engaged in whole or in part in the development of foreign trade and commerce with the United States, or a subsidiary of such a firm

Employment with a public international organization in which the United States participates by treaty or statute

Employment by a religious denomination/group having a genuine organization within the United States and is stationed abroad with that religious denomination

Employment as a missionary by a religious denomination/group or by an interdenominational mission organization within the United States and is stationed abroad with that religious denomination

There may be other circumstances in which a sponsor can show that his or her presence abroad is of a temporary nature, and the sponsor has a domicile in the United States. The sponsor must satisfy to the consular officer that he/she has not given up his/her domicile in the United States and established his/her domicile abroad.

How can a petitioner establish a domicile?

When a sponsor has clearly not maintained a domicile in the United States, he/she will need to re-establish a U.S. domicile in order for him/her to be a sponsor. The sponsor may make a number of steps to show that he/she considers the United States his/her principal place of residence. Examples of things he/she can do are given below:

Find a job in the United States

Locate a place to live in the United States

Register children in U.S. schools

Make arrangements to give up (relinquish) residence abroad

Other evidence of a U.S. residence

If the sponsor establishes U.S. domicile, it is not necessary for the sponsor to go to the United States before the sponsored family members. However, the sponsored immigrant may not enter the United States before the sponsor returns to the United States to live. The sponsored immigrant must travel with the sponsor or after the sponsor has entered the United States.

USCIS FAQ I-864 : Domicile

Edited August 3, 2009 by Bobby_Umit

[txladykat 1]

domicile isn't as much an issue when the country you are immigrating from is not high on the fraud list

typically voter registration, current driver license, bank accounts, credit accounts, etc. from the US are all that is needed to establish domicile when applying from a country that is not high on the fraud list. If the country is high on the fraud list, they are now asking the USC to go to the states and actually establish a residence rather than just "domicile".

[Malrothien 6]

I'm a USC living in Canada. For proving my domicile, I am going to have a lease agreement drawn up between my grandmother and us, a bank account reopened, a letter to our current landlord here in Canada that we will be ending our agreement with him, and any resumes I may have sent out by that time.