Our finances crashed after filing Affidavit Of Support

[SlicedBread 0]

Hi everyone, this is my first post. I'm a USC who married an UK citizen. She was already here on an F-1 visa.

We've filed for AOS using 'income' as our affidavit of support, but wonder if :

a) our strained financial situation kills our chances, and

b) if the latest confusing NOA assures us that our chances are still good anyway.

The detail:

We applied for her green card, but our application had some problems: I was on an extension for my 2009 taxes, which meant the latest 3 years for which I could provide tax returns were 2006, 2007 and 2008. I couldn't send a 2009 tax return.

We felt qualified because our household income was (then) four times the required poverty line limit for a household of 2. It was mostly from rental income. However, we got an NOA that said we didn't meet the financial requirements, and requested much more financial information. We were dismayed.

The NOA said our application was on hold until we sent in the financial information. Meanwhile, our financial situation got much worse. We're pretty sure we don't qualify with "income" any more. Both our houses are for sale, which in this town means they *must* be unrented if I want a snowball's chance of attracting a buyer.

We hope to qualify with assets, because I do own two homes. The equity on both homes added together is about ten times the poverty line for a household of 2. The problem with going the assets route is you have to show your bank accounts, and our bank balances are scraping the bottom right now.

Then, a few weeks later, we got a biometrics appointment letter. This confused us because we thought our case was on hold. We wondered if this meant they had reviewed the case and allowed us to proceed without requiring all the financial paperwork.

Our question are several. If anyone has insights on any of them, we would be grateful :

a) should we hold any glimmer of hope that the biometrics appt means they've decided to forget about requiring all those financial records? Giving them up would expose our current dire financial situation.

b) is it a bad sign that they're suspicious, that they ask for so much info, when in fact I qualified financially at the time that I filed?

c) can we switch from trying to qualify with "income" to qualifying with "assets" in the same application?

d) how hard-nosed are they at the interview? That is, will they approve us if I can show I have had a very good financial history for decades, but am simply going through a very rough patch right now?

e) I am virtually assured of being offered a huge financial settlement by my insurance company over some devastating property damage. Will the interviewing officer consider the preliminary legal paperwork showing the very large amounts in question as potential income?

Again, I am grateful for any advice. Thanks for having the forum in the first place, and good luck to all of us.

- - - - - - - -

I don't have the exact dates, but our sequence is *something* like this :

July 2010 - We get married

August 2010 - We apply for AOS

September 2010 - We get NOA saying we don't qualify financially

September 2010 - We get biometrics appointment letter

November 2010 - Our interview appointment date

[amykathleen2005 441]

You have to submit the 2009 tax returns. That is why they are asking for it, they aren't optional. If you can't qualify you need a cosponsor.

Your assets need to be liquid, so easily convertible to cash to count. Equity in a house might be nice, but I don't think it measures up to an income in the same amount.

[Rebecca Jo 1,962]

You'll be told at the interview if your finances are adequate.

If they aren't, you'll be asked to come back within a certain number of days with an I864 which DOES meet their criteria.

None of this is meant to imply that I think you'll be fine with what you've sent them. It's right in the instructions that the most recent income tax filing is required. If you sent your extension letter, they may cut you some slack.

Edited October 7, 2010 by JohnnyQuest

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Except under extraordinary circumstances, they do not resume processing a case after an RFE has been issued unless the requested evidence has been provided. Your I-485 submission triggered a biometrics request. The I-485 and the biometric request take two different parallel paths to their destination; the I-485 ends up at either the CSC or your local USCIS field office, while the biometrics request goes to a USCIS Application Support Center in your area. When processing of the I-485 stops because of an RFE it does not stop processing of the biometrics request. You may safely abandon any glimmer of hope that the biometric appointment means you won't have to respond to the RFE. If you don't respond to the RFE in the timeframe given then the AOS will be denied.

By law, the sponsor must qualify both at the time the affidavit is submitted AND the time the AOS is approved. They are aware that people's financial situations do change. You can submit proof of assets now to help you qualify, if needed. If you intend to use equity then you will need an appraisal from a certified appraiser. You cannot use a tax assessment or "comparables" or any other ballpark estimate of the market value of your homes. You also have to show proof of the total amount of liens against the homes. A current statement from the mortgage company should suffice.

They can be very hard nosed at the interview, but they often aren't. If you have adequate income and/or assets to qualify then they'll usually let you slide. They tend not to be overly loose with their discretion and deny a qualified sponsor without good reason. It would help enormously if you had a co-sponsor as a backup, just in case.

You can't use a future payoff of an insurance claim as an asset.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

** moved from "Adjustment of Status (Green Card) from Family Based Visas" to "Adjustment of Status from Work, Student, & Tourist Visas" as you are adjusting from an F1 visa and the prior forum is for K1, K2, K3 & K4 **