Bona Fide Marriage Evidence

[mof 15]

Even though we don't have an interview date yet, I am trying to assemble a little package with evidence. Our situation is a bit odd since we have lived together for ten years, all of which we have spent traveling around the world without a "real/legal" residence. We've owned houses in various parts of the world, but they were generally owned by one of my corporations due to local laws - meaning that neither of our names ever shows up on any paper work. The same applies to any vehicles we have owned. During all that time, we have maintained an address in the US where both of us have received mail - bank statements, social security statements, tax forms, etc.

Whenever I read about the interview process, it is clear that a photo album can be quite helpful in proving a bone fide marriage. While I think we have some compelling evidence (children), I am still wondering what kind of photos to bring? Since I am usually the one taking pictures, I don't show up in too many of them - my wife or child is usually the main focus. Do pictures need to show the couple together?

I also wonder how many pictures are helpful. I take quite a few photos every day resulting in something like 200,000 photos over the course of our relationship. Obviously, I can't print them all out (although I have the fantasy that this would surely be irrefutable evidence). How many do you suggest? Other than the wedding with our friends and family, anything else? I believe vacation photos are also useful - except that we have taken over 100 vacations together.

I still have copies of tickets for roughly 50 international flights that we have taken together - and I will bring those, of course. I am sure I could find more if I dug a little deeper (we average about 40 to 50 flights a year).

We have health insurance together (all of us under one policy), I bought a car for my wife (it's in her name since I was unable to register it without a GC) but we are both registered as insured parties, I own a house but she is listed as having the right of survivorship in the warranty deed. I am about to put onto one of my bank accounts (which is a substantial account).

Does that seem enough?

Also, I have plenty of videos of us on various vacations - has anybody ever been able to use videos as evidence? If so, how did you do it?

[Little_My 464]

It seems to me that proving bona fide marriage should not be an issue for you two. If you can show proof of co-mingling of finances, such as joint accounts or credit cards, the shared insurance, maybe a few pictures from your wedding and a couple to show that the relationship existed before the wedding - added to the fact you have children - I would say you are all set to go. The tickets are good, especially since you haven't lived in the US together, we did the same thing to show that we were maintaining a relationship while both residing in different countries.

Are you AOSing from a non-immigrant tourist, work or student visa? If you are, then you already sent in some additional proof with the original AOS package, right? If USCIS wants more proof, they will ask you to bring additional documents / pictures etc. to the interview.

[mof 15]

It seems to me that proving bona fide marriage should not be an issue for you two. If you can show proof of co-mingling of finances, such as joint accounts or credit cards, the shared insurance, maybe a few pictures from your wedding and a couple to show that the relationship existed before the wedding - added to the fact you have children - I would say you are all set to go. The tickets are good, especially since you haven't lived in the US together, we did the same thing to show that we were maintaining a relationship while both residing in different countries.

Are you AOSing from a non-immigrant tourist, work or student visa? If you are, then you already sent in some additional proof with the original AOS package, right? If USCIS wants more proof, they will ask you to bring additional documents / pictures etc. to the interview.

Thank you - I am adjusting from VWP. We only sent the Consular Report of Birth Abroad for our daughter as evidence.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

I think your evidence sounds good. I think you interpreted the I-130 instructions literally (include at least one of the following proofs) and sent only one thing, which is fine. However, I think that because you have been married so long, than the IO will want more proof than just that, and therefore will want to look at more things at the interview. I could be wrong though.

Think of your evidence in terms of what an IO can look at in around 20 minutes. For photos, I would think no more than 20, ranging from different times (wedding, birth of child, etc).

I think you co-mingling looks good, and you have valid reasons for not having more co-mingling, as you have explained. Simple proof of your insurance and car, house, etc looks great.

Good luck.

[Dakine 26]

Life insurance?

Letters and bills to both of you at the same address?

We submitted 10 pages of photos with 4 on each page with captions. "Might" have been overkill. But I'd rather be over than under.

Edited March 28, 2011 by Dakine

[mof 15]

Thank you all for your replies.

You are correct in your interpretation of what we did: We really went for a literal interpretation of the instructions and simply submitted the strongest evidence we could think off: Our daughter. Since she was born abroad, it took quite a bit of effort to get her a Consular Report of Birth Abroad and and even more substantial effort to get her a US passport - requirements for that are rather stringent.

I do hope we have everything covered. Photos won't be a problem - I can easily find 20 or 40 that show both of us - at any given stage of our relationship. Photos in various countries, visiting family in different continents, of our families together, etc.

We also have mutual accounts in one of the countries that we spent lots of time in. The accounts are still active. I'll bring proof of those as well.

Neither of us have life insurance but we do have thousands of letters and bills sent to both of us at the same addresses. I can bring a few of those as well.

My wife was also put on one of my credit cards a few months ago - I suppose that's a good thing as well. We simply never had a reason to co-mingle finances because we are very rarely apart for more than a few hours. In reality, we can count days spent apart on our fingers - and this is over a ten year period.

Additionally, my wife took on my last name after we got married almost six years ago - which included changing her passport as well. We'll bring her passport, too.

Finally, since we do not know anyone where we currently live and don't feel comfortable leaving our child with a stranger, what's everybody's take on bringing a toddler to the interview? She is easy going and very well behaved - from what I have read, there usually is no wait time either, not that it would really be a problem. I suppose if push came to shove, we could find a way to pawn her off for the day, but I think we would only do so if it was absolutely unacceptable to bring our child. In a sense, I would hope that bringing her would certainly make a stronger case that we are, in fact, married and have a life together...

BTW, let me know if this is going to be overkill... It's easy to be paranoid about the whole process, particularly if you don't neatly fit into categories...

Edited March 28, 2011 by mof

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

People bring their children. In the waiting room where we were, there were some toys. There is usually a wait, though. Good luck.