Crazy timing...advice needed

[mg23 1]

Hi there,

OK, so background: I'm a UK citizen working in the USA on an H-1B visa, valid for another couple of years. My wife's a US citizen and we got married recently.

On Friday we completed our I-130, I-485, I-765 and I-131 package and I got it sent off this morning at 11am. An hour later we found out that, out of the blue, the organization my wife works for is likely to enter bankruptcy and all of the organization's employees were just given their 60 days' statutory notice of redundancy in case more investment for the organization is not forthcoming.

Obviously as part of the I-485 we also sent off the I-864 Affidavit of Support. My wife earns $55,000 a year so we just used proof of her salary (payslips, last year's tax return) as the total household income. I actually earn a similar amount but we felt that since her salary was easily sufficient to prove we could support our household, it would be better not to complicate things by adding my salary to the I-864 and then subsequently having to get a letter from my employer stating that I will continue working there after the green card is approved.

So, does anyone have any advice/recommendations? Should I now look into adding my own salary to the application? I read somewhere that the important thing is that at time of filing, the information is correct. I've also read that it's actually time of signing the affidavit that's important. The timeline here may be critical so here's relevant dates and times:

Fri Mar 9th - package completed, I-864 signed and dated

Mon Mar 9th 11am - package mailed to USCIS lockbox via express USPS

Mon Mar 9th Noon - wife gets 60 days notice of possible redundancy

Thanks!

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

Wait for now. If needed, you can bring a revised affidavit of support with your salary- or her new one, if she has a new job by then- to interview.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Yes, you will need to bring an updated Affidavit to the interview. If your salary is fine, there is nothing to worry about (you can add your income as the immigrant as long as it will continue from the same source after you get GC).

[mg23 1]

Wait for now. If needed, you can bring a revised affidavit of support with your salary- or her new one, if she has a new job by then- to interview.

Thanks for the advice. The current plan (of course may be amended in light of new info!) is for her to NOT get a new job, because we always planned to take a career break and go travelling for 4-5 months as a honeymoon as soon as the green card's approved. It's the same reason I didn't want to get a letter from my employer stating I'll be drawing a salary there for the foreseeable future: I don't intend to stay there beyond that time.

Given the above info, it seems like we have two obvious options: firstly, get paperwork together to try and show we have enough assets to qualify; secondly, get that letter from my employer and take an amended I-864 to the interview so that my salary qualifies us.

When am I obliged to inform USCIS of the change in our circumstances? Just at the final interview, or before that?

Update: just saw Harpa's post (thanks)

I guess I may have to state at the interview that I intend to stay at my current job after the GC is approved, and bring along the relevant updated I-864.

A follow-up hypothetical question: what are the likely repercussions if I do the above but then subsequently happen to quit my job a few weeks after approval?

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

No repercussions. They won't ask you how long you intend to stay. As long as you have the job the day you are approved, you will be fine.

[TwoOddOnes 1]

Sorry to hear that. We had a similar situation. We sent our AOS package with the I-864 on December 5th. Wife lost her job 2 weeks later. The same day she lost her job we filled out close to 15 job applications. We also registered her for unemployment, but we never received any checks because she had a new job in about 2 weeks. At our interview on March 5th, the IO asked us if she still worked there and we said no. She asked us when she stopped working there and when she started her new job. We brought an employment verification letter with her name and salary she would be making along with three pay stubs she had from her new employment. Hope this helps!

Also, from what I read around while in that situation is that your I-864 income is based on the day it was received. Not after. We didn't amend anything.

Good luck!