I-130 Questions - Initial Preparation

[chubuwest 1]

It's nice to meet everyone here. I'm just starting out on the process to get an IR-1 Spouse Visa for my wife. We both live in Japan, so hopefully the process of getting the visa won't be too difficult. A former coworker of mine just arrived in the States this week with his fiancee and highly recommended VisaJourney!

I have a couple of questions regarding preparation of the I-130 and bonafide marriage evidence...

1. The marriage certificate needs to be translated from Japanese to English. I actually work as a Japanese-English translator, so would it be acceptable if I do the translation on my own?

2. For bonafide marriage evidence, I have emails going back almost six years and quite a few pictures of us (not to mention her two visits to the States and our wedding ceremony, etc.) Do I need to make actual film prints of the pictures (almost all of them were taken with a digital camera and are stored on my hard drive) or are printed copies (on A4 or similar paper) of the pictures acceptable?

3. What exactly needs to be said in the affidavits? I have family and friends who are willing to vouch for us, but before asking them to write an affidavit what points should be covered?

4. Question 18 of the I-130 asks where the relative intends to live. Given that we can't move to the States until she has her visa, what should we put in that section?

The whole process seems complicated (especially in terms of gathering the bonafide marriage evidence) but once I've gathered the material we should be able to send it out pretty quickly. It's hard to know how long the entire process will take from start to finish.

Thanks again and I look forward to hearing everyone's opinions and advice!

[Holly2234 66]

Im not sure about the translations on whether you can do them yourself but they usually need to be notarized.

For the evidence, just print a few pictures including some with your friends and family etc and some wedding ones. Any size photo is ok, that doesnt really matter. A few emails or chat logs too. The affidavits usually need to cover the basics, how long they have known you, did they attend your wedding, how many people were there. That kind of thing. There are a few other threads around here which include those so it might be worth searching.

Where your partner intends to live, is there a sample of one already filled in in the guidance notes? Usually you can find them on your local embassy website. The UK one has a sample and that section says "Not yet known".

Good luck!

[Ryan H 3,812]

Answers in bold:

1. The marriage certificate needs to be translated from Japanese to English. I actually work as a Japanese-English translator, so would it be acceptable if I do the translation on my own?

There is no hard rule that says you cannot do the translation yourself. However, I would suggest that you have someone you know that is fluent in both Japanese and English sign the required attestation statement that would accompany the translation.

2. For bonafide marriage evidence, I have emails going back almost six years and quite a few pictures of us (not to mention her two visits to the States and our wedding ceremony, etc.) Do I need to make actual film prints of the pictures (almost all of them were taken with a digital camera and are stored on my hard drive) or are printed copies (on A4 or similar paper) of the pictures acceptable?

You do not need to make actual film prints of the pictures. When I submitted pictures, I printed them out on standard paper that you would put in a printer and put a number next to the picture. In another space on the same paper, I put a description of the picture that corresponded to the number.

3. What exactly needs to be said in the affidavits? I have family and friends who are willing to vouch for us, but before asking them to write an affidavit what points should be covered?

These are not required. With that being said, if you choose to include them, they should be from people who have interacted with you both as a couple. They may not carry much weight to begin with, however, they will carry zero weight if it comes from someone who has only interacted with just one of you.

4. Question 18 of the I-130 asks where the relative intends to live. Given that we can't move to the States until she has her visa, what should we put in that section?

If you were going to move back to the States tomorrow (just you), where would you live? Put that address, you're not bound it later on down the line.

Edited April 19, 2012 by Ryan H

[chubuwest 1]

Thank you for both of the replies. The advice about the pictures was quite helpful - I have them ready to go now!

Regarding the address question: If I were to return to the States tomorrow, I would probably go back to my parents' house in the Midwest. However, my wife and I are planning to live in a completely different region (and most likely won't do any apartment hunting until we make the move, or at the very least until her visa is confirmed.)

Am I to understand that we are not bound by the address we put down in Question 18? If that's the case I will just put in my parents' address.

Thanks!

[dimples 9]

Thank you for both of the replies. The advice about the pictures was quite helpful - I have them ready to go now!

Regarding the address question: If I were to return to the States tomorrow, I would probably go back to my parents' house in the Midwest. However, my wife and I are planning to live in a completely different region (and most likely won't do any apartment hunting until we make the move, or at the very least until her visa is confirmed.)

Am I to understand that we are not bound by the address we put down in Question 18? If that's the case I will just put in my parents' address.

Thanks!

You are not bound to the address. You just need to put something in there.