Need advice urgently

[Little_My 464]

They will 100% have an interview. It is a mandatory part of the process when adjusting status from a non-immigrant visa to permanent resident in the US.

Edited June 8, 2012 by Little_My

[Sandra G. 5,047]

Get married, have joint bank account, joint utilities bills, health insurance, car insurance.Lots of pictures with her, her family and friends 30,40 pics), proof of trips together, hotel invoice, at least two Notarized affidavits from friends stating your relationship is genuine, and you will be fine!

Edited June 8, 2012 by sandranj

[ducky06 0]

I'll skip around a little here, but just to add to some of your questions:

3. My OPT days are to expire soon, then it will be followed by a grace period (60 days). Assuming, I made an application for an adjustment of the status by the end of this period of 60 days, but I won’t have the work authorization and advance parole, can I still reside in the US to wait for the answer to the application? Or will I still have to leave the country?

Just to clarify, once you file for adjustment of status from your non-immigrant F-1 visa, you cannot leave the US until you receive your advanced parole document, or permanent resident status (if you do not apply for AP). You do not need the EAD or AP to remain in the country; having filed the AOS application changes your legal status from F-1 student to "AOS Pending". If you leave the US after applying for AOS, while married to a US citizen and without AP, you will probably be denied entry at the border and have to apply for a spousal visa (CR-1) from your home country's consulate. So, you should plan to be in the US for 2-3 months after getting married, before you receive AP. Also, you may have a gap where you can't be employed (depending on when your OPT ends and when you get your new EAD)- another reason to file sooner rather than later.

Keep this in mind if you have any essential international travel that you need to do in the next few months. The advanced parole application (I-131) as well as EAD can be filed concurrently with the I-130 and I-485, carries no fee when filed concurrently, and is usually issued within 90 days of filing, sometimes sooner.

Shall I make other applications (for visitor B-visa or extension of OPT)?

If you really love each other and want to marry, it sounds like AOS (concurrent filing of I-130/I-485) is your best bet. The general rule is, don't file a non-immigrant application if you can't demonstrate conclusively you intend to return to live in your country of origin when your visa expires. The law assumes all non-immigrant applicants have immigrant intent- not the other way around- and the burden is on you to prove otherwise. Entering the country on a non-immigrant visa with immigrant intent can result in penalties if you are caught. If it seems you are entering the country for your girlfriend and not for the stated purpose of your visa, that could be a red flag.

Along those lines: If you have re-entered the US on your F-1 visa within the past 60 days, it is a good idea to wait until 90 days have passed before marrying. Immigrant intent is expressed not only when you apply for the visa, but also whenever you use the visa to enter the country (whether you are directly questioned by an admitting officer or not at the point of entry about your intentions). So if you marry within 30 days of entering on an F-1, the government can presume you abused the conditions of the visa (which for an F-1 visa is a 5-year ban). You may be okay at 60 days, but there should be no question at 90 days. Maybe this doesn't apply to you, but just to let you know!

To play devil's advocate here, while you mention the option of extending OPT: If you are uncertain in any way about the relationship, maybe you could extend your OPT and spend more time together before deciding. But I would only do that if you can demonstrate that your WORK (OPT) is the compelling reason to stay, and not your girlfriend, and that you are planning to return to your country at the end of OPT.

Shall I do that after we find the place to live together, open a common bank account, i.e. gather bona fide evidence or before? Or I should 1. marry 2. bona fide evidence 3. file for AOS (all these three steps before the overstay begins)?

I think what is important here is that you have honest justification for when and why you did what you did. I would not rush the process artificially to avoid overstay- because that may make it seem like the marriage is for that purpose. But if you both would like to live together now, you might as well move in together asap and get that joint lease. You could also justify moving in together after marriage if you feel more comfortable with that for moral or religious reasons. As others have mentioned joint bank accounts and insurance may need to wait until you are legally married anyway.

Hopefully you already have some pictures together from the past six months, but start taking them if you don't. It would be good to make sure you have someone take a good variety of pictures at the ceremony and at dinner show clearly how the two of you relate to each other as a real couple, and also show how your friends interact with you both as a couple. But as others have pointed out, you don't want to go over the top and stage pictures either. That would be worse! Just send in ones that show who you are naturally together.

Given the short length of your relationship, if you can involve your families in the ceremony, great, but you should be okay as long as you have other real-life evidence. Showing your girlfriend's family is supportive and vice-versa can lend legitimacy, but relationships can be legitimate without that support, too. Just know this will probably come up at the interview, too, and might be a reason to take another year in a committed relationship before marrying - so that your families are on board. It's your choice, though, only you know your circumstances.

You might also start to look at the paperwork before you marry. The med exam is required in your case, so try to find a doctor/schedule that for soon after you marry, and get the I-864 from a joint financial sponsor if you need one. If your wife's incomes/assets do not meet 125% of the poverty line- you may need a family member or a friend who has a steady income or greater assets than yours.

I think everyone else has given good advice. Read things carefully and you should be fine. Good luck.

Edited June 8, 2012 by ducky06

[Mezzacalc 1]

Thank you all very much for such detailed answers. They were really helpful.

17. Additional question: My future wife is a student, she is a babysitter. She doesn't file taxes, since she doesn't have to: she is paid in cash (that's her explanation). As she said, her overall annual income is 19K, which meets poverty guideline requirement for a 2-person household. Question: what documents shall we provide instead of tax return files?

[grrrrreat 109]

Thank you all very much for such detailed answers. They were really helpful.

17. Additional question: My future wife is a student, she is a babysitter. She doesn't file taxes, since she doesn't have to: she is paid in cash (that's her explanation). As she said, her overall annual income is 19K, which meets poverty guideline requirement for a 2-person household. Question: what documents shall we provide instead of tax return files?

Her explanation is bull-pucky. She is required to file and pay taxes on all income, even income earned in cash. She will not be able to file an affidavit of support or petition for you until she has filed taxes.

Consider the alternative: wouldn't every employer pay their employees in cash so that no one had to pay taxes?

Worse yet, the tax burden on $19,000 will be minimal, even if she is single with no dependents. If she is able to claim educational tax credits, she could owe no taxes or even get a refund. So why not do the right thing and file taxes as she is required to?

Edited June 13, 2012 by grrrrreat

[ceadsearc 516]

Cash doesn't mean you don't have to file taxes. Some people who make a very small amount of money don't. Your wife isn't one of them. She will have to file her back taxes and provide them to USCIS whether or not you use a cosponsor. If she makes enough, she can sponsor you. A letter from the family she works for along with her most recent tax return should suffice for evidence with the I-864.

[Mezzacalc 1]

Thanks for explanation.

As she says, her "employer" (mother of a child) doesn't claim her when she is filing taxes, i.e. the fact the she is paying to my future wife for child care (her boss didn't ask her about her social security number), which allows her not to file taxes (that's what she was told by a tax preparer). Does she still have to file taxes in your opinion? Will bank statement or letter from employer be sufficient when filing for Affidavit of Support (instead of tax return file)?

18. I have been on my OPT, which will be followed by the grace period. I am going to file the documents during this 60 day period. What shall I indicate as my visa status? "Grace period"?

[ChrisPG 30]

As she says, her "employer" (mother of a child) doesn't claim her when she is filing taxes, i.e. the fact the she is paying to my future wife for child care (her boss didn't ask her about her social security number), which allows her not to file taxes (that's what she was told by a tax preparer). Does she still have to file taxes in your opinion? Will bank statement or letter from employer be sufficient when filing for Affidavit of Support (instead of tax return file)?

Yes she is still required to file tax returns and no a bank statement or letter cannot be used in lieu of tax returns since they do not show income. For example, an employer could write a letter stating she made $50K, but there is no way to verify this amount unless it is reported-- hence why we file tax returns!

Heck, even those employers who earn tips and are paid those in cash are required to report that on their tax returns.

Secondly, I would not talk to the tax preparer again and in fact I would consider reporting them.

18. I have been on my OPT, which will be followed by the grace period. I am going to file the documents during this 60 day period. What shall I indicate as my visa status? "Grace period"?

"F1". You are still in valid F1 status up until the end of the 60 days. There is no legal status called "grace period"

Edited June 17, 2012 by ChrisPG

[ceadsearc 516]

Thanks for explanation.

As she says, her "employer" (mother of a child) doesn't claim her when she is filing taxes, i.e. the fact the she is paying to my future wife for child care (her boss didn't ask her about her social security number), which allows her not to file taxes (that's what she was told by a tax preparer). Does she still have to file taxes in your opinion? Will bank statement or letter from employer be sufficient when filing for Affidavit of Support (instead of tax return file)?

18. I have been on my OPT, which will be followed by the grace period. I am going to file the documents during this 60 day period. What shall I indicate as my visa status? "Grace period"?

The employer is doing something illegal, presumably to have to avoid paying taxes on your wife's income. (Read this article for more information: http://www.babycenter.com/0_legal-requirements-for-employing-a-nanny_5946.bc)

Unfortunately, her employer screwing up doesn't mean she doesn't have to pay taxes. She needs to report her income, and she may owe some money. If she doesn't want to get stuck with paying it all, she should talk to her employer about fixing the situation.

She won't be able to sponsor you with that income otherwise. A letter from an employer isn't going to help when there aren't paystubs or taxes to back it up. In fact, it will probably just look really bad for her that she is working without paying taxes as she is legally required to.

[slidingdoors 3]

Just piggy backing onto this thread to ask whether having all the bona fides at filing is absolutely necessary versus having them at the interview. My fiance and I have joint bank account as of 1 week prior to filing, joint store credit cards, wills, 3-4 affidavits, 25-30 photos (with both families) and a pet insurance joint contact but the health insurance, life insurance, utilities and lease will only be ready after I get a job with a temporary EAD (I'm moving into a property her parents own and she lives in already.) So is the first set of items enough at filing? Can I present the second at the joint interview?

Edited June 18, 2012 by slidingdoors

[Little_My 464]

Slidingdoors, it is always better to start your own thread with a new question to avoid hijacking someone else's.. just for future reference. If you read the I-130 instructions, it is stated that in addition to the marriage certificate, you need to submit one or more of the additional evidence for which examples are listed in the instructions. Some prefer to send all with the package, others just send some and bring more to the interview. We chose the former approach and sent everything we had with the package, and then just brought updated versions of bank statements, phone bills etc. to the interview, as well as a small photo album with pics from the years we had been together.

Mezzacalc - not only is your future wife obligated to file and pay taxes for the income she has been making, she has also been working without authorization as a nanny. This won't be an issue with AOS as unauthorized work is overlooked for spouses of US citizens, but she does need to be honest about the work and as noted by prior posters, file taxes on the income. F1 students HAVE TO file taxes in the US whether or not they make a dime while here, so she was actually supposed to file even if she wasn't working. F1 students are also only authorized to work on campus in most cases, with some exceptions, and then work in the field they studied when on OPT/academic training.

[Little_My 464]

Oops! My bad, sorry about that - just now realized that SHE is the US citizen and you are the foreigner. Sorry sorry! Scratch the whole F1 part of my previous post. The tax part still stands, as previous posters have also noted.

[Mezzacalc 1]

Thanks for previous answers.

19. Can there be more than 1 affidavit (sponsor)? If yes, should I have more than one?

Thanks.

[ceadsearc 516]

Your spouse is always the primary sponsor. You can have a cosponsor who would need to make enough money to cover their household and you. You can't have more than one cosponsor unless they are in the same household, ie a husband and wife combining their income.

[Mezzacalc 1]

Thank you, ceadsearc,

Did you mean a "joint sponsor", when you mentioned cosponsor?

Can any US Citizen be a joint sponsor of our household (given he meets all the annual income requirements) or it must be our relative (either on my side or my future wife's side)?

The annual income requirement for the Sponsor (which is $18,912) - is it Net Income, which equals Gross Earnings minus Expenses, or just Gross Earnings?

What shall I do overall given my situation: my future wife is a babysitter, she is 20 and she is a student, she didn't file taxes for previous fiscal year. Should she still be my sponsor , after she files the tax return with all late penalties (can it cause the problems during the interview), or should we find a joint sponsor?

Thank you.