The lovely i-130 and evidence of a bona fide marriage

[DarwishAE 19]

Hello,

I am new to this forum. My husband and I were married on Christmas in Cairo, Egypt. I've been getting over some illnesses and am finally getting around to the i-130. I'm trying to figure out what evidence of a bona fide marriage I should actually include with the i-130. A lawyer I spoke to told me to only send our marriage certificate, the passport photos, and my birth certificate. He said all they are looking for is proof a marriage took place and that I should keep all my other evidence to give to my husband in a packet when he will eventually have his interview. But, then another lawyer told me to send other evidence. It seems like there is no clear information on what to include, so what did you all include?

Evidence I have considered:

- photos of us (and his family) in Egypt together

- Visa page of my passport with entry and departure stamp for Egypt

- plane ticket to Egypt

- MoneyGram receipt from when he sent me $500

- screenshots of us Skyping together

- our Facebook conversations (I have over 900 pages of conversation between us)

- a Christmas card my friend sent me that mentions Ahmed and I and my trip to Egypt

- affidavits from my family (although with such a recent marriage I don't know how much weight these would have, I've thought about sending those with him to the interview)

Unfortunately we don't have actual Skype records because we use Skype through Facebook and that doesn't leave a record.

Any help is appreciated

[DanielleJon 0]

Hello,

I am new to this forum. My husband and I were married on Christmas in Cairo, Egypt. I've been getting over some illnesses and am finally getting around to the i-130. I'm trying to figure out what evidence of a bona fide marriage I should actually include with the i-130. A lawyer I spoke to told me to only send our marriage certificate, the passport photos, and my birth certificate. He said all they are looking for is proof a marriage took place and that I should keep all my other evidence to give to my husband in a packet when he will eventually have his interview. But, then another lawyer told me to send other evidence. It seems like there is no clear information on what to include, so what did you all include?

Evidence I have considered:

- photos of us (and his family) in Egypt together

- Visa page of my passport with entry and departure stamp for Egypt

- plane ticket to Egypt

- MoneyGram receipt from when he sent me $500

- screenshots of us Skyping together

- our Facebook conversations (I have over 900 pages of conversation between us)

- a Christmas card my friend sent me that mentions Ahmed and I and my trip to Egypt

- affidavits from my family (although with such a recent marriage I don't know how much weight these would have, I've thought about sending those with him to the interview)

Unfortunately we don't have actual Skype records because we use Skype through Facebook and that doesn't leave a record.

Any help is appreciated

I'm not sure how necessary it is, but I did include some evidence with mine such as: joint bank account papers, 6 photos, flight records, a couple samples of our skype logs, wedding catering bill, etc. I just made sure that I had copies of everything I sent in, in case we need it later. And I didn't send in anything that I wouldn't want to lose. My advice would be to send in a few things, as it can't really hurt, just don't make it too bulky or unorganized (900 pages of conversation would be way too much in my opinion). I have read about some other people on here who got their petition approved with minimal evidence though. Good luck!

[DarwishAE 19]

I'm not sure how necessary it is, but I did include some evidence with mine such as: joint bank account papers, 6 photos, flight records, a couple samples of our skype logs, wedding catering bill, etc. I just made sure that I had copies of everything I sent in, in case we need it later. And I didn't send in anything that I wouldn't want to lose. My advice would be to send in a few things, as it can't really hurt, just don't make it too bulky or unorganized (900 pages of conversation would be way too much in my opinion). I have read about some other people on here who got their petition approved with minimal evidence though. Good luck!

It's just frustrating because we don't have any documentation of joint bank accounts or anything like that. That's why I thought the MoneyGram receipt would at least show there has been financial exchange. I think I am over thinking the whole process...I just don't want to get denied, which I think everyone on here can relate to.

[together4evr 360]

Everyone in cairo shoud front load. Cairo wil not look at evidence during the interview except a few pics.

Do not show any money he sent you. It shows he paid you for a visa.

Send in aot of evidence. Like a couple screen shts a week since you known him.

Send affidavits

When you get to nvc then send more evidence with the ds 230

[together4evr 360]

Put his name on your cell phone bill as an authorized user and print it and send. Get him a credit card from your credit card account and send a pictureand put him on your health insurance, life insurance

[Boggy1974 124]

Hello,

I am new to this forum. My husband and I were married on Christmas in Cairo, Egypt. I've been getting over some illnesses and am finally getting around to the i-130. I'm trying to figure out what evidence of a bona fide marriage I should actually include with the i-130. A lawyer I spoke to told me to only send our marriage certificate, the passport photos, and my birth certificate. He said all they are looking for is proof a marriage took place and that I should keep all my other evidence to give to my husband in a packet when he will eventually have his interview. But, then another lawyer told me to send other evidence. It seems like there is no clear information on what to include, so what did you all include?

Evidence I have considered:

- photos of us (and his family) in Egypt together

- Visa page of my passport with entry and departure stamp for Egypt

- plane ticket to Egypt

- MoneyGram receipt from when he sent me $500

- screenshots of us Skyping together

- our Facebook conversations (I have over 900 pages of conversation between us)

- a Christmas card my friend sent me that mentions Ahmed and I and my trip to Egypt

- affidavits from my family (although with such a recent marriage I don't know how much weight these would have, I've thought about sending those with him to the interview)

Unfortunately we don't have actual Skype records because we use Skype through Facebook and that doesn't leave a record.

Any help is appreciated

I included our daughter's CRBA (birth certificate)

- Our daughter's school k-school admission letter bearing both of our name

- Power of attorney letter I gave her to take our daughter to hospital & for some tests

- Postal receipts and address labels bearing my wife's name & mine of packages I mailed her

- Emails of conversations about plans for our daughter

- Statement of a bank account bearing both of our names she obtained in her country, where I wire her money

- Western union receipts of money transfer I made to her over the years

- DNA results of our daughter the embassy had asked for before approving our daughter's CRBA

- Pictures of us with her family and mine

- Receipts of used boarding passes

- Stamps in my passport of departures & arrival to her home country when I visited

- Receipts of engagement & wedding rings

- Receipt of a piece of property (land) bearing our names she acquired

- Skype chat logs

- Phone calls logs of my bills etc etc

Good luck!

[together4evr 360]

Also, if your husband is Christian then he will not have a problem of AP (usually).

In Cairo I seen people with the name of Ahmed in AP for a long time.

But usually Christians get their visa within a couple weeks.

Good Luck

[Panda Sky 5]

I didn't include anything aside for the marriage certificate with my I-130 when I filed in August 2012. No pictures, no tickets, nothing. I got approved a few weeks ago with no problems/RFE. However, I am planning to add some pictures for the NVC stage since the items submitted to the NVC will go to the consulate/interviewer.

I don’t think it is necessary at the I-130 stage. But it can't hurt either. I was just going by the instructions with the Form I-130. Since it wasn't required, I didn't include them.

Good luck with your journey.

Hello,

I am new to this forum. My husband and I were married on Christmas in Cairo, Egypt. I've been getting over some illnesses and am finally getting around to the i-130. I'm trying to figure out what evidence of a bona fide marriage I should actually include with the i-130. A lawyer I spoke to told me to only send our marriage certificate, the passport photos, and my birth certificate. He said all they are looking for is proof a marriage took place and that I should keep all my other evidence to give to my husband in a packet when he will eventually have his interview. But, then another lawyer told me to send other evidence. It seems like there is no clear information on what to include, so what did you all include?

[together4evr 360]

Only take advice from egyptians about Cairo embassy. It is not an easy consulate

[Panda Sky 5]

Only take advice from egyptians about Cairo embassy. It is not an easy consulate

Smart advice

[NikLR 13,232]

Can you add him to your car insurance? Can you both make each other beneficiaries of life insurance?

To be honest you have a decent amount of evidence and you can include more at the NVC stage as well. It is best to send evidence BEFORE the interview as the CO may or may not look at anything he brings to the interview.

[florida4life 29]

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20120209151737AAWQNml Edited February 12, 2013 by florida4life

[Basbosa 4]

Congratulations on your wedding! And I wish you a speedy recovery!

From my own experience, I mailed a copy of the marriage certificate (copy of the Arabic certificate, original English translation, and certificate of translation), along with some pictures of our kitb el kitab gathering and our wedding. I made sure to pick pictures with family members, and wrote a brief description for each photo (i.e., who was in it, etc.). I also send in a copy of the ticket receipt, showing the dates of when I was in Egypt, and a copy of entry/exit stamps from and to Egypt. It was hard getting anything else, since we couldn't open a joint bank account (I am not sure if any one can in Egypt), and we didn't have a joint lease (since our apartment is part of his family home--literally above his parents' apartment). But, Thank God, there were no RFEs, and our I-130 got approved within about 4 months.

Our application was forwarded to NVC (since 1/14/2013), but we didn't hear from them yet. Of course, I am planning to send in more pics of us while traveling during our honeymoon, and whatever else they might ask for...

Good luck with the process. I know that it is very hard being separated from your husband, especially as you are recovering from an illness, but keep staying positive It will only be for a little while, and you will both enjoy a very long life filled with wonderful and happy moments, God Willing. I always tell my husband (and often remind myself too) that absence makes the heart grow fonder .

[Mithra 1,185]

Well since you haven't lived together as a married couple the most you can provide is photos and proof of ongoing communication. I would not advise you to put his name on anything at this time. No bank accounts, credit cards, insurance, etc. You may be legally married but the fact reminds that you haven't known him that long. Personally, I would not do it. I didn't add my husband to anything until he got here and even then it was only to my cellphone plan. We only set up a joint household bank account recently and we've been married 7 yrs, he's been here 6 yrs. he's not on any of my credit cards nor is he the beneficiary of any insurance policies. Even at adjustment of status the only proof that we had was the cellphone plan and pics. But I digress. I did not front load our petition but seeing that you have only known each other about 5 months and are already married, you should. Photos, letters, emails, etc. Please, please, please ignore the advice of others telling you to put his name on things at this point.

Edited February 16, 2013 by Mithra

[LilyR 7]

I made my husband an authorized user on one of my credit cards. They send the card to me with his name on it. He doesnt have the card, but I copied the statement to show he was on the account (though I blacked out the actual credit card number).