I-134 Affidavit of Support

[elgarta 0]

Hi all,

So my interview date is right around the corner, 20th of August. Getting really excited for it, but me being me, I am now in my 'obsess over all paperwork and nit-pick" mode unti the big day. Sigh.

So, I was looking over the I-134 instructions again and read the requirements for supporting documents. I want to confirm a few things:

1. The supporting documents mentioned should be a statement from a bank officer confirming my fiancees bank balance, total $ amount of deposits for the last 12 months and date of account opening, or a statement from employer confirming date and nature of employment, salary paid and whether position is temporary or permanent.

So far we were only able to get basic bank account summaries which state amount in the last 12 months and current balance at the time the information was pulled, and my fiancees employer said they would not provide a statement, and referred her to some place called "The Work Number" which basically has her history of employment. This information includes hire date, company name + address, job title, base pay rate and breakdown of pay recieved from employer. Are both of these sufficient, or do we specifically require a written statement from a bank officer or employer. and nothing else will be accepted?

2. I also have bank statements of my income which easily show that I would be able so support myself + my fiancee, I have figures in savings which are in excess of $40,000 (Quite a bit in excess of that amount in fact, enough to show we would be sitting above the poverty line in terms of accessible funds). Am I not able to provide information from my bank to verify this?

3. The I-134 requires a signature, of course. The PDF form that was emailed to me with my interview day check-list has an option at the bottom to attach a digital signature, which records time/date it was added, email address, time zone and my fiancees typed name. Seeing as the form even has this option added to it, is this sufficient or does it need to be specifically signed by hand? The instructions state the following only regarding this:

"You must sign Form I-134 in your full name... it is not necessary to sign Form I-134 before a notary, nor to have your signature notarized after you sign it."

"Type or print legibly in black ink"

I have attached a blank copy of the form I was emailed just to show what I mean by digital signature, incase this is not understood.

I-134(1).pdf

[Mufmer 24]

Hi all,

So my interview date is right around the corner, 20th of August. Getting really excited for it, but me being me, I am now in my 'obsess over all paperwork and nit-pick" mode unti the big day. Sigh.

So, I was looking over the I-134 instructions again and read the requirements for supporting documents. I want to confirm a few things:

1. The supporting documents mentioned should be a statement from a bank officer confirming my fiancees bank balance, total $ amount of deposits for the last 12 months and date of account opening, or a statement from employer confirming date and nature of employment, salary paid and whether position is temporary or permanent.

So far we were only able to get basic bank account summaries which state amount in the last 12 months and current balance at the time the information was pulled, and my fiancees employer said they would not provide a statement, and referred her to some place called "The Work Number" which basically has her history of employment. This information includes hire date, company name + address, job title, base pay rate and breakdown of pay recieved from employer. Are both of these sufficient, or do we specifically require a written statement from a bank officer or employer. and nothing else will be accepted?

2. I also have bank statements of my income which easily show that I would be able so support myself + my fiancee, I have figures in savings which are in excess of $40,000 (Quite a bit in excess of that amount in fact, enough to show we would be sitting above the poverty line in terms of accessible funds). Am I not able to provide information from my bank to verify this?

3. The I-134 requires a signature, of course. The PDF form that was emailed to me with my interview day check-list has an option at the bottom to attach a digital signature, which records time/date it was added, email address, time zone and my fiancees typed name. Seeing as the form even has this option added to it, is this sufficient or does it need to be specifically signed by hand? The instructions state the following only regarding this:

"You must sign Form I-134 in your full name... it is not necessary to sign Form I-134 before a notary, nor to have your signature notarized after you sign it."

"Type or print legibly in black ink"

I have attached a blank copy of the form I was emailed just to show what I mean by digital signature, incase this is not understood.

If this is form u have filled the one u have attached, so iam sorry to say, its expired, see the date on rite side of corner on first page......Godd luck with ur interview.

[elgarta 0]

If this is form u have filled the one u have attached, so iam sorry to say, its expired, see the date on rite side of corner on first page......Godd luck with ur interview.

That was what was sent to me directly from the Sydney Embassy when they sent me my interview checklist. They attached that, the checklist and instructions for the I-134. Ugh, why would they email a document that is expired and no longer valid?

Edited August 17, 2013 by elgarta

[elgarta 0]

Sorry for the double post, the post editor locked me out.

So I went to uscis.gov to see the most up to date form available, and it states the following:

Edition Date :

12/17/12. Previous editions accepted.

This would imply that a previously expired form would be accepted, correct?

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

You can always download the most recent version of forms from the USCIS website > http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=fe3647a55773d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

Sometimes consulates send out old info because they never bother to update things,

You can use bank statements, letter from employer and/or recent ay stubs to prove your income. Use the print out from your company's site they directed to you along with recent pay stubs and that should work out well.

[BughouseMaster 3]

Hi all,

So my interview date is right around the corner, 20th of August. Getting really excited for it, but me being me, I am now in my 'obsess over all paperwork and nit-pick" mode unti the big day. Sigh.

So, I was looking over the I-134 instructions again and read the requirements for supporting documents. I want to confirm a few things:

1. The supporting documents mentioned should be a statement from a bank officer confirming my fiancees bank balance, total $ amount of deposits for the last 12 months and date of account opening, or a statement from employer confirming date and nature of employment, salary paid and whether position is temporary or permanent.

So far we were only able to get basic bank account summaries which state amount in the last 12 months and current balance at the time the information was pulled, and my fiancees employer said they would not provide a statement, and referred her to some place called "The Work Number" which basically has her history of employment. This information includes hire date, company name + address, job title, base pay rate and breakdown of pay recieved from employer. Are both of these sufficient, or do we specifically require a written statement from a bank officer or employer. and nothing else will be accepted?

2. I also have bank statements of my income which easily show that I would be able so support myself + my fiancee, I have figures in savings which are in excess of $40,000 (Quite a bit in excess of that amount in fact, enough to show we would be sitting above the poverty line in terms of accessible funds). Am I not able to provide information from my bank to verify this?

3. The I-134 requires a signature, of course. The PDF form that was emailed to me with my interview day check-list has an option at the bottom to attach a digital signature, which records time/date it was added, email address, time zone and my fiancees typed name. Seeing as the form even has this option added to it, is this sufficient or does it need to be specifically signed by hand? The instructions state the following only regarding this:

"You must sign Form I-134 in your full name... it is not necessary to sign Form I-134 before a notary, nor to have your signature notarized after you sign it."

"Type or print legibly in black ink"

I have attached a blank copy of the form I was emailed just to show what I mean by digital signature, incase this is not understood.

Congrats, elgarta!

What I did was go to into my banking center & obtain a 12-month history of the current and past 12 months balance of all my checking/savings accts. and have them sign it. You also want to go online and get a printout of the last years (12 months) CREDITS. Since I am currently self-employed, I ordered the last 3 yrs tax transcripts and included this as well. It also helps that I have way more then $40K in savings in the bank like you do to prove that you obviously have enough money in the bank. Since I paid off my $35,000+ Infiniti G35 in only 10 months, that shows strong stability and also it helps if you have life insurance so with all my assets it nearly equals $200K so I should be more then fine on the I-134 myself Basically the more proof you can put of financial stability the better. ANd yes, make sure your signature on the i-134 is current!

[elgarta 0]

Thanks guys. At this stage I doubt I will be able to use another I-134 form since even if it was express posted to me, I wouldn't recieve it before I fly down to sydney for the interview. I will try to see if my partner has pay-stubs to accompany the work report, but her work report does actually include her pay periods, gross pay and hourly rate for them all. My fiancee will not have any more opportunities to go to the bank prior to my interview, due to her work hours pretty much being when the bank is open, having to take the kids across town for daycare (eating up any free time before/after work), and her works strict policy around being late or needing to take an hour off to attend any urgent business. The benefits of a free-to-hire State I suppose

But the other thing I was wondering, was about self-sponsering (as a worst-case thing). I was reading up on the idea, and I know the London Consulate Office allows it, and I know some previous filers who went through the Sydney embassy mentioned it or asked here, but nothing more was ever said. In fact, on travel.state.gov it does say that you can provide proof that you can support yourself financially, but outside of the London embassy site there is little to no information about this, or what it entails.

If I have enough money in a bank account, and can provide proof that I have enough available cash to exceed the poverty level for a family of 3, and even enough to show that I could support myself, my fiancee and her children for at least 3-4 years based on those amounts alone. Is it worth taking that information along just incase we run into problems? I can bring bank statements for the last 12 months and a tax notification for my 2013 tax return (And more if I need them).

[elgarta 0]

ANd yes, make sure your signature on the i-134 is current!

Just to clarify, the I-134 is being sent to me, I am the K-1 applicant so I am providing my fiancees proof of support with a I-134 signed by her. The form I attached above was sent to me by the consulate, and I forwarded it to my fiancee.

However, I do have a large amount in savings, so I am hoping that if it comes down to it, they will consider what I have to show in terms of me supporting the family also. Apparently the idea of it is more rare than I would've thought.

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

The form they already signed and are using is fine. Previous editions of the I-134 are accepted. I do not know if Sydney has ever allowed self-sponsoring like London. I have seen it asked a few times, but I never saw there was an answer either, just like you. I do not think it could hurt anything for you bring your documentation with you. You could try asking in the Australia regional forum. If she makes enough for the household size and it shows on the company info document she can print out, then that should be fine without the need of bank statements. I have heard it is not a requirement for Sydney, but if it helps show her stable income, she could also include a copy of her 2012 tax return or free tax return transcript from the IRS. Oh, and if she has online banking access, she might be able to print bank statements from home.

[elgarta 0]

The form they already signed and are using is fine. Previous editions of the I-134 are accepted. I do not know if Sydney has ever allowed self-sponsoring like London. I have seen it asked a few times, but I never saw there was an answer either, just like you. I do not think it could hurt anything for you bring your documentation with you. You could try asking in the Australia regional forum. If she makes enough for the household size and it shows on the company info document she can print out, then that should be fine without the need of bank statements. I have heard it is not a requirement for Sydney, but if it helps show her stable income, she could also include a copy of her 2012 tax return or free tax return transcript from the IRS. Oh, and if she has online banking access, she might be able to print bank statements from home.

Thanks, that takes a load off of my mind. Well the information she provided shows that she just meets the poverty level (working part time because of the kids as daycare is expensive and about half hour away from the house, but she will be going full time once I arrive), and she has only been working there since April this year, so although the pay-periods have been consistent in amounts, there is nothing long term that will be reflected in her tax return.

There is a chance she might not have the records easily accessible due to her filing setup.

[DavenRoxy 1,073]

elgarta, you may want to inquire with the Australian consulate, or at least in the Australia forum, about the signature. In the case of the Manila consulate, they accept ink signatures, but it has to be original signature, not a copy. The CO actually FELT the paper for the indentation of the ink pen when my fiance did her interview. But each country is different. And no need to get copies signed by a bank employee. You can just download and email copies of past bank statements in most cases (again, ask in the Australia regional forums, it may be different there than in the PI, though I cannot imagine so).

Best of luck, it's a tiring, slow process, but SO worth it in the end!!