Meeting the financial requirements for AOS as students without our original joint sponsor

[australianabroad 0]

Hi, the general advice on this forum was so helpful to me in applying for my K1 fiancée visa that I’m hoping I can get some specific advice on my adjustment of status situation.

I came to the US on a K1 fiancée visa and married my US citizen fiancé within three weeks of arriving (October 2013). He is a college student with little to no income and so we used a joint sponsor in applying for the K1 visa. I’m now looking at filing the i-485 for adjustment of status and have realized how immensely difficult it is going to be for us to prove financial security. My husband’s low income is not even close to meeting the 125% poverty guidelines and our original sponsor is no longer available to us (for personal reasons).

We currently have free accommodations (from family) and live off his small income and financial support from my family back in Australia. We do not, nor do we intend, to take money from or be a burden on the US government. I am a college graduate and am eager to find employment as soon as I receive my i-765 permission to work, however, it appears I cannot apply for this until I apply for AOS (is that right?). My husband will graduate within the next year and plans to either work or attend graduate school.

No one in my husband’s family is really in a situation to be a joint sponsor, as they mostly have their own financial struggles. We cannot think of anyone else he knows to approach to be a joint sponsor. I know that meeting the 125% poverty line is an absolute must, but I’m finding it hard to see what our options are. I cannot legally work and, though I have my personal funds and support from my own family overseas, it seems from advice on other threads that assets are not as valuable as steady income. My husband does not meet the financial requirements and is not in a position to work until he finishes studying, around May 2014. Finding a new joint sponsor is highly unlikely and using the previous joint sponsor might even make things worse, given their current situation.

So my questions…

Can we wait until my husband starts work (around June 2014) and earns the necessary amount and then use this to sponsor me? And will this bring up a problem with proving a ‘steady’ income?

How long can we afford to wait? I’ve gotten the impression that it’s best to file for adjustment of status within a year of arriving/marrying, as it makes it easier with certain proofs, e.g. my visa medical exam paperwork is still valid within one year.

Is it worth me looking for an employer to sponsor me to work here? Is it even possible and can I do that if I am in the country and came here on a K1 visa? And if I can do it, will it damage my ‘reputation’ at USCIS?

Has anyone been in a similar situation with their joint sponsor dropping out?

I’m holding it together but am on the verge of freaking out. I’m afraid to ‘take a chance’ with AOS because I just get one chance, right? If they say no that means I’m on notice to leave? My family is telling me to speak to an immigration lawyer but the general advice on here seems to be that lawyers are not a great help. So I welcome any and all advice on the situation. What are my options?

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

You can wait as long as you want to file, but until then, you cannot work, you cannot travel abroad, you cannot drive, etc.

You need to get another sponsor, make up with your old one, or your husband needs to get a part-time job.

Sorry, good luck.

Edit: Assets work just fine, but you need about $60K in assets. If you have that, that works fine. Keep in mind that payments and debts are not a part of the equation. Just income/assets. Surely your husband has someone in his family who makes over 125% of the poverty line? Doesn't matter their financial difficulties if they qualify.

Edited November 20, 2013 by Harpa Timsah

[australianabroad 0]

Edit: Assets work just fine, but you need about $60K in assets. If you have that, that works fine. Keep in mind that payments and debts are not a part of the equation. Just income/assets. Surely your husband has someone in his family who makes over 125% of the poverty line? Doesn't matter their financial difficulties if they qualify.

There is someone who EARNS over 125% of the poverty line, but given their financial difficulties their adjusted gross income in their tax returns is under the poverty line. The i864/i864A asks for adjusted gross income, not just raw income.

Also, if we're talking about money in the bank as my assets as the intending immigrant, are you suggesting $60K because that's 3x the 'gap' between our income and the 125% line for a household of 2?

[KayDeeCee 4,896]

The I-864 asks for the Total Income amount from the last 3 years of taxes, not the adjusted gross. The current annual income is what is most important though, unless self-employed. Current income is proven with a letter from employer and/or recent pay stubs.

Yes, assets are used at 3 times that of the income. So, if he earned nothing, you need around $60k in assets.

[australianabroad 0]

The I-864 asks for the Total Income amount from the last 3 years of taxes, not the adjusted gross. The current annual income is what is most important though, unless self-employed. Current income is proven with a letter from employer and/or recent pay stubs.

I originally thought it was total income, but both I864 and I864A (if using additional household income) ask for:

"My total income (adjusted gross income on IRS Form 1040EZ) as reported on my Federal tax returns for the most recent three years..."

Surely that means they want the adjusted gross income? I'm not very "tax return savvy", but that seems very specific.

[KayDeeCee 4,896]

I originally thought it was total income, but both I864 and I864A (if using additional household income) ask for:

"My total income (adjusted gross income on IRS Form 1040EZ) as reported on my Federal tax returns for the most recent three years..."

Surely that means they want the adjusted gross income? I'm not very "tax return savvy", but that seems very specific.

It is specific. It is only adjusted gross income if the 1040EZ form was used. Any other 1040 form is Total Income, line 22.

[australianabroad 0]

Thanks for the clarification. Like I said, I'm not at all familiar with the IRS paperwork. I asked that family member, and it turns out they DO use 1040EZ, so the amount required would be adjusted gross income, so I'm back at square one.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Thanks for the clarification. Like I said, I'm not at all familiar with the IRS paperwork. I asked that family member, and it turns out they DO use 1040EZ, so the amount required would be adjusted gross income, so I'm back at square one.

No one in your husband's family makes more than 125% of the poverty line? And he has no friend that does? No parent, sibling, friend, cousin, uncle, neighbor?

If that is the case, I would have your husband move to Aus with you.

Edited November 20, 2013 by Harpa Timsah