my evidence of a bonifide marriage, what do you think?

[neocarbunkle 2]

So this is what I can put together for my application, do you think it will be enough?

Evidence of a Bonifide Marriage table of contents

1. bank statement showing the purchase of two airline tickets from Japan to America
2. bank statements showing pre and post marriage ceremony traveling done inside the united states.
3. photograph of the couple before the wedding
4. photographs of the wedding ceremony
5. copy of HXXXXX PXXXXXXX’s (wife) passport showing that her name was legally changed from SXXXXXXX in Japan
6. flight itinerary for the couple’s trip to China in December 2013
7. copy of passports showing entry into China
8. bank statements showing the purchase of two one way tickets to China for August 2014
9. flight itinerary for the above mentioned airline ticket
10. affidavit written by Ms. EXXXX MXXXXX (co-worker)

She is Japanese, we are both in Japan right now, but not living together. We took a trip to China together in December and we are moving there this fall.

Edited June 3, 2014 by Kathryn41
to remove personally identifying information

[Fan_Dancer 171]

Common bank accounts? It will be a bit weird that you arent living together, maybe you should address that too.

[neocarbunkle 2]

That is what I was worried about. I prepared a letter explaining that I am under contract with my employer that gave me a small apartment to live in, but we don't have a shared bank account or anything because she lives at home, is unemployed and doesn't really spend a lot of money so I just give her cash every so often.

She is technically under my Japanese national health insurance thing, but getting a copy of that and then getting it translated would not be an easy thing. But even that doesn't really show mixed finances.

Edited June 2, 2014 by neocarbunkle

[awaywego 28]

You or your wife can translate your documents if fluent/conversant in both languages. Information on translation, including a text block to put onto the document, is here.

Do you have evidence of giving her money for support? Arrangements for joint housing in China? For Japan, I've heard mention of a family register to whom one reports marriages that took place abroad.

Common evidence I've seen includes communication, e.g., IM, Skype, emails, and photos over time and places, with various people, etc. This thread contains a lot of ideas.

Edit: Unfortunately no one can tell you what will or won't be enough. That call is up to the officer who reviews your file.

Edited June 2, 2014 by awaywego

[Kathryn41 3,205]

I've edited out personally identifying information for personal protection, since Visa Journey is a very public forum and anyone can read it whhich makes it easy for someone to commit identity theft. It is never a good idea to post personal information such as names, case numbers, addresses or similar information on a public website.

[Ryan H 3,812]

Copies of boarding passes carry more weight than flight itineraries because boarding passes plus copies of any passport entry stamps show you actually went to a destination.

Edited June 3, 2014 by Ryan H

[neocarbunkle 2]

Thanks everyone, especially Kathryn, that was dumb of me.

So I asked my boss if there is anything in the office that I could use, she said she will take a look. The Japanese family registry thing is a real pain to get, and I'd like to avoid it if I could.

I have some pictures I took during our first few dates, and those are time stamped as two years ago. One of the pictures is when she got baptized in my church.

The chat program we use only goes back to May 20th, but that is 26 pages of Japanese text. Should I print it all out? Do I translate it?
I do have an inbox full of emails from her dating back to February 2013. Should I print that out too?

I did make sure to copy the pages of our passports with the enter/exit stamps.

From what I have read they really want financial proof, but Japan is a cash based society and she hasn't needed much.

Again thanks