Totally bewildering I-751 RFE! Help, please..... (Merged)

[c.ortiz 0]

Greetings all. It's been a while since I posted, but I'm hoping to get some advice here.

I am the US citizen, my wife is Russian. We are in the process of trying to have her conditions of residence removed. I thought we'd sent them a pretty good package of evidence, including the following:

• Our 2014 joint US tax return, including proof of submission in the form of an IRS letter acknowledging an amended return
• Our 2014 joint state tax return.
• A real estate lease for the house we live in showing joint tenancy
• Copies of car insurance notices from a range of dates, including the current one
• Copy of our current, valid U.S. state drivers’ licenses showing that we reside at the same address
• Copy of American Express credit card showing a joint account
• Copy of Mastercard credit card showing a joint account
• Copy of a letter from the Health Insurance Marketplace showing a joint application
• Copies of two utility bills (one in each of our names, for our home address)
• Photos of the two of us together in various times and places, including with my mother

I added to the letter, "Please feel free to inquire at any of the sources of enclosed documentation for validity of their statements, and you would be welcome to visit our home."

This is what they said in the REF:

----------

"You have not established that the marriage upon which you were granted conditional status was entered into in good faith. You submitted tax returns, credit cards, auto insurance, drivers licenses, photos, waste bill, and gas bill. However, the documentation submitted is insufficient because the waste bill and gas bill do not reflect both the petitioner and the CPR names. There is no evidence demonstrating joint ownership of assets, joint responsibilities for liabilities and communal residence..... please submit additional documentation. Documentation should reflect your name and your petitioning spouse's name. In addition, the documentation should cover the period of time from the date of marriage to the present. Such examples may include, but are not limited to, the following:

- Copies of bank statements that reflect joint savings and/or checking accounts to include the transaction pages for each statement provided

- Copies of mortgage agreements, deeds or other instruments affecting the title to real estate that demonstrate joint ownership of property or assets

- Copies of insurance policies such as life insurance, medical insurance, home insurance, etc.

- Copies of credit card statements

- Copies of loan documents such as car loans, home improvement loans, business loans, etc.

- Copies of utility bills such as telephone, gas, electric, water, cable, internet etc. or other statements issued in both names indicating residential address

- [Military BAQ forms]

- Any other documentation which shows that the marriage was not entered into in order to circumvent U.S. immigration laws"

----------

I'm just totally bewildered by this. The point of sending one bill in my wife's name and one in mine was to show we both live at the same address, but they seem to have counted it against us. That as well as the lease, tax returns, car insurance etc. are clearly evidence of "joint responsibilities for liabilities and communal residence." I just don't get it. I was also under the impression that we didn't have to send stuff from before we arrived in the U.S., so it's odd that they specified that.

And here's the problem:

We have a joint checking account but have never used it because my wife is self-employed and it's easier for her to use a separate one.

We have no mortgage agreements, deeds etc. I partly own my mom's house, but it's only in my name.

We have no life insurance, and have separate medical insurance. We rent the house from my sister so the home insurance is in her name.

Credit card statements are in my name only - even though my wife also has a card, the billing comes in my name, so statements will prove nothing.

We have no loans.

All bills are in my name or hers since we share paying them. None are in both names, and in fact some would not allow it when we asked.

The military stuff is N/A.

Any suggestions on how to deal with this? Here's what we're thinking of sending:

- A cover letter explaining the value of the documentation i previously sent which they seem to have overlooked, as demonstrating "joint responsibilities for liabilities and communal residence".

- They did not acknowledge receiving the Heath Insurance Marketplace notice, so maybe I should send it again - at least it shows joint application at the same address.

- copies of emails we've sent to each other, ranging from when we first met to the present

- A written statement from our stockbroker that my wife is the beneficiary of my account (she is not named on the statements)

- a written statement from the bank where we have the unused joint account (and the one she uses), stating that we opened it together (or something?) + the one statement we have from when we first opened it?

- I'll try to add her name on a savings account, though that will not affect past statements

- we'll look for joint utility bill statements from the UK

- emails to/from family about wedding, meeting etc. (it was a council office wedding in the UK, so no family was present)

- reference letter from our landlord in the U.K., from before we were married and were flat-hunting

- Travel insurance and flight booking for a holiday we took from the UK to the Mediterranean after we were married

- flight reservations from a trip to Chicago

- notarized affidavits from friends and family?

- statement from utility companies that they don't put two names on bills, but that we asked (if they'll do it)?

- more photos, explaining in more precise detail that they are from three countries and three states over a period of 4 years (it was so obvious in the ones we sent, with desert, ocean, famous landmarks, different hairstyles, etc!)

- Christmas cards, invitations etc. with both our names on them

- emails from a real estate agent when we were looking at houses

- Facebook posts between my wife and my family members ("Can't wait to meet my new cousin" kind of thing)

Any other suggestions? I read elsewhere that some people contact their congress person. Anyone have experience with that?

Is it really possible that the could deny my wife's petition because we're named separately in bills, and our finances aren't arranged in a way they approve of? I know long-time married couples who don't share bank accounts, and certainly don't have utilities in both names!

Thanks.....

[Cathi 5,795]

congress person and politicians cannot help. They cannot do anything to prove you have a bonafide marriage.

Send in everything and everything you can possibly think of, and re-send the things you think they overlooked. Bank accounts, joint credit cards and loans are a big deal. Not sure why people have to go into debt to prove a relationship, I know that we try to do everything to stay OUT of debt. Make sure your evidence spans the entire 2 years. You only sent one tax return, you should have sent 2015 as well. Honestly the original package you sent isn't very much. Good luck.

Edited March 27, 2016 by mimolicious

[f&c 50]

You have to send documents that span the length of the marriage. For example, we sent over two years or more of statements of every joint account and three years of IRS tax transcripts among other things.

  On 3/27/2016 at 4:24 AM, c.ortiz said:

Greetings all. It's been a while since I posted, but I'm hoping to get some advice here.

I am the US citizen, my wife is Russian. We are in the process of trying to have her conditions of residence removed. I thought we'd sent them a pretty good package of evidence, including the following:

• Our 2014 joint US tax return, including proof of submission in the form of an IRS letter acknowledging an amended return
• Our 2014 joint state tax return.
• A real estate lease for the house we live in showing joint tenancy
• Copies of car insurance notices from a range of dates, including the current one
• Copy of our current, valid U.S. state drivers’ licenses showing that we reside at the same address
• Copy of American Express credit card showing a joint account
• Copy of Mastercard credit card showing a joint account
• Copy of a letter from the Health Insurance Marketplace showing a joint application
• Copies of two utility bills (one in each of our names, for our home address)
• Photos of the two of us together in various times and places, including with my mother

I added to the letter, "Please feel free to inquire at any of the sources of enclosed documentation for validity of their statements, and you would be welcome to visit our home."

This is what they said in the REF:

----------

"You have not established that the marriage upon which you were granted conditional status was entered into in good faith. You submitted tax returns, credit cards, auto insurance, drivers licenses, photos, waste bill, and gas bill. However, the documentation submitted is insufficient because the waste bill and gas bill do not reflect both the petitioner and the CPR names. There is no evidence demonstrating joint ownership of assets, joint responsibilities for liabilities and communal residence..... please submit additional documentation. Documentation should reflect your name and your petitioning spouse's name. In addition, the documentation should cover the period of time from the date of marriage to the present. Such examples may include, but are not limited to, the following:

- Copies of bank statements that reflect joint savings and/or checking accounts to include the transaction pages for each statement provided

- Copies of mortgage agreements, deeds or other instruments affecting the title to real estate that demonstrate joint ownership of property or assets

- Copies of insurance policies such as life insurance, medical insurance, home insurance, etc.

- Copies of credit card statements

- Copies of loan documents such as car loans, home improvement loans, business loans, etc.

- Copies of utility bills such as telephone, gas, electric, water, cable, internet etc. or other statements issued in both names indicating residential address

- [Military BAQ forms]

- Any other documentation which shows that the marriage was not entered into in order to circumvent U.S. immigration laws"

----------

I'm just totally bewildered by this. The point of sending one bill in my wife's name and one in mine was to show we both live at the same address, but they seem to have counted it against us. That as well as the lease, tax returns, car insurance etc. are clearly evidence of "joint responsibilities for liabilities and communal residence." I just don't get it. I was also under the impression that we didn't have to send stuff from before we arrived in the U.S., so it's odd that they specified that.

And here's the problem:

We have a joint checking account but have never used it because my wife is self-employed and it's easier for her to use a separate one.

We have no mortgage agreements, deeds etc. I partly own my mom's house, but it's only in my name.

We have no life insurance, and have separate medical insurance. We rent the house from my sister so the home insurance is in her name.

Credit card statements are in my name only - even though my wife also has a card, the billing comes in my name, so statements will prove nothing.

We have no loans.

All bills are in my name or hers since we share paying them. None are in both names, and in fact some would not allow it when we asked.

The military stuff is N/A.

Any suggestions on how to deal with this? Here's what we're thinking of sending:

- A cover letter explaining the value of the documentation i previously sent which they seem to have overlooked, as demonstrating "joint responsibilities for liabilities and communal residence".

- They did not acknowledge receiving the Heath Insurance Marketplace notice, so maybe I should send it again - at least it shows joint application at the same address.

- copies of emails we've sent to each other, ranging from when we first met to the present

- A written statement from our stockbroker that my wife is the beneficiary of my account (she is not named on the statements)

- a written statement from the bank where we have the unused joint account (and the one she uses), stating that we opened it together (or something?) + the one statement we have from when we first opened it?

- I'll try to add her name on a savings account, though that will not affect past statements

- we'll look for joint utility bill statements from the UK

- emails to/from family about wedding, meeting etc. (it was a council office wedding in the UK, so no family was present)

- reference letter from our landlord in the U.K., from before we were married and were flat-hunting

- Travel insurance and flight booking for a holiday we took from the UK to the Mediterranean after we were married

- flight reservations from a trip to Chicago

- notarized affidavits from friends and family?

- statement from utility companies that they don't put two names on bills, but that we asked (if they'll do it)?

- more photos, explaining in more precise detail that they are from three countries and three states over a period of 4 years (it was so obvious in the ones we sent, with desert, ocean, famous landmarks, different hairstyles, etc!)

- Christmas cards, invitations etc. with both our names on them

- emails from a real estate agent when we were looking at houses

- Facebook posts between my wife and my family members ("Can't wait to meet my new cousin" kind of thing)

Any other suggestions? I read elsewhere that some people contact their congress person. Anyone have experience with that?

Is it really possible that the could deny my wife's petition because we're named separately in bills, and our finances aren't arranged in a way they approve of? I know long-time married couples who don't share bank accounts, and certainly don't have utilities in both names!

Thanks.....

Edited March 27, 2016 by f&c

[NikLR 13,232]

You need to send them evidence from the beginning of the marriage or POE, whichever you have the information from. Don't send a single credit card statement, send ALL the credit card statements. Send a photocopy of the credit cards themselves with them and you should have something that shows she an authorized user. You should have 2013, 2014, and now 2015 tax returns (transcripts preferably) to send them.

Wills? MPOA? Living Wills? Anyone married should have life insurance. You should have a rental agreement from your sister, and some sort of renters insurance or homeowners insurance in your own name.

You aren't a normal USC couple. Your wife wants immigration benefits. You have to prove more than a normal immigration couple. If you don't answer the RFE to their satisfaction, you'll likely get an interview. Others with your issues generally do and seem to be just fine if they're a genuine couple. An interview isn't the end of the world, but obviously it takes longer to get the 10 yr green card.

  Quote

- A written statement from our stockbroker that my wife is the beneficiary of my account (she is not named on the statements -definitely
- I'll try to add her name on a savings account, though that will not affect past statements - probably a good idea.
- we'll look for joint utility bill statements from the UK -sure...
- Travel insurance and flight booking for a holiday we took from the UK to the Mediterranean after we were married
- flight reservations from a trip to Chicago -boarding passes??
- notarized affidavits from friends and family? - you don't seem to have a lot of evidence so this could be helpful, even though they're low on the evidence scale.
- statement from utility companies that they don't put two names on bills, but that we asked (if they'll do it)? - you should have had this done if they would do it.
- more photos, explaining in more precise detail that they are from three countries and three states over a period of 4 years (it was so obvious in the ones we sent, with desert, ocean, famous landmarks, different hairstyles, etc!) -just the dates and locations is good.
- Christmas cards, invitations etc. with both our names on them -weak evidence but good for you since you're lacking otherwise.

[deleted this acco 44]

other things to include: for credit card you can ask them to send her one with her name on it. Bank statements have to show two people using the same account (activities of 2,people) It will be same card number; Sam's or Costco membership cards; cellphone account showing both names as owners; ID cards showing same address; hotel stay receipts whatever you guys did together in the last two years is what they want to see. Good luck.

[Ontarkie 14,643]

~~Duplicate threads Merged.~~

[Anh map 2,098]

They didn't overlook anything. Not enough was submitted. Most of what you sent doesn't show 2 years of living as a married couple.

A joint bank account that isn't used much raises more questions than it answers. Joint application for health insurance doesn't show much. Any two people can apply for an account, using the account/service demonstrates more.

Send copies of all the utility bills covering the green card period. Same with the credit cards. 2015 taxes (yes it's not April 15th yet, but your evidence is thin). A copy of the form that you signed making your spouse the beneficiary of your portfolio along with the letter. Car registrations showing the same address? All monthly statements from your individual back accounts showing the same address? Copies of mail (envelopes) addressed to each / both of you at the shared address.

Affidavits from friends/family are not worth much. No one ever submits a "bad" one. Notarization isn't needed.

Have you drawn up wills? Health care proxies?

[KayDeeCee 4,896]

In your case, an affidavit from your sister attesting to the fact that she rents her house to you could be used in place of a joint mortgage/lease.

Your main problem seems to be that you did not send in documentation for the entire length of your marriage.

[MariaR323 199]

One of their MAIN points is comingling of finances - this includes assets and liabilities. The fact each has a bill in their own name just means you separate your finances. The non-used joint bank account looks very bad because it looks like it was simply setup for "looks". The fact someone is an authorized user on a credit card merely states they can use the account - they are not liable for the debt.

So the packet that was originally sent was probably looked at more like a "roommate" situation.

What will help you is proof you listed your spouse as the beneficiary of your investment account. You might want to get a power of attorney drawn up, both for financial and health directives. And yes, the 2015 tax return as well.

[Teddy B 17,252]

  On 3/27/2016 at 4:13 AM, c.ortiz said:

Greetings all. It's been a while since I posted, but I'm hoping to get some advice here.

I am the US citizen, my wife is Russian. We are in the process of trying to have her conditions of residence removed. I thought we'd sent them a pretty good package of evidence, including the following:

• Our 2014 joint US tax return, including proof of submission in the form of an IRS letter acknowledging an amended return What about 2013 tax returns?
• Our 2014 joint state tax return. Should be 2013 as well.
• A real estate lease for the house we live in showing joint tenancy Did you send a lease with both names that spans the whole time of your marriage?
• Copies of car insurance notices from a range of dates, including the current one Should be copies of policies showing both names for the span of your marriage.
• Copy of our current, valid U.S. state drivers’ licenses showing that we reside at the same address
• Copy of American Express credit card showing a joint account Is it a joint account with her name on the statement? If so you should send quarterly statements from the time of your marriage to the present. If she is only an authorized user, her name will not be on the statement and you should send copies of both cards blacking out all but the last 4 numbers.
• Copy of Mastercard credit card showing a joint account
• Copy of a letter from the Health Insurance Marketplace showing a joint application Joint application or joint policy? Joint application means nothing, you need copies of the policy and you need to show 2 years worth.
• Copies of two utility bills (one in each of our names, for our home address)
• Photos of the two of us together in various times and places, including with my mother

I added to the letter, "Please feel free to inquire at any of the sources of enclosed documentation for validity of their statements, and you would be welcome to visit our home."

This is what they said in the REF:

----------

"You have not established that the marriage upon which you were granted conditional status was entered into in good faith. You submitted tax returns, credit cards, auto insurance, drivers licenses, photos, waste bill, and gas bill. However, the documentation submitted is insufficient because the waste bill and gas bill do not reflect both the petitioner and the CPR names. There is no evidence demonstrating joint ownership of assets, joint responsibilities for liabilities and communal residence..... please submit additional documentation. Documentation should reflect your name and your petitioning spouse's name. In addition, the documentation should cover the period of time from the date of marriage to the present. Such examples may include, but are not limited to, the following:

- Copies of bank statements that reflect joint savings and/or checking accounts to include the transaction pages for each statement provided You should have a joint bank account and you should send quarterly statements from the last 2 years.

- Copies of mortgage agreements, deeds or other instruments affecting the title to real estate that demonstrate joint ownership of property or assets Need copies of lease agreements in both names for last 2 years.

- Copies of insurance policies such as life insurance, medical insurance, home insurance, etc. Should have joint health insurance plan showing both names for last 2 years.

- Copies of credit card statements And or copies of cards showing the last 4 digits of same account number.

- Copies of loan documents such as car loans, home improvement loans, business loans, etc.

- Copies of utility bills such as telephone, gas, electric, water, cable, internet etc. or other statements issued in both names indicating residential address

- [Military BAQ forms]

- Any other documentation which shows that the marriage was not entered into in order to circumvent U.S. immigration laws"

----------

[vbtwo 54]

Try to send as much as you have of anything that shows both your names. See if you have documents throughout the entire marriage up to this point. Send copies of actual credit cards that have the same number on them. You can send the copies of bills again with a written explanation of what you're trying to prove from them (proof of living at same address, even if the bills are not to both of you). If they won't be satisfied with the proof you supplied, you will get an interview.

Adding her to any of your accounts now won't help at all as it won't show anything throughout the marriage, so there is really no point of doing it at this point.

If and when you get called to the interview, there you can explain your circumstances as to why you're not using the joint account, etc.

[c.ortiz 0]

Thanks for all the helpful replies. I'm confused because I read on other visajourney threads that since my wife was already interviewed at the U.S. Consulate in London (and at the airport when we arrived in the U.S.) that we only had to show evidence from the time we arrived in the U.S. until now. But the RFE letter asks for evidence from the entire span of our marriage. To clarify our circumstances, I was living in the UK for many years before we met there in 2011. We married in August 2012, and moved to the U.S. in Oct. 2013. She had also been in the UK for over a decade, though she's Russian.

What really troubles me is that they do not seem to have considered a lease agreement with both of our names as evidence of joint responsibility and shared finances. Maybe they didn't like that it was my sister's name on the lease, but the bills (even in separate names) also show this, as does some of the other stuff. Is it worth explaining this in the letter? Even if the evidence is not enough by their standards, I feel like what I did send just didn't matter to them. I don't want to be confrontational, obviously, but I'm tempted to point out WHY the evidence I sent addresses their concerns. @mimolicious suggested re-sending some of the documents which seem to have been overlooked. Anyone else agree?

We're preparing our taxes now, so will also send our 2015 returns. We don't have 2013 because we arrived late in that year and didn't think to file jointly because my wife had no U.S. income.

I'm confused about the credit card thing. Yes, my wife is an authorized user and has a card in her name. But the bills are in my name. Would sending them statements prove anything other than that the card is being used? Obviously, the person who made each charge is not specified on statements. And yes, I DID send copies of actual credit cards with both our names.

And the bills: having them in separate names counted against us, and was the reason they gave for wanting more evidence ("the documentation submitted is insufficient because the waste bill and gas bill do not reflect both the petitioner and the CPR names"). The gas bill is in my name, the waste in my wife's, which I thought would demonstrate we share expenses at the same residence. So I'm hesitant to send more bills. She pays cable from her account, I pay electricity from mine, so we could send those too, but will it count against us? Or would it just reinforce the "roommate" notion that @MariaR323 brought up. I guess there's no second-guessing..... but any advice?

So we will NOT show them evidence of the unused bank account, correct?

  On 3/27/2016 at 4:33 AM, NLR said:

Wills? MPOA? Living Wills? Anyone married should have life insurance. You should have a rental agreement from your sister, and some sort of renters insurance or homeowners insurance in your own name.

You aren't a normal USC couple. Your wife wants immigration benefits. You have to prove more than a normal immigration couple. If you don't answer the RFE to their satisfaction, you'll likely get an interview. Others with your issues generally do and seem to be just fine if they're a genuine couple. An interview isn't the end of the world, but obviously it takes longer to get the 10 yr green card.

Nope, no wills, MPOA, Living Will, or life insurance (thanks for the reminder, though! - been meaning to do all this for ages). We sent them the lease agreement. The insurance is in my name, and my sister's so that's no good. If we do these things now, though, and send it in as evidence, won't it appear as if we did it just for that purpose? @vbtwo made this point about adding my wife to bank accounts now. Fortunately I made her beneficiary of my investment account a few months ago, and that has a substantial balance in it.

I'm glad to hear about the interview thing. We were under the impression that if they don't like the next package we send that we'd be facing some serious trouble, and possibly deportation. I wish they'd just interview us now, actually, rather than having to jump through all these hoops.

What about electronic evidence, by the way? Like youtube videos of us on vacation, and singing a song together? Should I send links in my cover letter maybe? Or my wife's webpage where she mentions me in her "about me" section?

So, I guess the best way to look at this is: we send them everything and anything we can, even if it's barrel-scraping (evidence of shared address in the UK and more from here, wedding and Christmas cards, more photos, personal emails to each other, statements from friends and family, vacation stuff including a booking for a trip to Hawaii this May, as well as the beneficiary evidence).... while thinking we will probably get an interview and will be able to sort it all out then.

Finally, how usual is it to get an RFE at this stage? It's hard not to get paranoid and start second-guessing their reasons. They don't like Russians? The 14-year age difference is suspicious? It's also hard not to take it personally. How could they see those pictures of us with family, friends, our dog, and in all these different locations and still not be convinced? I know that's irrational, but I'm guessing it's not an uncommon feeling. Another confusing thing is that initially we had to prove that I had enough money and assets to support us both, so that's what we focused on. Now we have to prove that the same money and assets are now intermingled. I thought we were on top of everything, but with a huge move and life change dealing with so much paperwork, readjustment, looking for work, my wife starting a small business etc., things like putting both our names on bills and accounts didn't seem like a priority, not being a necessity. My bad, as they say.....

What's the typical time frame for a response to my reply? Their deadline is June 14th but we're going to try to send it off next week. And if we do get an interview, is there a typical time frame for how far in advance they make the appointment?

[charmander 692]

  On 3/28/2016 at 8:03 PM, c.ortiz said:

Thanks for all the helpful replies. I'm confused because I read on other visajourney threads that since my wife was already interviewed at the U.S. Consulate in London (and at the airport when we arrived in the U.S.) that we only had to show evidence from the time we arrived in the U.S. until now. But the RFE letter asks for evidence from the entire span of our marriage. To clarify our circumstances, I was living in the UK for many years before we met there in 2011. We married in August 2012, and moved to the U.S. in Oct. 2013. She had also been in the UK for over a decade, though she's Russian.

What really troubles me is that they do not seem to have considered a lease agreement with both of our names as evidence of joint responsibility and shared finances. Maybe they didn't like that it was my sister's name on the lease, but the bills (even in separate names) also show this, as does some of the other stuff. Is it worth explaining this in the letter? Even if the evidence is not enough by their standards, I feel like what I did send just didn't matter to them. I don't want to be confrontational, obviously, but I'm tempted to point out WHY the evidence I sent addresses their concerns. @mimolicious suggested re-sending some of the documents which seem to have been overlooked. Anyone else agree?

We're preparing our taxes now, so will also send our 2015 returns. We don't have 2013 because we arrived late in that year and didn't think to file jointly because my wife had no U.S. income.

I'm confused about the credit card thing. Yes, my wife is an authorized user and has a card in her name. But the bills are in my name. Would sending them statements prove anything other than that the card is being used? Obviously, the person who made each charge is not specified on statements. And yes, I DID send copies of actual credit cards with both our names.

And the bills: having them in separate names counted against us, and was the reason they gave for wanting more evidence ("the documentation submitted is insufficient because the waste bill and gas bill do not reflect both the petitioner and the CPR names"). The gas bill is in my name, the waste in my wife's, which I thought would demonstrate we share expenses at the same residence. So I'm hesitant to send more bills. She pays cable from her account, I pay electricity from mine, so we could send those too, but will it count against us? Or would it just reinforce the "roommate" notion that @MariaR323 brought up. I guess there's no second-guessing..... but any advice?

So we will NOT show them evidence of the unused bank account, correct?

Nope, no wills, MPOA, Living Will, or life insurance (thanks for the reminder, though! - been meaning to do all this for ages). We sent them the lease agreement. The insurance is in my name, and my sister's so that's no good. If we do these things now, though, and send it in as evidence, won't it appear as if we did it just for that purpose? @vbtwo made this point about adding my wife to bank accounts now. Fortunately I made her beneficiary of my investment account a few months ago, and that has a substantial balance in it.

I'm glad to hear about the interview thing. We were under the impression that if they don't like the next package we send that we'd be facing some serious trouble, and possibly deportation. I wish they'd just interview us now, actually, rather than having to jump through all these hoops.

What about electronic evidence, by the way? Like youtube videos of us on vacation, and singing a song together? Should I send links in my cover letter maybe? Or my wife's webpage where she mentions me in her "about me" section?

So, I guess the best way to look at this is: we send them everything and anything we can, even if it's barrel-scraping (evidence of shared address in the UK and more from here, wedding and Christmas cards, more photos, personal emails to each other, statements from friends and family, vacation stuff including a booking for a trip to Hawaii this May, as well as the beneficiary evidence).... while thinking we will probably get an interview and will be able to sort it all out then.

Finally, how usual is it to get an RFE at this stage? It's hard not to get paranoid and start second-guessing their reasons. They don't like Russians? The 14-year age difference is suspicious? It's also hard not to take it personally. How could they see those pictures of us with family, friends, our dog, and in all these different locations and still not be convinced? I know that's irrational, but I'm guessing it's not an uncommon feeling. Another confusing thing is that initially we had to prove that I had enough money and assets to support us both, so that's what we focused on. Now we have to prove that the same money and assets are now intermingled. I thought we were on top of everything, but with a huge move and life change dealing with so much paperwork, readjustment, looking for work, my wife starting a small business etc., things like putting both our names on bills and accounts didn't seem like a priority, not being a necessity. My bad, as they say.....

What's the typical time frame for a response to my reply? Their deadline is June 14th but we're going to try to send it off next week. And if we do get an interview, is there a typical time frame for how far in advance they make the appointment?

No one exactly knows what percentage of cases gets RFE but to calm you down let me give you the some other stats. First, only about 2% of all joint gets denied, so don't freak out. About 80% of the cases gets adjudicated at the service centers, 20% gets interviewed at field offices. Interviews typically happen after one (sometimes two) round of RFE, so you can safely assume more than 20% of the people get RFE. You don't see RFEs as much on this forum partly because the followers of this forum typically prepare their packages by following experiences from others so their cases are probably better prepared than the rest of the 150-200 thousand petitioners. All these stats are from Page 18 of this document https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/cisomb-conditional-residence-recommendation-final-02282013_1.pdf .

Do not try to speculate why you were picked. A lot of reasons could yield to that including an officer may not want to be seen as approving everything, so they may randomly send out RFEs who knows. But your nationality has nothing to do with it, search this forum and you will see Canadians, British, Western Europeans gets RFEs/interviews as well. You are not the first, will not be the last to get an RFE, Just follow people's suggestions and you will get your approval soon. Worse comes to worst, if they are still not satisfied, they will send you guys to an interview but it should be a piece of cake as long as you are in a bona-fide marriage. That path just takes longer time but as I said before a significant majority of the ROCs are ultimately approved.

Send your package as soon as you think you are ready but do not rush just to get it out of your hands. Adjudications of RFEs are also unique for each case, I've seen RFEs get approved within days after submission, some people wait for months. If it ultimately gets to an interview stage timing would depend on the business of the field office. Try to stay positive and think about how else you could make your RFE package stronger at this point.

Edited March 28, 2016 by charmander

[c.ortiz 0]

  On 3/28/2016 at 9:01 PM, charmander said:

No one exactly knows what percentage of cases gets RFE but to calm you down let me give you the some other stats. First, only about 2% of all joint gets denied, so don't freak out. About 80% of the cases gets adjudicated at the service centers, 20% gets interviewed at field offices. Interviews typically happen after one (sometimes two) round of RFE, so you can safely assume more than 20% of the people get RFE. You don't see RFEs as much on this forum partly because the followers of this forum typically prepare their packages by following experiences from others so their cases are probably better prepared than the rest of the 150-200 thousand petitioners. All these stats are from Page 18 of this document https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/cisomb-conditional-residence-recommendation-final-02282013_1.pdf .

Do not try to speculate why you were picked. A lot of reasons could yield to that including an officer may not want to be seen as approving everything, so they may randomly send out RFEs who knows. But your nationality has nothing to do with it, search this forum and you will see Canadians, British, Western Europeans gets RFEs/interviews as well. You are not the first, will not be the last to get an RFE, Just follow people's suggestions and you will get your approval soon. Worse comes to worst, if they are still not satisfied, they will send you guys to an interview but it should be a piece of cake as long as you are in a bona-fide marriage. That path just takes longer time but as I said before a significant majority of the ROCs are ultimately approved.

Send your package as soon as you think you are ready but do not rush just to get it out of your hands. Adjudications of RFEs are also unique for each case, I've seen RFEs get approved within days after submission, some people wait for months. If it ultimately gets to an interview stage timing would depend on the business of the field office. Try to stay positive and think about how else you could make your RFE package stronger at this point.

Thank you! That really does help put our minds at ease.

[Enial11 3]

  On 3/27/2016 at 4:33 AM, NikLR said:

You need to send them evidence from the beginning of the marriage or POE, whichever you have the information from. Don't send a single credit card statement, send ALL the credit card statements. Send a photocopy of the credit cards themselves with them and you should have something that shows she an authorized user. You should have 2013, 2014, and now 2015 tax returns (transcripts preferably) to send them.

Wills? MPOA? Living Wills? Anyone married should have life insurance. You should have a rental agreement from your sister, and some sort of renters insurance or homeowners insurance in your own name.

You aren't a normal USC couple. Your wife wants immigration benefits. You have to prove more than a normal immigration couple. If you don't answer the RFE to their satisfaction, you'll likely get an interview. Others with your issues generally do and seem to be just fine if they're a genuine couple. An interview isn't the end of the world, but obviously it takes longer to get the 10 yr green card.

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I'm just curious about the Utility bills. I'm also in the process of working that part on my marriage. However, the Utility company also told me that they can't put 2 names in 1 bill because the software they use doesn't allow it which is weird. How did you fix that? I can't give that explanation to the cover letter.