Change example form - I 134?

[TracyTN 237]

Cap'n/everyone -

The example form for the I 134 is very confusing for question 7. The person on the example listed their home address, but no other information - nothing about the value of the home and the mortgage.

Since the example user's income is well above the poverty level, my suggestion would be to remove the address and, if possible, put 'not provided' in the sections regarding assets.

It may also not hurt to have an example out there of someone who has used assets.

Input, ideas?

[Yodrak 7]

TracyTN,

I personally do not like example forms, I think they can be dangerous for the very people who need them.

Every person's situation is different to some extent, so a person who has difficulty with certain items on a form can be led astray by trying to follow an example that does not apply to their situation. If they know enough to recognize that the answer on the example does not apply to their situation, they know enough to do the form themself without the example. If they don't know enough to recognize when the example does not apply to them they'd be better served by asking questions.

If there are going to be example formsm, there should be numerous examples for each form with each example having a companion discussion of the situation to which the example applies. I don't think that 2 is enough for I-134, but your suggestion for a 2nd I-134 is a start in the right direction.

Yodrak

Cap'n/everyone -

The example form for the I 134 is very confusing for question 7. The person on the example listed their home address, but no other information - nothing about the value of the home and the mortgage.

Since the example user's income is well above the poverty level, my suggestion would be to remove the address and, if possible, put 'not provided' in the sections regarding assets.

It may also not hurt to have an example out there of someone who has used assets.

Input, ideas?

[TracyTN 237]

I agree. I think the example forms give good information in certain situations (the idea of the N/A for K1ers on the I 134 question about specific contributions springs to mind). Its far better to also rely on the input from others - or perhaps other research (USCIS site, consulate information, etc) - as well as taking your particular circumstances into account before completing it.

But since we do have them, I think we should make them as accurate as possible, as well as applicable as possible.

(And by the by - I figured there would be other circumstances to cover in an I 134 - those were just two that came to mind initially.

[Yodrak 7]

TracyTN,

You pick an interesting example. There is a historical reason for why N/A was once the appropriate way to answer that question. And although the anecdotal evidence clearly indicates that N/A is still an acceptable answer - as is Yes, No, or Maybe - the historical reason is but a memory for those us who were around 'when' and remember what the reason is.

Although N/A still works for this question, using N/A is in general a bad habit to get into. In some situations it is not an appropriate answer and even in situation where it is appropriate there is always a better, more meaningful, answer that could be given.

A good example of why example forms are dangerous - they enable people to answer questions without understanding what they're doing.

Yodrak

I agree. I think the example forms give good information in certain situations (the idea of the N/A for K1ers on the I 134 question about specific contributions springs to mind). .....

Edited April 5, 2007 by Yodrak

[TracyTN 237]

That's true. I limited my use of N/A in the petition phase, instead preferring to state 'none' (as in no children, etc). I just checked, and I only used N/A on the I 129f when asked if my fiance was currently in the USA, and where you would write your fiance's name in their native language.

I will only use N/A in the I 134 for the 'specific contributions' question, followed by the phrase about K1 fiance visa for permanent residence.

It seems a lot of people forget that 'N/A' stands for 'not applicable', whereas its use should be limited only to situations where the question asked is truly not applicable. For example, with questions surrounding having children, its a perfectly reasonable question to ask on immigration forms, and one which I find better answered by 'none' than 'N/A'.

I do remember reading a post of yours once (I think it was you!) explaining the 'history' behind N/A being an appropriate answer (something about the visa types?). I'll have to try and find that post again.

[Yodrak 7]

TracyTN,

That's true. I limited my use of N/A in the petition phase, instead preferring to state 'none' (as in no children, etc). I just checked, and I only used N/A on the I 129f when asked if my fiance was currently in the USA, and where you would write your fiance's name in their native language.

I wrote, "fiancee in not currently in the USA".

I will only use N/A in the I 134 for the 'specific contributions' question, followed by the phrase about K1 fiance visa for permanent residence.

You prove my point!

Yodrak

[Ladylethal 12]

I used very few N/A in all of my forms, preferring to use NONE instead.