Birth Certificate for Co-Sponsor (Australia.. help)

[amishbaby 407]

I'm a little confused. From what I understand the co-sponsor only needs a copy of his birth certificate to be sent with the I-134, however, I asked the Sydney Consulate and they redirected me to a website: https://au.usembassy.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/81/2017/02/K1-Document-Requirements.pdf

On this website, it says the birth certificate has to be an "original only." So, does this mean that I have to send his actual birth certificate? It cannot be a copy? I really don't want to mess this up.... can someone tell me if that's what they mean or can I just send a copy of his birth certificate? 

[amishbaby 407]

5 hours ago, Dee elle said:

Original means original...issued by the government authority,  a photocpoy is not a acceptable. 

 

The document from the Sydney consulate refers to what your fiance must take with him to the interview...

 

He must take his original birth certificate. He will not get it back.. If he does not already have it, he should be getting 4 or 5 of the originals through the government agency of the state in which he was born.... the  birth certificate will be used in many steps including Adjustment of status, and is much easier to get when you are in your home country than already overseas..

 

The Sydney document does  not refer to the joint sponsor form directly, except to say that for the interview,  the  person must take the original signed I134 and all accompanying evidence with them.  It does not say whether the joint sponsor needs an original or copy of their birth certificate...... the instruction pages for completing  the I134 will outline the evidence that must accompany the I134. 

So, he should request about 5 birth certificates? I understood correctly, right? 

[amishbaby 407]

1 minute ago, Dee elle said:

Yes, that's my thoughts anyway....

 

Official documents that are difficult to replace if you are not in country, and are possibly needed into the future are worth getting a supply of. He will need his birth certificate for passport renewals, drivers licence etc.  

The  other one you MAY think about getting an extra original is if your fiance does need to get Court Records. I am not sure if these will need to be produced for AOS or citizenship, but I know I would feel better if I had an extra set of originals tucked away.

Country requirements for verifying a photocopy of an original document differ country to country and that's why photocopies, even if they have been "certified as a true copy of the original" in the country of issue, often cant be used overseas.

http://www.bdm.nsw.gov.au/

It looks like they can be purchased online? Is this about accurate? 

[amishbaby 407]

2 minutes ago, Dee elle said:

Any identification documents they will require will be photocopies not originals... and verified by following the instructions for getting copies verified as true copies of the originals. He wont need to send his actual Drivers Licence

Oh my goodness, they are pricey. So they keep the originals, and don't give them back? I'll mark it down for us to buy 7. That should be more than enough, right? 

[amishbaby 407]

Okay, well, we definitely don't want to overspend. We will need to be wise as much as possible, this is already a very expensive process as is. So I will just keep that in mind. For right now, I think we will just buy the 3, instead of buying all of them at once. Fortunately it can be purchased online, that's a good thing. I completely agree with you though. I have read many AOS cases where people had to try and get original birth certificates but they were already in the U.S. I guess it's not too bad, but the international fee is added in as well. I think in America it's probably around the same price.