IR Spousal Visa---Income and job question

[travis1983 0]

So this is my 2nd ever petition. First was with K1 with ex wife in 2007. 5 years later ended in divorce. No kids.

I married my new wife in the Philippines in 2014. No kids yet. I currently an educator in China of history and m,y wife does not work.

I want to sponsor her on a IR spousal when it is time to end my contract here in 2018, BUT we are very much opposed to being apart for months or up to a year.

My only situation is this: I have a job here in China with a CHINESE based employer, not US based. I have no US based income. 

And as for a sponsor everyone I know is retired or broke, so no to the sponsor. 

I might be able to swing 15k in a US  bank account from some savings here, but I am not wealthy. 

I dread going home and finding a job outright and waiting away from her for a year. I know I can get a teaching position rather easily, but it is the being apart.

 

My wife (Filipina) does not want to stay in Manila for a year away from me either. Does anyone have any suggestions or tips? I have been told over and over to file I must have a US based income. 3 years tax returns in total, even though the returns display a foreign income. I have heard I must have 20k a year in income. My family has a home in the US (our family home) so yes, I do have a residence there. 

 

Many thanks

[A'n'L 735]

If you can't find a co-sponsor and don't have sufficient savings/assets, you will most likely need to return to the US before you can bring your wife over. You can start the process with filing the i130 from abroad, but she won't be able to complete the visa processing without a sponsor.

[zilchfox 296]

You need to be 125% above the poverty line, so yes around ~$20K-ish, give or take. If you can't find co-sponsors, then you will need to go back home to establish domicile and earn some income. As long as she has STRONG ties back to the Philippines, she can always visit during application processing, and of course you can always make the trip abroad to the Philippines to visit her, too.

Edited May 6, 2017 by zilchfox

[Jojo92122 1,924]

You will need either a qualified Joint Sponsor, $60,000 in assets (can not be borrowed assets), or a job making at least $20,000/year that will continue after your wife immigrates.

 

There are many couples on VJ who have to endure the year long separation to get through this.  Without a JS or $60,000 in assets, you only have one choice left.