Document Help

[larnar1309 101]

6 hours ago, JessieABC said:

Should be unless the nvc makes a mistake ( as they are prone to do). I would include an employment letter and pay stubs just to be safe. Annual pay should be apparent on at least one of the two.

 

From the checklist stories I've seen, those requesting for w2s are usually when either a joint sponsor was used or when the sponsor had filed jointly.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Okay great! Yes we got pay stubs and an employment letter already so I'll organize them together when we send the files  

 

you have been a great help honestly - thanks very much!! 

[RudelCraig 12]

20 hours ago, Roel said:

As far as I know there is no such thing as aos within the cr1 visa... 

Quite correct. I am in the same boat, applied with the I-130 as the spouse of an American citizen (CR-1). We only needed the I-130, not the I-485 at all! The only time you need the I-485 is when you are Adjusting Status and inside the US already, i.e. AOS.

 

See my saved (many many docs!) notes on the !-130 below.

 

 

Green Card for an Immediate Relative of a U.S. Citizen

On this page you will find information on:

·         Get a Green Card While Outside the United States

To promote family unity, immigration law allows U.S. citizens to petition for certain qualified relatives to come and live permanently in the United States. Eligible immediate relatives include the U.S. citizen’s:

·         Spouse

·         Unmarried child under the age of 21

·         Parent (if the U.S. citizen is over the age of 21)

Immediate relatives have special immigration priority and do not have to wait in line for a visa number to become available for them to immigrate because there are an unlimited number of visas for their particular categories.

Get a Green Card While Outside the United States

If you are currently outside the United States and are an immediate relative of a U.S. citizen, you can become a permanent resident through consular processing. Consular processing is when USCIS works with the Department of State to issue a visa on an approved Form I-130 petition when a visa is available. You may then travel on the visa and will officially become a permanent resident when admitted at a U.S. port of entry. For more information on consular processing for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, see the “Consular Processing” link to the left under “Green Card Processes & Procedures.”  The Department of State will notify you when you are eligible to apply for an immigrant visa.  If you do not apply for an immigrant visa within one year following notification from the Department of State, your petition may be terminated.

 

 

Consular Processing

The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) offers an individual two primary paths to permanent resident status (a green card). An individual who is the beneficiary of an approved immigrant petition and has an immigrant visa number immediately available may apply at a U.S. Department of State consulate abroad for an immigrant visa in order to come to the United States and be admitted as a permanent resident. This pathway is referred to as “consular processing.”

 

Steps for Consular Processing

1. Determine Your Basis to Immigrate

The first step in consular processing is to determine if you fit into a specific immigrant category. Most immigrants become eligible for a green card (permanent residence) through a petition filed on your behalf by a family member or employer. Others become permanent residents through first obtaining refugee or asylum status, or through a number of other special provisions. To see the many different ways to get a green card, see the links to the left.

2. File the Immigrant Petition

When you know what category you believe best fits your situation, in most cases, you will need to have an immigrant petition filed on your behalf.

·         Family Based

Family based categories require that a U.S. citizen or permanent resident relative file a Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, for you. For more information, see our Family page.

3. Wait for a Decision on Your Petition

USCIS notifies the petitioner of a decision. If the petition is denied, the notice will include the reasons for denying the petition and any rights to appeal the decision. If the petition is approved and if you are the beneficiary of the petition and living outside the United States or living in the United States, but choose to apply for your immigrant visa abroad, USCIS will then send the approved petition to the Department of State’s National Visa Center (NVC), where it will remain until an immigrant visa number is available. See our Visa Availability & Priority Dates pages for more information.

4. Wait for Notification from the National Visa Center

The National Visa Center, which is responsible for the collection of visa application fees and supporting documentation, will notify the petitioner and beneficiary when the visa petition is received and again when an immigrant visa number is about to become available. They will also notify the petitioner and beneficiary of when they must submit immigrant visa processing fees (commonly referred to as “fee bills”) and when supporting documentation must be submitted.

5. Go to Your Appointment

Once a visa is available or a beneficiary’s priority date is current (earlier than the cut-off date listed in the monthly Visa Bulletin),the consular office will schedule the applicant for an interview. The consular office will complete processing of the applicant’s case and decide if the beneficiary is eligible for an immigrant visa.

6. Notify the National Visa Center of Any Changes

You do not need to contact the National Visa Center about your petition, they will contact you for the information they need. You should, however, contact the NVC if there is a change in your personal situation or if you change your address. For NVC contact information, see the “NVC Contact Information” page. It is important to notify the NVC if you reach the age of 21 for a child or have a change in your marital status, as this may affect your eligibility or visa availability.

7. After Your Visa is Granted

If you are granted an immigrant visa, the consular officer will give you a packet of information. This packet is known as a “Visa Packet.” You should not open this packet.

Upon your arrival to the United States, you should give your Visa Packet to the Customs and Border Protection officer at the port of entry. You will be inspected by a Customs and Border Protection officer and if found admissible, will be admitted as a permanent resident of the United States, which gives you the authority to live and work in the United States permanently.

8. Receive Your Green Card

You will be mailed your green card. If you do not receive your green card within 45 days of your arrival, please call the USCIS National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283 or visit your local office by making an InfoPass appointment. Make an appointment by visiting our Infopass page.

[RudelCraig 12]

12 hours ago, larnar1309 said:

@JessieABC I just spoke to my husband and because he only moved back to work in the US from less than a year ago he said his W2 would not be available. In this case should we just write a letter describing why it's unavailable and have it signed by his employer ? Do you know what people do in this case? 

 

Thanks for your support

Hi

 

You may use the last W-2 that was issued. For our I-130 we used my husband's filed W-2 from the previous year, i.e. 2016.

[larnar1309 101]

42 minutes ago, RudelCraig said:

Hi

 

You may use the last W-2 that was issued. For our I-130 we used my husband's filed W-2 from the previous year, i.e. 2016.

Thank you for the advice. Because we lived together in Japan for several years the last one would not be recent at all. However as an American Citizen, he still had to file taxes from Japan so I think having the last 3 years of Tax IRS transcripts would probably be better for us than an old W-2? 

Did you also file IRS transcripts?

 

And regarding the AOS info above - I think there was some confusion. There is an AOS meaning "affidavit of support" for i-130 CR1 visa applications which is what I meant to refer to!  

Edited July 12, 2017 by larnar1309

[larnar1309 101]

Wow I just read this:

 

As the petitioner, what filing status do I use for my tax returns?

You have three options: married filing separately (MFS), married filing jointly (MFJ), or head of household (HOH).

For HOH, there's some criteria you need to meet to be able to use this. Please see the IRS website for more information. For most people though, it's either between MFS or MFJ.

Before I continue, I will say this once and only once: YOU CANNOT FILE SINGLE. If you are married, you are married. Doesn't matter where in the universe your spouse is, YOU ARE STILL MARRIED. You will be lying to the IRS if you file as single, and if caught, could cause serious issues. If you have already filed taxes, either this year or last, and were married, yet filed as single, amend your tax return ASAP. If at the time of the interview, there are tax return transcripts in the case file showing the petitioner filed as single, this can be a HUGE red flag. The CO will have to wonder why the petitioner filed as single when they're trying to get a spousal visa. In their eyes, your relationship can be seen as a fraud and could be reason for denial.

For both MFS and MFJ, the petitioner will have to file a paper tax return. Electronic submissions won't be possible the first year.

Filing MFS will probably be the easiest for most people as it doesn't require any extra documents from the foreign spouse, nor does it require their signature. On the tax return, where it asks for the spouse's SSN, you would put 'NRA' for Non-Resident Alien. Continue filling out the rest of the return as normal. That is all you have to do. (And if desired, once the spouse has immigrated to the US and has obtained a SSN, the petitioner can then amend their tax return to MFJ, to possibly get a bigger refund, but this isn't required.)

Filing MFJ will typically mean a bigger refund up front, with no need to amend. This route takes a little more work though as the beneficiary will have to fill out a W7 (available on the IRS site), which requires a signature, and include document(s), so they can obtain a ITIN (it's like a SSN, but for the sole purpose of filing taxes, and is available for those not currently living in the US). This would then be included with the tax return, and sent to a special address for ITIN generation. For most countries, it may be hard to get the needed documents. (For Canada, it was uber easy, and this is how my husband did his taxes while I was still in Canada, waiting for my interview). Please view the instructions for the W7 form on the IRS website to see what documents will be needed.

For more information, please read this page on IRS's website here [32].

 

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Looks like my husband will need to refile his taxes as married!!!! so glad I saw this >_<

[RudelCraig 12]

16 minutes ago, larnar1309 said:

Wow I just read this:

 

As the petitioner, what filing status do I use for my tax returns?

You have three options: married filing separately (MFS), married filing jointly (MFJ), or head of household (HOH).

For HOH, there's some criteria you need to meet to be able to use this. Please see the IRS website for more information. For most people though, it's either between MFS or MFJ.

Before I continue, I will say this once and only once: YOU CANNOT FILE SINGLE. If you are married, you are married. Doesn't matter where in the universe your spouse is, YOU ARE STILL MARRIED. You will be lying to the IRS if you file as single, and if caught, could cause serious issues. If you have already filed taxes, either this year or last, and were married, yet filed as single, amend your tax return ASAP. If at the time of the interview, there are tax return transcripts in the case file showing the petitioner filed as single, this can be a HUGE red flag. The CO will have to wonder why the petitioner filed as single when they're trying to get a spousal visa. In their eyes, your relationship can be seen as a fraud and could be reason for denial.

For both MFS and MFJ, the petitioner will have to file a paper tax return. Electronic submissions won't be possible the first year.

Filing MFS will probably be the easiest for most people as it doesn't require any extra documents from the foreign spouse, nor does it require their signature. On the tax return, where it asks for the spouse's SSN, you would put 'NRA' for Non-Resident Alien. Continue filling out the rest of the return as normal. That is all you have to do. (And if desired, once the spouse has immigrated to the US and has obtained a SSN, the petitioner can then amend their tax return to MFJ, to possibly get a bigger refund, but this isn't required.)

Filing MFJ will typically mean a bigger refund up front, with no need to amend. This route takes a little more work though as the beneficiary will have to fill out a W7 (available on the IRS site), which requires a signature, and include document(s), so they can obtain a ITIN (it's like a SSN, but for the sole purpose of filing taxes, and is available for those not currently living in the US). This would then be included with the tax return, and sent to a special address for ITIN generation. For most countries, it may be hard to get the needed documents. (For Canada, it was uber easy, and this is how my husband did his taxes while I was still in Canada, waiting for my interview). Please view the instructions for the W7 form on the IRS website to see what documents will be needed.

For more information, please read this page on IRS's website here [32].

 

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Looks like my husband will need to refile his taxes as married!!!! so glad I saw this >_<

Yep me too! I noticed the same, no amendments made on his tax return.

[larnar1309 101]

Feel like even though I check this site and all my visa stuff daily for what feels like forever now - i am STILL finding new things every day  

They don't half make you work for this!!! 

[RudelCraig 12]

48 minutes ago, larnar1309 said:

Thank you for the advice. Because we lived together in Japan for several years the last one would not be recent at all. However as an American Citizen, he still had to file taxes from Japan so I think having the last 3 years of Tax IRS transcripts would probably be better for us than an old W-2? 

Did you also file IRS transcripts?

 

And regarding the AOS info above - I think there was some confusion. There is an AOS meaning "affidavit of support" for i-130 CR1 visa applications which is what I meant to refer to!  

No worries- it's all new to me! I'm reading up as I go along, finding my way.

 

I'm sure if he filed his taxes for the US even from Japan, it'll be accepted. Perhaps have him phone the IRS? I'd think have as much documentation you could find.

 

We only sent hubby's 1040 tax return with the I-130. Couldn't find the W-2 in time. I'm new to the terms still - what is the IRS Transcripts? Is it the same as the returns?

 

Ah yes - I refer to the aos (affidavit of support) as being the I-864 form. Less confusing this way. 

 

Please keep in mind I am not an immigration lawyer and only know what I have read up so far. Do not take my word for it - find out all you can too!

[RudelCraig 12]

6 minutes ago, larnar1309 said:

Feel like even though I check this site and all my visa stuff daily for what feels like forever now - i am STILL finding new things every day  

They don't half make you work for this!!! 

Precisely! I am still reading through uscis and nvc even though I have read and read and read again!

 

So this new info about the tax return will be sent to hubby asap!

 

[larnar1309 101]

3 minutes ago, RudelCraig said:

Precisely! I am still reading through uscis and nvc even though I have read and read and read again!

 

So this new info about the tax return will be sent to hubby asap!

 

Yes exactly! I feel so sorry for him because I am 8 hours ahead i just email him all this stuff when I see it... He must be praying for the day he doesn't wake up to emails from me about NVC lol!! 

[RudelCraig 12]

5 minutes ago, larnar1309 said:

Yes exactly! I feel so sorry for him because I am 8 hours ahead i just email him all this stuff when I see it... He must be praying for the day he doesn't wake up to emails from me about NVC lol!! 

LOL!!!!!!!!! I agree! Laughed so much right now. I am also 8 hours ahead of my husband. He told me a few days ago I navigated uscis so well and all he did was make things more confusing.

 

So we're on the same time zone - I am in Johannesburg, South Africa.

[JessieABC 159]

16 minutes ago, RudelCraig said:

No worries- it's all new to me! I'm reading up as I go along, finding my way.

 

I'm sure if he filed his taxes for the US even from Japan, it'll be accepted. Perhaps have him phone the IRS? I'd think have as much documentation you could find.

 

We only sent hubby's 1040 tax return with the I-130. Couldn't find the W-2 in time. I'm new to the terms still - what is the IRS Transcripts? Is it the same as the returns?

 

Ah yes - I refer to the aos (affidavit of support) as being the I-864 form. Less confusing this way. 

 

Please keep in mind I am not an immigration lawyer and only know what I have read up so far. Do not take my word for it - find out all you can too!

1040s will require an accompanying w2 and any 1099s. Without, you will most likely get a checklist.

 

An IRS tax transcript is the official record on file for the federa taxes filed by the individual and which you can request for free from this IRS. 1040s are only what you filed and does not prove income but a tax transcript would be accepted since its an official record issued by the IRS.

[larnar1309 101]

31 minutes ago, RudelCraig said:

LOL!!!!!!!!! I agree! Laughed so much right now. I am also 8 hours ahead of my husband. He told me a few days ago I navigated uscis so well and all he did was make things more confusing.

 

So we're on the same time zone - I am in Johannesburg, South Africa.

HAHAHA!! It's so comforting having someone on the same page isn't it?  yeah my husbands exactly the same. Even though I have begun signing my morning emails to him as 'from annoying wife' I think he is very appreciative haha!! 

Oh no way! I'm in the UK I didn't realize it could be the same as SA?! 

[RudelCraig 12]

2 minutes ago, larnar1309 said:

HAHAHA!! It's so comforting having someone on the same page isn't it?  yeah my husbands exactly the same. Even though I have begun signing my morning emails to him as 'from annoying wife' I think he is very appreciative haha!! 

Oh no way! I'm in the UK I didn't realize it could be the same as SA?! 

Very comforting though. Nice to meet you!

 

Yep SA has only 1 time zone but we're on the same time as the UK. But I think there might be an hour difference?

 

 

[larnar1309 101]

ok so bad news.....

 

My husband just called up the IRS place and spoke about his transcript. He filed as SINGLE because when he tried to file as married it asked for my social security number and of course I do not yet have one.

 

Long story short - he spoke to someone on the phone and they provided him with papers that he needs to mail to correct the single to married AND THIS CAN TAKE FROM 6 WEEKS TO 3 MONTHS!!!! omg  I feel like crying right now....

 

Has anyone had this situation before?! Is there any way we can pay or request for this to happen faster?!!

 

Is it really that much of a red flag if he provides his tax transcripts for the past 3 years as single?? we were married 30 dec 2016.. if it has been a few days later this would not be an issue... AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! 

 

losing my mind!

 

@RudelCraig so lovely to meet you too! I will reply about our things in PM so as not to go off track in this topic! <3