I-864 Domicile Requirements

[Leo O 2]

Hello

 

I am an American citizen CURRENTLY living in Germany with my German wife (we were married earlier this year in Germany) and we have undergone the Green Card process  (DCF) for her so we can move to the US.

 

I have begun filing form I-864 (Affidavit of Support) and have seen that one of the main requirements is that I must be Domiciled in the USA. As I had mentioned I am currently living in Germany and have been here for 8 months. Additionally, from January 2016 until August 2018 I was abroad in Australia and New Zealand on a temporary work visa.

 

How can I show proof that I am Domiciled in the US? All I have at the moment is my US passport and social security number, my US bank account that I've had since 2015 (I receive monthly bank statements that show my address in the US, I do not own the home, but the home of my parents where I lived before leaving), and an address (my parents home). Would this be enough or would I need additional evidence to prove that I am Domiciled in the US? Would getting letters from my employer and landlord saying that we are only staying in Germany until my wife's green card is granted be of any help?

 

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

[payxibka 10,045]

Are you current on your tax filings?

[Leo O 2]

20 minutes ago, payxibka said:

Are you current on your tax filings?

yes, so I have filed my taxes for 2016 and 2017 (the addresses provided were foreign addresses as I was working abroad as well during those years). I didn't file taxes for 2018 however as my income was very low (around $6000). But generally speaking I am up to date on my taxes.

[Nitas_man 3,100]

2 hours ago, Leo O said:

Hello

 

I am an American citizen CURRENTLY living in Germany with my German wife (we were married earlier this year in Germany) and we have undergone the Green Card process  (DCF) for her so we can move to the US.

 

I have begun filing form I-864 (Affidavit of Support) and have seen that one of the main requirements is that I must be Domiciled in the USA. As I had mentioned I am currently living in Germany and have been here for 8 months. Additionally, from January 2016 until August 2018 I was abroad in Australia and New Zealand on a temporary work visa.

 

How can I show proof that I am Domiciled in the US? All I have at the moment is my US passport and social security number, my US bank account that I've had since 2015 (I receive monthly bank statements that show my address in the US, I do not own the home, but the home of my parents where I lived before leaving), and an address (my parents home). Would this be enough or would I need additional evidence to prove that I am Domiciled in the US? Would getting letters from my employer and landlord saying that we are only staying in Germany until my wife's green card is granted be of any help?

 

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

Where does it say you have to be domiciled in the US?  I used my parents address but we clearly lived overseas when we filed

[millefleur 5,046]

6 hours ago, Leo O said:

How can I show proof that I am Domiciled in the US? All I have at the moment is my US passport and social security number, my US bank account that I've had since 2015 (I receive monthly bank statements that show my address in the US, I do not own the home, but the home of my parents where I lived before leaving), and an address (my parents home). Would this be enough or would I need additional evidence to prove that I am Domiciled in the US? Would getting letters from my employer and landlord saying that we are only staying in Germany until my wife's green card is granted be of any help?

You don't have to show proof that you are currently domiciled in the US, merely you must show that you intend to re-establish domicile there.

 

Have your parents write up a letter saying you will stay with them, show your bank statements/credit cards/any mail that shows you've kept up your US address, driver's license or ID card, also include a cover letter stating your intent to re-establish domicile in the US (hence why your spouse also needs to get a visa and com with you).

 

You can also evidence that you are leaving Germany. When I did DCF, I got a letter of resignation from the employer abroad, I switched my visa from work visa to private visa (so basically I lost official "residency" abroad) and I showed them this as proof of my intention to leave and go back to the States and again, just include info in your cover letter about when your last day in Germany will be and your tentative dates to relocate back to the US will be. 

Edited October 5, 2019 by millefleur

[nkk0 3]

My wife and I are in a similar situation, she's the US citizen and has been living abroad since early 2017. 

We are still waiting for our NOA2 but she has already been looking for jobs and interviewing in the US, she has renewed her drivers license the last time we were in the US and we plan on getting an apartment lease written up by her sister, which is where we'll be staying for the first couple of months after moving to the US. We plan to show them documentation of all of that when we file the I-864.

[Elisaz.91 0]

We were in the exact same situation. 

My husband, american, domiciled in germany for 7 months; me, italian, domiciled in Germany. We filed everything and when it came to 864 my husband was already back in the States. We are right now waiting to receive the email to schedule the interview, but I am pretty confident that everything should be fine since, exactly as you: 1)he had an address there (parents) 2)he filed taxes regularly 3)he was seeking job - and then found one, but again, seeking is enough 4)he had his bank account there (although he didn't need to prove it, i mean, there is nothing on 864 that allows you to state that if i remember correctly). The point, as other people already made clear, is showing them that you still have solid bounds to the US. Mainly, being ok with filing taxes [that usually is the biggest problem, for what i have read until now on visajourney]. So you're all good!

[Fan_Faniel 3]

Similar situation here and this question actually came up in my visa interview 2 weeks ago. Explaining that we are intending to move back to the US once I get my visa helped but the consular officer wanted to know if my wife is still registered to vote and has a driver's license from her home state. 

I also learned that the instructions for Form I-864 state that a written explanation that you're intending to re-establish domicile in the US should be provided in that case. 

Since we didn't have any problems with this, I wouldn't worry too much 😊

[databit 328]

On 10/4/2019 at 4:13 PM, Leo O said:

I didn't file taxes for 2018 however as my income was very low (around $6000). But generally speaking I am up to date on my taxes.

You were not required, but you are still allowed to file! Provides another document showing domicile.