Filling out i-864

[MrCosgrove 6]

Hi,

 

my wife and I live overseas. My wife in the partitioner in my i-130 case. 

 

Now that the i-130 has been approved. its time to fill in the i-864.

 

From what I am reading , regardless of if my wife is able to sponsor me, she is required to fill in this form (I have another people who will be sponsoring for the purpose of i-864).

 

When filling out a form for her, one of the questions is Country of Domicile.

 

With us all living overseas, her current country of domicile would be Australia (where we are living) , but in order to fill out the form. she needs to be domicile USA. 

 

My understanding is that she can write down USA, if she, in good faith, intends to live in USA when I go there. Which obviously she will, but the question there is how does one prove that , aside from the obvious of us being married. We have not sold our house here yet, nor purchased plane tickets, opened bank accounts in usa etc. so technically aside from the "We are married" there is no proof of domicile USA.

 

Given that she will not be the actual sponsor, is it still correct that she must fill in this form?

 

if so, how to we prove Domicile USA in this scenario?

 

 

[Dashinka 24,768]

Yes, the spouse will always be the primary sponsor for a spouse based visa, so she has to fill out the I864 and you will need a separate I864 from your joint sponsor.  As to proving intent to establish domicile in the US, here are some ideas.  Additionally, do a search in the VJ search box regarding “re-establish domicile”, there are a lot of examples.

 

Good Luck!

 

https://citizenpath.com/faq/sample-declaration-reestablish-us-domicile/

Edited April 7, 2020 by Dashinka

[Crazy Cat 42,215]

3 hours ago, MrCosgrove said:

Hi,

 

my wife and I live overseas. My wife in the partitioner in my i-130 case. 

 

Now that the i-130 has been approved. its time to fill in the i-864.

 

From what I am reading , regardless of if my wife is able to sponsor me, she is required to fill in this form (I have another people who will be sponsoring for the purpose of i-864).

 

When filling out a form for her, one of the questions is Country of Domicile.

 

With us all living overseas, her current country of domicile would be Australia (where we are living) , but in order to fill out the form. she needs to be domicile USA. 

 

My understanding is that she can write down USA, if she, in good faith, intends to live in USA when I go there. Which obviously she will, but the question there is how does one prove that , aside from the obvious of us being married. We have not sold our house here yet, nor purchased plane tickets, opened bank accounts in usa etc. so technically aside from the "We are married" there is no proof of domicile USA.

 

Given that she will not be the actual sponsor, is it still correct that she must fill in this form?

 

if so, how to we prove Domicile USA in this scenario?

 

 

Also don't forget that she must be current on her US taxes.  She will have to submit most recent year taxes with the I-864 or she will have to explain why she was not required to file.......good luck.

Edited April 7, 2020 by Lucky Cat

[millefleur 5,047]

 

She can show "proof of intent to re-establish domicile" - she doesn't have to be currently domiciled in the US, just show that she intends to re-establish herself there. That could involve any number of evidence, including her plans to abandon her residency status abroad (assuming she isn't a dual citizen there).

[OrihimeandIchigo 216]

On 4/8/2020 at 7:25 AM, millefleur said:

 

She can show "proof of intent to re-establish domicile" - she doesn't have to be currently domiciled in the US, just show that she intends to re-establish herself there. That could involve any number of evidence, including her plans to abandon her residency status abroad (assuming she isn't a dual citizen there).

I agree with @millefleur it sounds whats most important is she should document how she intends to re-establish herself in the USA. On this guide it advises making a cover letter which I've heard many do with it stating all she has done to keep domicile and intends to establish domicile and it is also helpful as it gives good tips and ideas for domicile examples:

 but don't follow this guide though because it is VERY outdated from YEARS ago and doesn't really apply now. 

 

Domicile

Please note, if the petitioner lives with the beneficiary abroad, you'll need to provide proof of US domicile with the AOS package, as well as bring it with you to the interview. Please read the I-864 instructions (pages 3 and 4) for information about it. This is NOT needed if the petitioner is living in the US. Here is a sample cover letter to include in the package (it lists MANY possible documents, some may not be applicable, of course, to prove that you have, or will re-establish, domicile in the US):

NAME

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER

Form I-864

Part 4, Question 5: Country of Domicile

I, XXXX, am currently residing in FOREIGN COUNTRY with my spouse, SPOUSE'S NAME. Below you will find a list of attached documents to show that my principal residence is in the US and the steps that I have taken to return to the US with my family.

Steps I have taken to maintain US Domicile:

• Maintained my XXXX voter registration

• Maintained my XXXX credit card registered in the US with a US PO box

• Maintained my bank account at the XXXX Credit Union

• Maintained my bank account at XXXX Bank

• Maintained my XXXX drivers license

• Maintained my US retirement fund through XXXX

• Maintained my US investment account with XXXX

• Maintained my US PO box

• Maintained licensure by the XXXX

• Maintained membership in the XXXX

• Maintained my automobile in care of my parents

Supporting Documents for the above steps I have taken:

• Voter registration card showing permanent US address

• XXXX credit card statement showing US billing address

• XXXX Credit Union statement showing permanent US address

• XXXX Bank statement showing permanent US address

• XXXX drivers license showing permanent US address

• Retirement fund statement showing permanent US address

• Mutual fund statement showing permanent US address

• XXXX license currently up to date

• Renewal of XXXX membership

• County tax bill showing I still own a vehicle

Steps I have taken to return to the US to take up residence:

• Made arrangements for us to have a house to live in

• Contacted schools for requirements of things to bring to register my children in school

• Contacted my auto insurance company to find out about re-instating my insurance on my car

• Contacted shipping company for estimate of costs to ship belongings

Supporting documents for the above steps I have taken:

• Lease agreement for our house

• Email from schools regarding registration requirements

• Email from my former auto insurance company regarding my inquiry

• Email from XXXX with estimate and correspondence regarding shipping our belongings

I declare that I intend in good faith to re-establish my domicile in the United States no later than the date of spouse's admission into the US.

 

I certify under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States that the statements in this letter and all accompanying evidence are true and correct.

Signature: ____________________________________________________ Date: ______________________

 

[MrCosgrove 6]

Thanks all for the replies. 

 

I guess the problem here is that we have been out of USA for 15 years, in that time things like bank accounts have lapsed. We dont have credit cards over there. 

 

Same thing with the drivers license, her license expired many years ago. 

 

We dont have a permanent address in USA. Our first stop is her mothers place and from there, get a place of our own, open bank accounts, renew licenses and all that. 

 

So as far as what steps she has taken, thats hard. We have been married 20+ years, its not like she is going to stay overseas while I go to the USA. 

 

WE certainly have many intentions as far as those things listed, but none that can be actioned on until we get over there. We arent going to rent a place over there without seeing it first. Cant open a bank account over there without going into the bank.  Same for buying a car and all that. These are all things we will be doing, but they are not things I can put down as things she has actioned. 

 

Probably the only thing we have done on that list would be to get shipping prices, looked into airline prices and all that side. 

 

So I am a it at a loss on what to do here. Clearly she is coming, it doesnt make sense for her not to, but as far as proof goes, thats another thing.

[OrihimeandIchigo 216]

1 hour ago, MrCosgrove said:

Thanks all for the replies. 

 

I guess the problem here is that we have been out of USA for 15 years, in that time things like bank accounts have lapsed. We dont have credit cards over there. 

 

Same thing with the drivers license, her license expired many years ago. 

 

We dont have a permanent address in USA. Our first stop is her mothers place and from there, get a place of our own, open bank accounts, renew licenses and all that. 

 

So as far as what steps she has taken, thats hard. We have been married 20+ years, its not like she is going to stay overseas while I go to the USA. 

 

WE certainly have many intentions as far as those things listed, but none that can be actioned on until we get over there. We arent going to rent a place over there without seeing it first. Cant open a bank account over there without going into the bank.  Same for buying a car and all that. These are all things we will be doing, but they are not things I can put down as things she has actioned. 

 

Probably the only thing we have done on that list would be to get shipping prices, looked into airline prices and all that side. 

 

So I am a it at a loss on what to do here. Clearly she is coming, it doesnt make sense for her not to, but as far as proof goes, thats another thing.

You can actually open bank accounts online with many different banks in the USA. Just research banks in the area you plan to live in and research for options via online they will just do a credit check but its a option online. 

 

Also what you can do is get whoever your staying with temporarily to sign a accommodation letter with you stating that they plan on hosting you both in the USA until you find a place of your own and have them sign and date it and notarized it and submit that to NVC. 

 

Also you can start shipping your belongings over now and pay for a storage unit in your name and pay for it in your name keep records and receipts for paying it so you can state that your housings your belongings in the USA and are paying bills in the US. And this will go towards proving you intend to re establish domicile in the US.

 

Also get quotes from moving companies to ship your belongings over to the US and keep the quote and emails to submit to NVC for domicile evidence.

 

Best of luck 

[OrihimeandIchigo 216]

Also she can submit her US taxes she's filed abroad and her voter registration with her voting while abroad.

[BunyanP 89]

The proof required to determine intent on domicile, would that be uploaded via other docs?

[OrihimeandIchigo 216]

7 minutes ago, BunyanP said:

The proof required to determine intent on domicile, would that be uploaded via other docs?

Yes it's under the section for the Petitioners Affidavit of Support in the "other documents" section. They'll be a section to upload Affidavit of Support and your Tax Documents and underneath that section is the "other documents" click the button for what type of document you are uploading and select U.S. citizen proof of domicile and then upload it. 

Edited April 14, 2020 by OrihimeandIchigo