I-130 proof of relationship (I've lived in B's country since 2017)

[senghor 0]

Hi,

Just starting out on this journey. My husband and I have been married for over 2 years. I have lived in his home country of Senegal for 3 years. We have been "together" for 4 years, so that first year was a single visit + mostly distance.

 

Leases

I started out renting my own places in Senegal, then we moved in together the day after our wedding in 2018. The apartment was in my name until a couple of months ago, when I put it in both of our names. I included this new joint lease in the packet. Question: Should I also include my old leases proving I've lived here? One issue is that the very first apartment in 2017 had no lease, just the ones after, so there's a gap.  But I have photo to prove I was here.

 

Plane tickets

Since I've been living here, my plane tickets have just been to visit the U.S. for up to 1 month, then fly back to Senegal. Everyone says plane tickets help with proof - I didn't keep any, but my mother may have old emails of flight confirmations and informal itineraries surrounding my visits TO the US and back. Question: Do I need to include all this, since I have my leases and photos?

 

Messages/Call Logs

We lost all our messages from June 2016 until July 2018 because we were using the app IMO and we both changed phone and lost the acct info..... I arrived in Senegal in 2017, so it's really 2016-2018 that was lost, which is 2 years, 1 of which was distance. That's a long time. Question: Is this a massive problem? We have plenty of photos from 2017 on... but not that year of distance...

 

Thank you for your help!

-A&C

 

 

[Duke & Marie 1,389]

Since your already living together plane tickets and phone records aren’t really applicable.. 

 

after 3 years you should have plenty... consider the below as a starting point :

-  your taxes..? Filing as married for 3 years

- his taxes

- utility bills in both names

- banking? Shared accounts/credit cards etc

- insurances e.g. join health care, life, vehicle

- vehicles registered in both names

- you should have heaps of photos together and of you with his family

 

[senghor 0]

Thanks D&M!! Some info:

 

We are living a very average West African lifestyle, meaning no bank accounts, no one takes cards (cash only everywhere), no insurance until recently, no car, utilities are dealt with informally, etc.

 

BUT

- My husband got a job at the airport and I have been added to his heath insurance  Do we need to include his work contract?

- We just bought a car and the papers haven't been signed over yet, so I'll be sure to add my name

- I just remembered I have a residence card (under the category "housewife" because I'm self-employed and have no contract...), so I'll add that.

 

We have lots of photos, just some blank periods before the wedding due to tech failures and lack of formal lease on my part. Should I include my past leases?

[TVC 244]

Include as much stuff as you can. No one gets denied for having too much proof.

[JeanneAdil 6,498]

your passport will have stamps showing entrance into Senegal and the US (copy those pages)  / itineary and confirmation of tickets do not show you actually traveled

marriage certificate is the most powerful

you say residency card saying housewife/ he should have one too with same address

you are buying a car so a driving licence has an address????? 

and of course ,  the past leases (if in both names)

your US tax returns as you need to do them even when out of the US ( him as spouse with the W7 form for ITIN per IRS instuctions   https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/nonresident-alien-spouse

with form 2555 for income exclusion  (The expatriate Foreign Earned Income Exclusion can only be claimed if you file your tax return on a timely basis. It is not automatic if you fail to file and can even be lost according to the following page for Senegal)    https://www.taxesforexpats.com/senegal/us-tax-preparation-in-senegal.html

 

will you be returning soon to the US to establish your residency here?

[Duke & Marie 1,389]

1 hour ago, senghor said:

Thanks D&M!! Some info:

 

We are living a very average West African lifestyle, meaning no bank accounts, no one takes cards (cash only everywhere), no insurance until recently, no car, utilities are dealt with informally, etc.

 

BUT

- My husband got a job at the airport and I have been added to his heath insurance  Do we need to include his work contract?

- We just bought a car and the papers haven't been signed over yet, so I'll be sure to add my name

- I just remembered I have a residence card (under the category "housewife" because I'm self-employed and have no contract...), so I'll add that.

 

We have lots of photos, just some blank periods before the wedding due to tech failures and lack of formal lease on my part. Should I include my past leases?

Include anything and everything that can link you together.. pre-wedding is nice, post wedding is the priority since you’ve been together so long.. so anything with both your names on.. you can even get affidavits of support from his family members with them explaining in their own words when they became aware of your relationship and how they consider y’all as part of the family etc.. 

 

since Africa a little backward in way of utilities etc, your and his taxes will be a massive bonus... both of you filing as married! 

 

Wills are an easy one! Both write one and get them formalised with each of you as beneficiary..

Edited May 17, 2020 by Duke & Marie

[pushbrk 12,881]

Just the information in your passport indicating you entered and remained in the same country is the strongest evidence you have.  If you have other documentation that indicates you are authorized to actually reside there, use that too.  Otherwise, just use copies of the applicable pages of your passport.

[senghor 0]

Thank you everyone! I did not think of passport pages. Will add my tax returns (Senegal doesn't do tax, so none for him). Will add an affidavit from my oldest sister-in-law (literacy is low among his other family members). Will think about a living will.

 

His ID card, driver's licence, and passport all have his mother's address on it, as they were created before we moved in together (sons and daughters live with their mothers until marriage). Will see if it's changeable in the next few months.