When To Start The Visa Process?

[pushbrk 13,059]

1 hour ago, Tuanadaisy said:

Hi. Are you living there/working there and if so how long have you been living there? There are only certain circumstances in which they will allow for you to file when living abroad. I.E. you work for a US based company abroad, etc. Because part of your petition for your spouse requires information such as financials from a job or other source of income, depending upon your status you may or may not be able to file while or from abroad. 
 

The above is incorrect.  You are absolutely allowed to file a petition no matter WHERE you live.  No financial information is required at the petition stage.  Red above is just plain "wrong".

[carpfan 37]

Start immediately. I began in November 2018 when living in Singapore and am still waiting for my wife to have her interview scheduled after finally clearing NVC stage in May. I never imagined it would take this long. Get on the clock as soon as possible, do not wait until you have concrete plans to move back. You will have ample time to figure that all out. 

[kris&me 572]

just make sure you have filed US tax returns and can prove you will have the necessary income to support the immigrant with 125% of poverty guideline income requirements

[OrihimeandIchigo 216]

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Edited June 22, 2020 by OrihimeandIchigo

[Lucky2Lucky 2,526]

13 hours ago, D2345 said:

Hi all,

 

I'm an expat staying overseas in Indonesia with my wife at the moment.

 

I would like to apply for her spouse visa so she can come to the US with me, but we are not in a big rush at all since we have things to take care of here in Indo before leaving.

 

So here's my first question. If we want to ENTER the US in August or September 2021 (but definitely NO earlier than that), then what is a good month to start the application process and get the ball rolling? Most likely you won't be able to enter the US by then; as long as you can afford it apply now.

 

My second question is, will I run into any hurdles doing the entire visa process while I'm overseas? And are there any new hurdles at the moment due to the pandemic? Yes. Massive delays due to COVID. Regarding you living abroad review the requirements for sponsorship and see if you meet if not you will need a joint sponsor. If your current income will not continue in the US you may need a joint sponsor; review requirements. 

 

Thanks

 

[DGF 730]

Timelines change rapidly in this process so all that anyone can give you is an educated guess. With the current state of things, it's likely that you would have had to file months ago for an August/September 2021 move. Your next best option is to file ASAP. If things do speed up the visa is valid for approximately 6 months once it is issued so that gives some wiggle room in terms of timing a move.

 

 

[Tuanadaisy 3]

Please see attached:

 

[JFH 12,191]

40 minutes ago, Tuanadaisy said:

Please see attached:

 

Huge difference between “filing overseas” and “mailing from overseas”. Anyone can mail from overseas. USCIS does not care where you mail it from. Those residing overseas must mail to Dallas but where they mail from is irrelevant. 
 

Filing overseas is where the I-130 is adjudicated by a USCIS overseas field office. That happens as good as never now. It used to be possible for USCs residing overseas in locations that had overseas field offices such as London or Bangkok, but now it’s only possible in extremely rare humanitarian cases.

[WEDO 5]

12 hours ago, pushbrk said:

The above is incorrect.  You are absolutely allowed to file a petition no matter WHERE you live.  No financial information is required at the petition stage.  Red above is just plain "wrong".

I'm also living aboard with my wife and daughter and just filed the I 130 to bring my wife to the USA. I'm retired and have enough income from my pension to qualify financially. But I do not work in the USA anymore nor do I currently own any property there. I listed my mother's home which is in a trust of which I am the beneficiary as the place where we will live in the USA. 

Is that enough to prove intent to domicile in the USA or at some point should I move back to the USA before my wife's interview and get a job in the USA as well. 

[pushbrk 13,059]

11 minutes ago, WEDO said:

I'm also living aboard with my wife and daughter and just filed the I 130 to bring my wife to the USA. I'm retired and have enough income from my pension to qualify financially. But I do not work in the USA anymore nor do I currently own any property there. I listed my mother's home which is in a trust of which I am the beneficiary as the place where we will live in the USA. 

Is that enough to prove intent to domicile in the USA or at some point should I move back to the USA before my wife's interview and get a job in the USA as well. 

If you read and understood what I already wrote on the subject, you would know my answer.  Yes, it is more than enough.

[OrihimeandIchigo 216]

4 hours ago, WEDO said:

I'm also living aboard with my wife and daughter and just filed the I 130 to bring my wife to the USA. I'm retired and have enough income from my pension to qualify financially. But I do not work in the USA anymore nor do I currently own any property there. I listed my mother's home which is in a trust of which I am the beneficiary as the place where we will live in the USA. 

Is that enough to prove intent to domicile in the USA or at some point should I move back to the USA before my wife's interview and get a job in the USA as well. 

 

4 hours ago, pushbrk said:

If you read and understood what I already wrote on the subject, you would know my answer.  Yes, it is more than enough.

 acceptable proof of domicile according to USCIS: https://www.uscis.gov/i-864

 

"Item Number 5. Country of Domicile. Provide the name of the country where you maintain your principal residence and where you plan to reside for the foreseeable future. If your mailing address and/or place of residence is not in the United States, but your country of domicile is the United States, you must attach a typed or printed explanation and documentary evidence indicating how you meet the domicile requirement. If you are not currently living in the
United States, you may meet the domicile requirement if you can submit evidence to establish that any of the following conditions apply.

1. You are employed by a certain organization. Some individuals employed overseas are automatically considered to be domiciled in the United States because of the nature of their employment... (This goes on to list examples.)
2. You are living abroad temporarily. If you are not currently living in the United States, you must show that your trip abroad is temporary and that you have maintained your domicile in the United States. You can show this by providing proof of your voting record in the United States, proof of paying U.S. state or local taxes, proof of having property in the United States, proof of maintaining bank or investment accounts in the United States, or proof of having a permanent mailing address in the United States. Other proof could be evidence that you are a student studying abroad or that a foreign government has authorized a temporary stay.
3. You intend in good faith to reestablish your domicile in the United States no later than the date of the intending immigrant’s admission or adjustment of status. You must submit proof that you have taken concrete steps to establish you will be domiciled in the United States at a time no later than the date of the intending immigrant’s admission or adjustment of status. Concrete steps might include accepting a job in the United States, signing a lease
   or purchasing a residence in the United States, or registering children in U.S. schools. Attach proof of the steps you have taken to establish domicile as previously described.

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/step-1-submit-a-petition/i-864-affidavit-faqs.html#aos18

 

What does domicile mean?

Domicile is the place where a sponsor has his or her principal “residence” with the intention to maintain that residence for the foreseeable future.  To qualify as a financial sponsor, a petitioner must be domiciled in any of the States of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any territory or possession of the United States.  A lawful permanent resident (LPR) sponsor also must maintain his or her LPR status.

A sponsor who is not currently living in the United States may meet the domicile requirement if he or she can submit evidence to establish that any of the following conditions apply:

•             The sponsor is employed by certain organizations as defined below.

•             The sponsor is living abroad temporarily and has maintained his or her domicile in the United States.

•             The sponsor intends in good faith to establish his or her domicile in the United States no later than the date of the intending immigrant’s admission to the United States.

If not submitted to NVC along with the Affidavit of Support form, the petitioner will need to provide the visa applicant with evidence of his or her domicile. The visa applicant will need to bring that evidence to the visa interview for the consular officer to review.

Can a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (LPR) petitioner who is not domiciled (living) in the United States be a financial sponsor?

No, if a petitioner cannot satisfy the domicile requirement, the petitioner fails to qualify as a sponsor for the purposes of submitting Form I-864.

If the petitioner does not have a domicile in the United States, can a joint sponsor file an I-864?

No, the petitioner must meet all the requirements to be a sponsor (age, domicile and citizenship), except those related to income, before there can be a joint sponsor.

 

Other links:

 

 

 

Great Examples: 

What if I (the petitioner) live with my spouse in their foreign country? Do I need to include anything in either package?

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 principle 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: ______________________

NAME

Edited June 23, 2020 by OrihimeandIchigo

[D2345 2]

23 hours ago, OrihimeandIchigo said:

Also if by chance your I-130 petition gets approved way faster than expected and your ahead of schedule you can keep it sitting at the NVC center for at most a year until your ready to submit more paperwork. 

If true, that would be perfect for my situation, because like I said we are not in a big hurry to get back to the US. Being approved too early would be our only concern right now.

 

Can anyone confirm the above? I've searched that topic on Google but never heard the above before.

 

I understand the visa itself lasts 6 months after it's granted, so that does give some wiggle room like someone said.

 

 

19 hours ago, Tuanadaisy said:

Hi. Are you living there/working there and if so how long have you been living there? There are only certain circumstances in which they will allow for you to file when living abroad. I.E. you work for a US based company abroad, etc. Because part of your petition for your spouse requires information such as financials from a job or other source of income, depending upon your status you may or may not be able to file while or from abroad. 
 

Here is a resource I found on the subject:

https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/strategies-applying-marriage-based-visa-if-couple-lives-abroad.html
 

However to answer your question, if you meet the requirements which will allow you to file your petition abroad, the standard timeline from receipt of your initial filing packet to receipt of the documents necessary for your spouse to enter the US can take usually 8-14 months. However considering a potential backlog due to Covid-19 and if/when embassies re-open to conduct interviews and their potential backlogs; I would consider filing sooner than later. 
 

In my case, from the date I filed my husband’s petition until he received his documents to enter the US was about 17 months. 

 

17 hours ago, pushbrk said:

The above is incorrect.  You are absolutely allowed to file a petition no matter WHERE you live.  No financial information is required at the petition stage.  Red above is just plain "wrong".

pushbrk, that was my understanding as well. But I can see how my original post may have been confusing.

 

So just to clarify, my home and employment are still technically in the US. I'm a US citizen with a US address, US employment, sufficient income, etc.

 

I am only overseas temporarily to be with my wife, and would prefer to stay here in Indonesia with her while going through the whole IR-1 immigration process if possible.

 

Will I run into any difficulties like that, and what is the best way for me to proceed? I understand Form I-130 can be filed online, for starters. Anything else that might be an issue?

 

When I search Google for answers to this question, it always brings up pages talking about applying while living overseas (i.e. foreign employment/residence instead of US employment/residence), which is not my same situation.

 

Thanks

[geowrian 22,338]

20 minutes ago, D2345 said:

If true, that would be perfect for my situation, because like I said we are not in a big hurry to get back to the US. Being approved too early would be our only concern right now.

 

Can anyone confirm the above? I've searched that topic on Google but never heard the above before.

 

I understand the visa itself lasts 6 months after it's granted, so that does give some wiggle room like someone said.

Yes, the petition can sit at NVC for an extended period of time. I-130s do not expire and remains valid so long as the relationship remains valid(i.e. you remain in the same marriage).

Eventually NVC would send it to the NRC for storage, but that's beyond your stated timeline even if you took no action after petition approval at all.

 

Quote

So just to clarify, my home and employment are still technically in the US. I'm a US citizen with a US address, US employment, sufficient income, etc.

 

I am only overseas temporarily to be with my wife, and would prefer to stay here in Indonesia with her while going through the whole IR-1 immigration process if possible.

 

Will I run into any difficulties like that, and what is the best way for me to proceed? I understand Form I-130 can be filed online, for starters. Anything else that might be an issue?

 

When I search Google for answers to this question, it always brings up pages talking about applying while living overseas (i.e. foreign employment/residence instead of US employment/residence), which is not my same situation.

Domicile would be your actual abode without regard to intent (where you actually live). But also as noted above, showing intent to establish domicile in the US in your set of circumstances should not be an issue.

Had you been going through Montreal, or possibly if you lived abroad most of your life, they would be more concerned about domicile with a spouse.

 

To be clear - will the income you are earning right now (or more precisely, that you anticipate will be earning when you proceed at NVC) continue from the same source upon return to the US? If so, it counts. If not, you need to qualify via assets, find a joint sponsor, or find an income source that does (typically via moving back to the US to get a job beforehand).

Either way, be aware of the financial requirements but they won't even come into play until you are ready to proceed through NVC.

 

Yes, the I-130 can be filed online. Or it can be printed and mailed. It all goes the same process, minus the mailing & intake time (days/weeks).

You follow the same process as a petitioner living in the US.

 

Edited June 23, 2020 by geowrian

[OrihimeandIchigo 216]

15 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Yes, the petition can sit at NVC for an extended period of time. I-130s do not expire and remains valid so long as the relationship remains valid(i.e. you remain in the same marriage).

Eventually NVC would send it to the NRC for storage, but that's beyond your stated timeline even if you took no action after petition approval at all.

 

Domicile would be your actual abode without regard to intent (where you actually live). But also as noted above, showing intent to establish domicile in the US in your set of circumstances should not be an issue.

Had you been going through Montreal, or possibly if you lived abroad most of your life, they would be more concerned about domicile with a spouse.

 

To be clear - will the income you are earning right now (or more precisely, that you anticipate will be earning when you proceed at NVC) continue from the same source upon return to the US? If so, it counts. If not, you need to qualify via assets, find a joint sponsor, or find an income source that does (typically via moving back to the US to get a job beforehand).

Either way, be aware of the financial requirements but they won't even come into play until you are ready to proceed through NVC.

 

Yes, the I-130 can be filed online. Or it can be printed and mailed. It all goes the same process, minus the mailing & intake time (days/weeks).

You follow the same process as a petitioner living in the US.

 

Like a boss 😎 

[D2345 2]

1 hour ago, geowrian said:

Domicile would be your actual abode without regard to intent (where you actually live). But also as noted above, showing intent to establish domicile in the US in your set of circumstances should not be an issue.

The second sentence is confusing me. I need to show intent to establish domicile in the US when I already live and work there?

 

I'm at the start of the I-130 form and it's already asking for my mailing address and whether I live at my mailing address.

 

I would have assumed the answer to both of those questions is my US address, because that's my permanent address. Correct? My overseas address is just a small hotel we're staying in temporarily.

 

The section quoted earlier by OrihimeandIchigo says one example of showing intent to establish domicile in the US is accepting a job there. Uhh. I already have a job there. That whole instruction sounds irrelevant to my situation, no?

 

Thanks

Edited June 23, 2020 by D2345