Sponsor lost his job, seeking advice

[NinaLu 38]

My AOS has been pending since July 2019. We received an RFE for our marriage certificate (I assume they lost the one we sent initially) and they got it on October 18. Since then, it's been silent and that was completely within expectations.

 

The problem occurs here. This week, my husband got laid off from his job of 11 years. It absolutely blindsided us and it ruined a couple plans, putting us in unsteady territory. I am sure this is not just our situation, as the pandemic hit hard, but we would like to understand what comes next.

 

We will not have a joint sponsor so that is not a route that we can take. With that in mind, I would like to understand a couple things:

 

1. If he were to find another job in the next month that pays enough to put us over the threshold of 125% of the poverty line, would we still be ok as long as we present to the interview with an updated affidavit of support or is the case compromised due to the gap in employment?

 

2. Although highly unlikely, if we get scheduled to an interview too quickly for our situation to stabilize, what are the steps we need to take? Show up to the interview anyway? Withdraw the petition and reapply once everything is more stable? 

 

3. Would not having health insurance automatically cause our case to be denied even if we meet the income requirement?

 

Thank you for taking your time to read and respond to this, I really appreciate it. The stress is really high but that is just generally the state of the world at the moment so I hope everyone hangs in there. 

[geowrian 22,337]

Sorry to hear about his job loss.

 

First, the existing I-864 remain valid. At the same time, if the IO learns of a job loss, expect them to request a new one. The best thing to do is have a new I-864 prepared in case they do ask for it.

 

1) A new job would qualify for consideration. No idea if the IO will want to see a specific length of time at the job, but I would suspect they are aware of the issues nationally with COVID-19 and won't be too strict on the length of time - just that it's a reliable job making "sufficient" income (not just above the minimum).

 

2) If you don't show up at the interview, expect a denial. If you show up and they want a new I-864 and you don't have a suitable one, expect an RFE. Failure to respond - or responding insufficiently - to the RFE would result in a denial.

NOTE: A denied I-485 isn't the end of the world...as the spouse of a USC, you could refile. The overstay is not an issue for AOS purposes in your case. Only if they sent an NTA to start removal proceedings would it become more complicated, and even that has options. But this all relies on having/finding a suitable sponsor.

 

3) It is not a sole cause for denial, although it is a negative factor in the public charge determination. It is highly, highly suggested to get covered ASAP, especially during a pandemic.

[NinaLu 38]

8 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Sorry to hear about his job loss.

 

First, the existing I-864 remain valid. At the same time, if the IO learns of a job loss, expect them to request a new one. The best thing to do is have a new I-864 prepared in case they do ask for it.

 

1) A new job would qualify for consideration. No idea if the IO will want to see a specific length of time at the job, but I would suspect they are aware of the issues nationally with COVID-19 and won't be too strict on the length of time - just that it's a reliable job making "sufficient" income (not just above the minimum).

 

2) If you don't show up at the interview, expect a denial. If you show up and they want a new I-864 and you don't have a suitable one, expect an RFE. Failure to respond - or responding insufficiently - to the RFE would result in a denial.

NOTE: A denied I-485 isn't the end of the world...as the spouse of a USC, you could refile. The overstay is not an issue for AOS purposes in your case. Only if they sent an NTA to start removal proceedings would it become more complicated, and even that has options. But this all relies on having/finding a suitable sponsor.

 

3) It is not a sole cause for denial, although it is a negative factor in the public charge determination. It is highly, highly suggested to get covered ASAP, especially during a pandemic.

Thank you for your prompt reply, I definitely have a better idea of what to expect. 

 

We have yet to look into purchasing health insurance. Everything went down only two days ago without warning and we are still trying to sort it out. I've been trying to do my part and get myself informed as much as possible but there is still a lot for us to figure out.

[geowrian 22,337]

9 minutes ago, NinaLu said:

Thank you for your prompt reply, I definitely have a better idea of what to expect. 

 

We have yet to look into purchasing health insurance. Everything went down only two days ago without warning and we are still trying to sort it out. I've been trying to do my part and get myself informed as much as possible but there is still a lot for us to figure out.

COBRA would allow him to keep his current insurance, albeit at the full (not employer-contributed) cost.

The healthcare exchange for your state should allow enrollment due to a change in employment status. See https://healthcare.gov/

[NinaLu 38]

31 minutes ago, geowrian said:

COBRA would allow him to keep his current insurance, albeit at the full (not employer-contributed) cost.

The healthcare exchange for your state should allow enrollment due to a change in employment status. See https://healthcare.gov/

Thank you very much, you have given us a place to start. 

[Free Man 119]

Someone mentioned to me her wife got laid-off 5 days before their interview,  they prepared a joint sponsor and kept it just incase they ask. However,  they never told the officer that the wife got laid-off,  according to them a lawyer advised that the previous 864 is still valid as a the laid off occurred after USCIS accepted their forms. 

So the officer never asked and they also never disclose it ..They eventually got approved.

Am just sharing but am not saying its right or wrong.  

[NinaLu 38]

33 minutes ago, Ras Ous said:

Someone mentioned to me her wife got laid-off 5 days before their interview,  they prepared a joint sponsor and kept it just incase they ask. However,  they never told the officer that the wife got laid-off,  according to them a lawyer advised that the previous 864 is still valid as a the laid off occurred after USCIS accepted their forms. 

So the officer never asked and they also never disclose it ..They eventually got approved.

Am just sharing but am not saying its right or wrong.  

I did consider that as a technicality, however it sounds to me like it might end up in the misrepresentation territory. I am not sure and would certainly want others to comment on it, but it feels like playing with fire. 

[geowrian 22,337]

What is the misrepresentation?

 

If they ask, of course do not lie. But otherwise there's no misrepresentation of anything here.

[NinaLu 38]

47 minutes ago, geowrian said:

What is the misrepresentation?

 

If they ask, of course do not lie. But otherwise there's no misrepresentation of anything here.

Honestly? I am not sure. I am super paranoid and anxious about the whole thing and I just assumed it could cause troubles. Glad to know otherwise. I guess the whole mantra of "be truthful but do not volunteer" did not stick well enough.

[Boiler 45,516]

I wanted to switch to assets and IO decided just to ignore it and keep with the original paper work, less hassle presumably.

[SalishSea 17,829]

16 hours ago, geowrian said:

What is the misrepresentation?

 

If they ask, of course do not lie. But otherwise there's no misrepresentation of anything here.

And OP, expect them to ask at the interview.  Our AOS interview was January 30.  During the interview, the officer goes through all the submitted forms with you to note any changes.  In our case, since we had to wait 14 months for our interview, there were quite a few.

 

He updated it to reflect my husband's job, and confirmed that mine was the same.  I think with how thorough they are, it would be unlikely that it wouldn't come up.

[NinaLu 38]

17 hours ago, Jorgedig said:

And OP, expect them to ask at the interview.  Our AOS interview was January 30.  During the interview, the officer goes through all the submitted forms with you to note any changes.  In our case, since we had to wait 14 months for our interview, there were quite a few.

 

He updated it to reflect my husband's job, and confirmed that mine was the same.  I think with how thorough they are, it would be unlikely that it wouldn't come up.

Thank you for your input. I will definitely do my best to have updated documents on me in case they will be requested. Other than that, there is not much to do other than restart the process once everything is ok (if things go sour) so I will not expect anything.

 

I am very grateful to everyone in this thread.

Edited July 20, 2020 by NinaLu

[databit 328]

COBRA signup time now extended: 

 

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/07/20/892140500/rule-change-gives-laid-off-workers-more-time-to-sign-up-for-cobra-insurance