K1 VISA for Fiancee with Loan Debt? (merged)

[RO_AH 1,659]

4 hours ago, Fiance1 said:

I know there's a requirement for income above the poverty line to qualify as the sponsor for my foreign fiance from the Philippines to join me in the USA, but I'm curious if there is also a minimum savings balance? My income is about $100,000, but my bank savings are only 4-digits at the moment due to some ongoing home renovations. Does it matter how much cash I have sitting in my checking account or do I only need the income and the funds to cover all the associated fees?

If you are planning to file yourself, you are going to need to do some research on your own as well. I think a lot of people here have shown that they are more than willing to help people along the path, give guidance and such. Have you ever seen or heard anywhere that your savings matter? There are guides on this forum that give you all of the requirements for a K-1. A simple search on the internet will also yield this information. Income is the only financial requirement. You submit tax transcripts to show income.

[IWander 589]

4 hours ago, Fiance1 said:

I know there's a requirement for income above the poverty line to qualify as the sponsor for my foreign fiance from the Philippines to join me in the USA, but I'm curious if there is also a minimum savings balance? My income is about $100,000, but my bank savings are only 4-digits at the moment due to some ongoing home renovations. Does it matter how much cash I have sitting in my checking account or do I only need the income and the funds to cover all the associated fees?

Doesn't matter the size of your savings if you have sufficient income.  

Edited November 9, 2022 by IWander

[Talako 785]

8 hours ago, Fiance1 said:

I know there's a requirement for income above the poverty line to qualify as the sponsor for my foreign fiance from the Philippines to join me in the USA, but I'm curious if there is also a minimum savings balance? My income is about $100,000, but my bank savings are only 4-digits at the moment due to some ongoing home renovations. Does it matter how much cash I have sitting in my checking account or do I only need the income and the funds to cover all the associated fees?

All you need is your tax transcripts from the IRS.  Pretty simple.  Cash does not matter.

[IWander 589]

2 hours ago, Talako said:

All you need is your tax transcripts from the IRS.  Pretty simple.  Cash does not matter.

And for Manila, sometimes not even that

[Fiance1 4]

Question regarding the I-129F form...

 

The form instructions say: "Item Numbers 13. - 20.b. Your Employment History. Provide the names and addresses of your employers, your occupations, and the dates of employment for the jobs you have held over the last five years." It isn't clear to me though if by "Full Name of Employer," they want the actual person's name who was my immediate boss (e.g., supervisor - John Black, manager - Patrick Floss, director - Brian Parker), or if they want the name of the company (e.g., General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Huntington Ingalls Industries, etc). Can anyone clarify what is needed here?

[Chancy 6,241]

8 minutes ago, Fiance1 said:

It isn't clear to me though if by "Full Name of Employer," they want the actual person's name who was my immediate boss (e.g., supervisor - John Black, manager - Patrick Floss, director - Brian Parker), or if they want the name of the company (e.g., General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Huntington Ingalls Industries, etc).

 

Enter the company name, not the staff name.

 

[Fiance1 4]

Should I staple any sheets, such as the 13 pages of the I-129F, together before mailing? Or does USCIS prefer to receive loose papers without staples?

[marriedtomrg 141]

1 hour ago, Fiance1 said:

Should I staple any sheets, such as the 13 pages of the I-129F, together before mailing? Or does USCIS prefer to receive loose papers without staples?

I did a quick search for you - there is a page in USCIS called Tips for Filing Forms by Mail (wasn't sure if sharing the link was allowed). Somewhere in there it says not to use staples, instead use heavy duty paper clips.

[Fiance1 4]

2 minutes ago, marriedtomrg said:

I did a quick search for you - there is a page in USCIS called Tips for Filing Forms by Mail (wasn't sure if sharing the link was allowed). Somewhere in there it says not to use staples, instead use heavy duty paper clips.

Perfect. Thank you. I've just been using the 14 page "Instructions for Petition for Alien Fiancé(e)" for guidance but it doesn't say anything about staples in there.

[marriedtomrg 141]

2 hours ago, Fiance1 said:

Perfect. Thank you. I've just been using the 14 page "Instructions for Petition for Alien Fiancé(e)" for guidance but it doesn't say anything about staples in there.

Early in our immigration journey, I used a LOT of paper clips, sticky notes and paper tabs to separate forms and identify which supporting documents were included. Used color ink to print descriptions on individual pages lol 

[top_secret 2,421]

5 hours ago, marriedtomrg said:

I did a quick search for you - there is a page in USCIS called Tips for Filing Forms by Mail (wasn't sure if sharing the link was allowed). Somewhere in there it says not to use staples, instead use heavy duty paper clips.

 

These days the first thing they will often do with a mailed paper packet is disassemble it and feed it through an industrial document scanner to upload it to their network before they shred everything.  Staples would just be a nuisance making disassembly and scanning of the packet more difficult.

[Jason and May 79]

On 11/6/2022 at 8:50 PM, Fiance1 said:

What's the latest on how long the entire process takes from start to finish? Last I heard everything was so backed up, most K1 VISAs are taking 2+ years. Is that only the case for filers from certain US states, or is it the case regardless of where the US Citizen filer is residing in the US? My fiancee seems convinced the process could be as short as 6 months. I'm skeptical though based on my Google search results...

If you create a timeline, the processing timeline VJ provides is based on the USCIS processing time estimate; inasmuch, it doesn't include the remainder of the process after USCIS approves the petition. You can look at the processing times tab, though, and look at K1 petitions from the Philippines that have been completed, which will maybe give you an idea of the wait. 

 

My wife's mother's friend, who is an attorney at the Manila consulate, has repeatedly talked about the embassy's backlog. My understanding is they have been prioritizing immigrant visas, which includes spousal visas, and the non-immigrant visas, which includes finance visas, have not been prioritized, which results in this substantially increased wait-time. I don't know what the estimate wait-time is, though. 

It might not be any help, but my wife and I got married in June of this year, and our petition was received by USCIS July 28. Our estimated wait time is 9 months for adjudication from USCIS, barring any hangups. We are prepared for a long wait for the Manila embassy phase, and we are kind of thinking about 15 months or so, probably. Hopefully not longer, but it could be. 

My plan is to keep saving money and going back to visit her every 4 to 6 months, as often as possible throughout the wait. I know not everyone has that convenience, but if you can do it, it really helps ease the heartache while you wait for your loved one. 

Best of luck, my friend. 🤙🏾

[Fiance1 4]

Does anyone know if I (the U.S. petitioner) need to provide evidence or an affidavit that I'm available to marry? I've never been married, and I don't see a requirement to provide proof of never being married, but I thought I should ask to confirm. If evidence is necessary, will a letter with my signature stating that I've never been married be sufficient? I would think that the U.S. government would have some sort of database to just quickly check to see if a U.S. citizen has ever been married, so they probably have no need for any proof to be included with my application.

 

[RO_AH 1,659]

Everything you need is found here:

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/Supplements/Supplements_by_Post/MNL-Manila.html

[RO_AH 1,659]

3 hours ago, Fiance1 said:

I would think that the U.S. government would have some sort of database to just quickly check to see if a U.S. citizen has ever been married

You would think wrong. There is no national database. Marriage info is only at state level.