CR1 and i-864

[E&G 2]

Hey guys,

 

I am an American citizen, and I want to marry my girlfriend from Finland. We have both decided that it would be best for her to move here to live with me.

 

We want to do the CR1 process after we get married to bring her here legally.

 

I understand that I need to file an Affidavit Of Support i-864. But we had a couple of questions.

 

1. How long into the application process do they generally ask about my finances? 

 

2. I am currently unemployed and have been since last November (I have been receiving unemployment benefits), but I am looking for a job and hope to be employed soon. How long would I have to have been employed before submitting the i-864 in order for me to prove that I can support her? 6 months? Like if I got employed in January 2024, and my yearly income surpasses 125% of the poverty guidelines, and I submit the document in July/August, would that be ok?

 

3. Also, if my yearly income from said job is part-time and only meets 100% of the poverty guidelines, could I use savings to cover the rest? I think I've read somewhere about having 3x the difference?

 

Thank you

[Mike E 11,739]

1. During NVC

 

2. legally one day of employment. Practically it varies. So say 3 months. Some 6. Etc

 

3. Legally yes. Practically it varies. How will you support a family of 2 on $19,720? I cannot imagine supporting one person on that.

 

 

[Dashinka 24,483]

The I864 is required at the NVC stage which will be months after filing the I130.  You will need to meet the guidelines, but there is nothing that says how long you need to be employed.  You can use savings, and yes, the factor is three times.

[E&G 2]

3 minutes ago, Mike E said:

1. During NVC

 

2. legally one day of employment. Practically it varies. So say 3 months. Some 6. Etc

 

3. Legally yes. Practically it varies. How will you support a family of 2 on $19,720? I cannot imagine supporting one person on that.

 

 

 

1 minute ago, Dashinka said:

The I864 is required at the NVC stage which will be months after filing the I130.  You will need to meet the guidelines, but there is nothing that says how long you need to be employed.  You can use savings, and yes, the factor is three times.

 

Thank you for your replies.

 

I guess my question was how many months in general into the process do they ask for it. I've heard somewhere like 12 months.

 

How many years tax return is required?

[Mike E 11,739]

5 minutes ago, E&G said:

 

 

I guess my question was how many months in general into the process do they ask for it. I've heard somewhere like 12 months.

Varies. See https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/irstats.php?history=90

 

You can slow down NVC step if you must. As long as you tell NVC at every 364 days or less that you are interested in a visa, it will keep the case alive.

5 minutes ago, E&G said:

 

How many years tax return is required?

The most recent tax return transcript is needed. So today it would be year 2022. You must have either filed taxes for the  2 previous years or state you did not have to file (if that is true). 

[E&G 2]

28 minutes ago, Mike E said:

Varies. See https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/irstats.php?history=90

 

You can slow down NVC step if you must. As long as you tell NVC at every 364 days or less that you are interested in a visa, it will keep the case alive.

The most recent tax return transcript is needed. So today it would be year 2022. You must have either filed taxes for the  2 previous years or state you did not have to file (if that is true). 

I am worried though that me being unemployed since last November would be causal for denial. Does current income matter more than past income?

 

Also, does it matter whether my future job (for i-864 purposes) gives me a W-2 or 1099?

[pushbrk 12,870]

35 minutes ago, E&G said:

I am worried though that me being unemployed since last November would be causal for denial. Does current income matter more than past income?

 

Also, does it matter whether my future job (for i-864 purposes) gives me a W-2 or 1099?

Current income matters most.  Past income information is required for 3 most recent tax years.

 

Yes it matters whether you are employed or self employed (1099).  Self employment income does not count at all, until it appears on a tax return.  Employment income can be documented with and calculated from ONE pay stub for  a full pay period. In your situation, unless you have sufficient liquid assets to be comfortably over the minimum, you will need "employment" (W2) or a qualified joint sponsor.

 

Right now is not too soon to download and start becoming an A-Student of the I-864 and its separate instructions.

[E&G 2]

4 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

Current income matters most.  Past income information is required for 3 most recent tax years.

 

Yes it matters whether you are employed or self employed (1099).  Self employment income does not count at all, until it appears on a tax return.  Employment income can be documented with and calculated from ONE pay stub for  a full pay period. In your situation, unless you have sufficient liquid assets to be comfortably over the minimum, you will need "employment" (W2) or a qualified joint sponsor.

 

Right now is not too soon to download and start becoming an A-Student of the I-864 and its separate instructions.

Would a 1099 contractor job not be suffice? 

[pushbrk 12,870]

8 minutes ago, E&G said:

Would a 1099 contractor job not be suffice? 

Eventually, yes.  That is considered self employment.  Let's say you start now.  You will have ZERO income until you file your next tax return next year.  At that time, your "current income" will be what that tax return shows on the "total income" line.  At best, it will represent only half a year.

 

Get a W2 job now and once you have a pay stub for a full pay period, you can calculate and document your current income.  1k a week is 52k a year.

 

Yes, really.  Yes, I'm sure.

 

Edited June 22, 2023 by pushbrk

[E&G 2]

18 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

Eventually, yes.  That is considered self employment.  Let's say you start now.  You will have ZERO income until you file your next tax return next year.  At that time, your "current income" will be what that tax return shows on the "total income" line.  At best, it will represent only half a year.

 

Get a W2 job now and once you have a pay stub for a full pay period, you can calculate and document your current income.  1k a week is 52k a year.

 

Yes, really.  Yes, I'm sure.

 

How many months into the CR1 process do they ask for the i-864 in general? I've heard around 12 months

 

Also, if I get a part-time/full-time W2 job, do I need to be working at that job for at least 6 months or something before I submit the i-864? I've seen a few comments on this forum about a 6 months pay stub rule.

 

Are assets/savings considered a legit/sufficient source of financial support? Like if my yearly income was 21k and I needed 25k. That's 4k difference x 3 = 12k. If I had like 50k in my savings/assets, would that be suffice? 

[SalishSea 17,808]

5 minutes ago, E&G said:

How many months into the CR1 process do they ask for the i-864 in general? I've heard around 12 months

 

Also, if I get a part-time/full-time W2 job, do I need to be working at that job for at least 6 months or something before I submit the i-864? I've seen a few comments on this forum about a 6 months pay stub rule.

 

Are assets/savings considered a legit/sufficient source of financial support? Like if my yearly income was 21k and I needed 25k. That's 4k difference x 3 = 12k. If I had like 50k in my savings/assets, would that be suffice? 

You are copy/pasting your posts that have been answered already in this thread.   Please don’t do that, it’s considered spamming.

 

If you do not understand the process, even after reading and researching, you may benefit from paid help in the form of a lawyer or visa service.

[pushbrk 12,870]

6 minutes ago, E&G said:

How many months into the CR1 process do they ask for the i-864 in general? I've heard around 12 months

Something like 12 months, yes.  That's kind of the current average time from petition submission to petition approval

 

6 minutes ago, E&G said:

 

Also, if I get a part-time/full-time W2 job, do I need to be working at that job for at least 6 months or something before I submit the i-864? I've seen a few comments on this forum about a 6 months pay stub rule.

NO.  I told you already, you can document and calculate current income from ONE pay stub.  Longer is better, in this context though.

 

6 minutes ago, E&G said:

 

Are assets/savings considered a legit/sufficient source of financial support? Like if my yearly income was 21k and I needed 25k. That's 4k difference x 3 = 12k. If I had like 50k in my savings/assets, would that be suffice? 

Yes

[Mike E 11,739]

4 hours ago, E&G said:

I am worried though that me being unemployed since last November would be causal for denial.

it could. 

4 hours ago, E&G said:

 

Does current income matter more than past income?

it does, except when …

4 hours ago, E&G said:

 

Also, does it matter whether my future job (for i-864 purposes) gives me a W-2 or 1099?

It does.  For a W-2 job, current income matters more. For a 1099 job, the most recent tax return matters as much.

 

It seems you have a marginal case.  You should line up a joint sponsor who has  W-2 income for 2020-2023. 
 

 

[beloved_dingo 1,976]

If I were you, I would work on getting a W-2 job ASAP and I would go ahead and consider/discuss who might be willing to be a joint sponsor, if needed.