Joint sponsor questions (merged)

[KevinA74 2]

I received an RFE for my I-485 AOS package. The reason stated was, "we could not determine that the petitioning sponsor on Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, is qualified." My current income exceeds the 125% Federal poverty guidelines for a household of two. However,  my  last tax return comes up short as I didn't start working again until last July (2022). I'm thinking this is the reason for the RFE. So, how do I proceed? Is it time to get a joint sponser? If so, I have a couple of questions:

 

I) Will I resubmit an I-864 and an I-864a for the sponser?

2) Would the household size then increase to 3?

3) Do I need to resubmit all my evidence again or only the evidence for my sponser?

 

Thanks.

Edited June 29, 2023 by KevinA74

[beloved_dingo 1,979]

4 minutes ago, KevinA74 said:

I received an RFE for my I-485 AOS package. The reason stated was, "we could not determine that the petitioning sponsor on Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, is qualified." My current income exceeds the 125% Federal poverty guidelines for a household of two. However,  my  last tax return comes up short as I didn't start working again until last July (2022). I'm thinking this is the reason for the RFE. So, how do I proceed? Is it time to get a joint sponser? If so, I have a couple of questions:

 

I) Will I resubmit an I-864 and an I-864a for the sponser?

2) Would the household size then increase to 3?

3) Do I need to resubmit all my evidence again or only the evidence for my sponser?

 

Thanks.

Do you send any proof of current income with the I-864? Or only the tax return(s)?

[KevinA74 2]

23 hours ago, beloved_dingo said:

Do you send any proof of current income with the I-864? Or only the tax return(s)?

I sent about six months worth of pay stubs and bank account statements.

[beloved_dingo 1,979]

44 minutes ago, KevinA74 said:

I sent about six months worth of pay stubs and bank account statements.

How close is your income to the 125% of the poverty guidelines? 

[KevinA74 2]

On 6/30/2023 at 11:22 AM, beloved_dingo said:

How close is your income to the 125% of the poverty guidelines? 

My estimated gross annual income is $32448. That's $7,798 higher than the required 125% for a household of two.

[KevinA74 2]

Anyone else?

[Verrou 1,962]

On 6/30/2023 at 11:37 AM, KevinA74 said:

I sent about six months worth of pay stubs and bank account statements.

i will add EMPLOYER VERIFICATION LETTER. u will need to ask the HR for that. say "blablabla" working here as "blablabla" and annual income at $100,0000/year for example.

 

6 month paystubs + bank account statement, only meant proof of payment. you need proof of income, therefore employer verification letter. 

 

if you think u need joint sponsor, then find a joint sponsor. 

i cant tell you how many in household because ur joint sponsor might have more than 2-3 people in his household. 

 

if i were you, i will resubmit all i-864 with or without joint sponsor. better cover all base

 

 

[KevinA74 2]

26 minutes ago, HaroKitty said:

i will add EMPLOYER VERIFICATION LETTER. u will need to ask the HR for that. say "blablabla" working here as "blablabla" and annual income at $100,0000/year for example.

 

6 month paystubs + bank account statement, only meant proof of payment. you need proof of income, therefore employer verification letter. 

 

if you think u need joint sponsor, then find a joint sponsor. 

i cant tell you how many in household because ur joint sponsor might have more than 2-3 people in his household. 

 

if i were you, i will resubmit all i-864 with or without joint sponsor. better cover all base

 

 

 

I did include an Employer Verification Letter. It doesn't state the annual income, only when I was hired, my hourly pay, and how many hours I work each week. I would think that would be sufficient to calculate my annual income (along with my pay stubs).

 

I'm including a portion of the RFE that was sent to me.

 

 

[KevinA74 2]

Another thing. The REF says, "The "Total Income" line on IRS Form 1040 is used to determine qualifying income for a sponsor, not the "Gross Receipts" line from IRS Schedule C or C-EZ." Does this mean they're not counting my current gross annual income?

 

 

 

[KevinA74 2]

More questions. Is it better to have a joint sponsor or a co-sponsor if the sponsor resides at the same address as me? And if I had a co-sponsor, would the household size increase on part 5, question 8?

[KevinA74 2]

@pushbrkI would appreciate your help with my case. 

 

[pushbrk 12,898]

On 7/4/2023 at 4:50 AM, KevinA74 said:

Another thing. The REF says, "The "Total Income" line on IRS Form 1040 is used to determine qualifying income for a sponsor, not the "Gross Receipts" line from IRS Schedule C or C-EZ." Does this mean they're not counting my current gross annual income?

 

 

 

It does not mean that.  Your current income is derived from calculating gross pay from your pay stub, if you are employed.  Were you self employed in the past?  The total income line is the number you put in the tax section of the form.  Has nothing to do with current income, if you are employed.

 

The key here may be simply that your affidavit of support is not completed correctly, but impossible to know from the minimal information you provided.

[KevinA74 2]

15 hours ago, pushbrk said:

It does not mean that.  Your current income is derived from calculating gross pay from your pay stub, if you are employed.  Were you self employed in the past?  The total income line is the number you put in the tax section of the form.  Has nothing to do with current income, if you are employed.

 

The key here may be simply that your affidavit of support is not completed correctly, but impossible to know from the minimal information you provided.

 

Thanks for replying. I've been over it several times and nothing stands out. But I've had a long period of unemployment, and I didn't start working again until last year. Maybe they don't think I'm financially stable enough due to my poor income history?  I'm thinking the safe bet is just to get a joint sponsor.

[KevinA74 2]

Additional possabilities why I got an RFE:

 

1) My payrate changed slightly from what it was at the first of the year. But I calculated my current individual income based on my current payrate. Could this discrepancy trigger an RFE?

 

2) I sent evidence from the IRS that I did not file a tax return in 2020 and 2021 even though it's not required. Maybe it's a case of too much unnecessary information.

 

3) I'm not 100% sure if I sent exactly 6 months worth of paystubs.

 

So, I'm not sure if I should just resubmit everything and hope it's enough or get a joint sponsor. Not knowing the exact reason for the RFE feels like shooting in the dark and hoping it hits something.

[KevinA74 2]

Which is more important in the deciding factor if a sponsor qualifies on the I-864, annual income (part 6, question 7) or total income (part 6, question 24a)? Would one still qualify if their annual income exceeds 125% of HHS Poverty Guidelines but their total income does not?