Question about Address History and Employment History on Form 1-485

[nogreymatter 0]

Hi everyone,

Background: I am currently in the U.S. on F-1 OPT and married to a U.S. citizen (married in Dec '23). I am planning to file a Family-Based Green Card AOS application soon.

I have a few questions regarding how to fill out the address and employment history sections in the I-485 (and I-130A).

Address History: I came to the U.S. in 2022 for my master's degree. Prior to that, over the past three years, my living situation was as follows:

1. April 2019 – May 2020: Rented a place in Bangalore, India, where I was working.
2. May 2020 – November 2020: Moved back home (to another city) due to COVID.
3. November 2020 – March 2021: Returned to Bangalore.
4. March 2021 – October 2021: Went back home for another COVID wave.
5. October 2021 – June 2022: Back in Bangalore.
6. June 2022 – August 2022: Returned home before flying to the U.S.

During this time, I continued to pay rent for my house in Bangalore but didn't have a formal lease (as it was an informal arrangement between my flatmates and the landlord).

My question is: Should I list this exactly as described, or should I just show one place since I was paying rent throughout and my time back home was temporary? Would the lack of a formal lease affect this?

Employment History:

1. During my master’s program, I worked the same on-campus job, but the employment was only during the academic terms (spring, fall, etc.). Technically, it was the same job, but with a different contract each semester. Should I report this as one job or as multiple jobs?
2. Should I report periods of unemployment as well? For example, I was unemployed between June 2022 and December 2022, and between January and July 2024.
3. Currently, I work a full-time job while also working as a TA and Grader for a course at my university. The TA and Grader positions are on separate contracts, but I work with the same team and receive a combined paycheck. Should I report these as two separate positions or can I list them as “TA and Grader”?
4. If I run out of space on the form, can I attach a supplemental sheet with this additional information?

Thank you for taking the time to read through and respond to my questions!

[powerpuff 6,744]

20 hours ago, nogreymatter said:

My question is: Should I list this exactly as described, or should I just show one place since I was paying rent throughout and my time back home was temporary? Would the lack of a formal lease affect this?

List exactly as described as it’s based on your actual physical location and not where you were paying rent but not living there. They will not ask for a lease.

 

 

20 hours ago, nogreymatter said:

During my master’s program, I worked the same on-campus job, but the employment was only during the academic terms (spring, fall, etc.). Technically, it was the same job, but with a different contract each semester. Should I report this as one job or as multiple jobs?

I would do it as one.

 

20 hours ago, nogreymatter said:

Should I report periods of unemployment as well? For example, I was unemployed between June 2022 and December 2022, and between January and July 2024.

No

20 hours ago, nogreymatter said:

Currently, I work a full-time job while also working as a TA and Grader for a course at my university. The TA and Grader positions are on separate contracts, but I work with the same team and receive a combined paycheck. Should I report these as two separate positions or can I list them as “TA and Grader”?

I would list them as TA and grader.

 

20 hours ago, nogreymatter said:

If I run out of space on the form, can I attach a supplemental sheet with this additional information?

The last page of I-485 has a sheet for that, you fill it out there. 

Edited September 30 by powerpuff

[Jay_M 2]

For employment I would submit as separate - as this is not a typical employment and with separate contracts. You may also list the periods you were unemployed just to be honest. At the end it doesn't really matter as you are married to a USC