JoeMama

This post is from today when someone asked the same question. It should help give you answers to what you're looking for http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=57254

I found it quite simple to just do the K-1 myself without a lawyer. If no complicating matters exist, no use for a lawyer. You're still having to do all the same paperwork as you would you have gather and fill out and give to a lawyer. The more hands that involve themselves in your paperwork, the more likely errors will occur. This site and the knowledged people here are great at helping. Be sure to read and read to familiarize yourself with everything and you will see for yourself it is not difficult to do. But you have to stay ontop of the process. The difference is you mailing the completed paperwork yourself and giving it to a lawyer to send for you. I think it cost me about $12 to send all the required paperwork myself (excluding the $170 I-129F fee). A lawyer wanted to charge me $1500 to do the same thing. Hell of a price for a stamp!

I guess I am a March filier. My I-129F was received at CSC on March 1st. I was wondering where there was a March-filier thread on here also

Genem,

I do not mean to upset you even more than what you are but let me tell you something.....MANY MANY MANY russian women will agree into anything just to come to US. I am NOT saying all of them but MANY. One of the things that got into my mind is this : why was/is she in such a rush to leave Russia??? I think we all know the answer to that and cost of living in Moscow and St. Petersburg is up the roof. It looks like one of her main reasons why she wants to leave Russia is because of her son so he could have many opportunities in here and many open doors which are not that easy in Russia unless you got money. Why is she thinking about "what if marriage won't work" before you guys even got married? Why does she want an agreement? It sounds as if she's ONLY AFTER YOUR MONEY AND GREEN CARD. Be VERY CAREFUL. I am Russian myself ( but came here when i was 12 through a LEGAL IMMIGRATION as a refugee, when many Russian-Jews were immigrating) I know many russian people who will use each other for green card and are willing to pay up to $30,000 for fraud marriage. Sounds like your SO got herself into a better deal, she doesn't have to pay all that to get in US. I have read on many russian dating sites that ladies were looking for a "foreign lover" especially someone from US so obviously what your fiancee is saying is a huge RED FLAG. She should be thinking about happy love and marriage she'll have with you and everything that will come along with it rather than thinking " how much will you leave her if things don't work out" Be very careful.

Do some test on her...........tell her that you loved St. Petersburg so much that you want to move there and live there and see what she'll say. If she'll agree then she truly loves you and it won't matter where the two of you are but if she'll still hint about coming to US then her intentions are documents only.

Best of luck and hope things work out for the best!

P.S. I did NOT try to offend anyone who is bring anyone from russia or ukraine!!!!!!!

NYGirl, I agree with all you had said. Especially, about telling the fiance about moving to their country to live. That is the one thing I've always mentioned and you are absolutely right. Their response to that comment will give an obvious answer whether to proceed ahead with the relationship toward marriage. All in all, because I have 3 young daughters here which I love and am devoted to them. I would consider moving to my fiancee's country later in life if she wanted to go back. Unlike the original poster of this topic that was started, I declared right away that I do not possess any assests or am wealthy in the least. I barely make it month to month with my girls. Thanks to the ex, she really did a number on me being able to earn a great living like I used to. But I learned that all that hard work to earn money was not worth it. My focus is on my own family's love and happiness within our home. My fiancee shares this philosophy and family is what our focus is on and all we talk about. She comes from a middle-class background like me. That's the only time when financial matters were discussed. But she is adamant about wanting to go to work when she is able after being here to help ease some of the burden of me being a single parent. Since we will be married, she wants to contribute to our family as much as she can.

My only advice to the original poster is that he should have never filed without knowing for sure he was in love. If his fiancee is already looking at if their marriage will fail before it ever starts, it is more than likely that it certainly will.

What will they ask for or need to show support proof?

I have 3 years of my tax returns that are above 125% poverty.

I have 2 companies. My IT company earns about 90k gross. I also have a photography co that loses money (because of equipment investment of 60k and travel to take the pics). I shift the money from one company to the other in hopes of getting the photog co. up and running as a second paying co. My tax returns (after all expenses from both co's) shows a net of about 23k. The photog co. will earn about 15-20k this year I think

I dont keep a lot of money in the bank. My bank statements arent anything big. If anything I run most of the stuff through my credit card and pay it off every month. I usually just cash the checks I get and stick the money in a safe I have. I know its weird but thats what I do.

Is this going to be a problem with proof of support docs?

Hey michael_d,

Your employment situation is the same as mine. I'm self-employed with 2 small companies. The questions you ask are certainly ones I had to think about also. Being self-employed has it's pros and cons. We get to write off a lot of things. But when it comes time to prove our "net income", it is usually quite low. Making it difficult sometimes to get loans, etc. What it comes down to is what line 22 says on your Federal 1040 which is your total income. It needs to be at least 125% about the Federal Poverty Guidelines for your home. For example, in my home, there is me and my 3 daughters. Adding my fiancee also, that will make a total of 5 people for my home. According to Federal Poverty Guidelines, I have to have an annual total income of $30,162. If your taxes do not reflect that you are able to meet the 125% above poverty guidelines income. Than you will need other ways of proving your support or assests. This is where your bank statements would play a part. It is recommended that your last 3 years of filed tax returns may be needed. If all of these things, total income, assests, etc. do not bring you up to the 125% above poverty guidelines, you may need a co-sponsor to assist you for your visa process.

As Thingee has said, if line 22 of your 1040 meets the 125%, you'll have no problems.

Any way us self-employed people try to do things, the government has things worked out where you will have to pay sooner or later. Of course, we write off as much as we are able to do so, "legally". But when our total income needs to be at a certain amount for proving something, we end up having to pay at the end of the year. For future reference, cashing the checks and sticking the money in a safe is one thing. But not claiming that "safe-guarded" money is not something to advertise.

That is about the best thing I can tell you from what I have learned starting my visa process. I am leaving in 2 days to visit my fiancee for 2 weeks and when I return, that is when I will start my K1 process. Best of luck to you!

wow tnx for the fast reply...i'l update our timeline later as i dont know yet the exact date..we filed the K-1 Last. Nov-24/30 2006..IL ask my hubby for the dates..heheheh!!!anyway tnx a lot.....i've read before that u dont need to get a police clearance depending upon if u will ask to..I got my NBI..but maybe i should get a clearance just to prepare..

I am totally confused. You filed an I-129F petition for a FIANCE? Why are you calling him your hubby?

It helps to get accurate information if you put the correct information in your timeline for the COUNTRY and the TYPE OF VISA.

It turned out in another thread the person she calls "hubby" is just a nickname. I see a couple of her posts scattered all over this site asking questions that are easily and clearly understood on K-1 help section. It's a good thing that people on here have enough respect to not "toy" around with someone's situation

This is an interesting topic that I've thought about. I am not sure whether to list my fiancee' is going to work upon arrival. I'm self-employed with 2 small businesses. I have no employees who work for me. I can easily list her as being able to work for either business doing secretarial work if she wants. Of course, I have not submitted the documents that ask the question if she will work here. I'd be interested to hear some opinions about this whether I should state that she can work for either business upon her arrival or not. I'm guessing if I write "With Work Authorization", this will eliminate other documents that may need to be submitted.

I'm doing the same thing as you TimsDaisy with the 2-hole punch in the documents. The only thing different I did was get some some small clasp envelopes and placed the photos inside a plastic baggie inside of the small clasp envelopes. I got to hand it to everyone on here for all their advice and help with everything. My K-1 is becoming a work of art! I'll be sending at the end of this month. I'll be heading over to visit my fiancee' for 2 weeks on 02/11/07. The day after I return, it's on it's way out to my service center! I'm hoping for the best as my visa journey begins to take flight!

I cleared my cache and got the old form as well. Whoever saved it locally, what new changes are there?

I just filled out the new I-129F. I will be sending 03/01/07 after I return from seeing my fiancee'. To be honest with you, I could not see a difference at all except for one thing. The expiration date is now 01/31/2010. That's all

Interesting, I know 6 or 7 guys who have gone through Kiev and have all said the Consulate is friendly and helpful (though sticklers on proper paperwork). Everyone has suggested if you do your homework and arrive at the facility properly prepared then you should have no problems. Have you checked out the reviews here on VJ about Kiev?

I will certainly check out the Kiev reviews on here. Thanks for the suggestion my good man! I hate to believe people are as horrible as others try to make them out to be. I can say my fiancee' and I are being very thorough with everything involved with this visa process! Every day I am constantly looking over all the documentation to make sure I did not miss anything or made any mistakes! I am fortunate that she shares my desire and gets things done right away! My poor file cabinets are so full of 3 copies of EVERYTHING! I'll be taking 1/3 of the files over with me in a couple of weeks and giving them to my fiancee' to have when the time arrives for her interview. I told her she better hit the gym and work out those muscles! She will be carrying quite a bit when she has to take all those files to her interview!

I would like to know what you have heard because all the reported experiences I have about Kiev is very much the opposite

I have spoke to some married couples here in my area where their spouses are from Ukraine. They spoke of the consulate staff trying to roadblock them at every turn, causing delays, and monetary bribes they had to do. One couple I can understand. They are fairly thoughtless and chaotic in their life here and their negativity does show. So I don't take too much of what they say seriously. I personally do not know because my fiancee' and I have not had the experience yet. All of them suggested applying for a consulate in a neighboring country, like going to Warsaw, for the interview. I do not wish to take a few people's word at the situation. This is why I ask this question of going to a consulate outside the beneficiary's own country. I would prefer to believe all the good things you have heard from people you know who have gone through Kiev and the consulate staff do conduct themselves as one of the same.

Thanks LookyWhatIFound! It makes sense to me what you have suggested. I will research further down that avenue!

I tried searching around the forum and the USCIS website for an answer, but had no luck. I was wondering if it is mandatory that my fiancee' has to have her interview conducted at a US Consulate inside her own country? Or is it possible to write on I-129F another US Consulate outside her country? I only ask this question because Ukraine has only 1 US Consulate inside her country. It is in Kiev. I've heard very many undesirable things about this particular US Consulate. People that had gone through the US Consulate in Kiev said they would recommend going through a US Consulate in another nearby country. For example, Warsaw, Poland. Do I need good reason or must file something to ask state another US consulate outside of my fiance's country? Or will this throw up a red flag for wanting to have interview outside my fiancee's own country? I was under the impression that one US Consulate is the same as the next US Consulate as in any other country around the world. I would love to hear your thoughts on this one. I know I must not be the only person who must have this question in mind.

It is funny...all the Yahoo Chat sessions between my fiancee and I are all in Russian. I am not going to translate those sessions into English. I am not completely fluent in Russian yet and I use the assistance of a computer translator for our chats. I am going to submit some of the chat session logs. We talk every day for hours and hours. I've logged and saved each session. If I were to print up all of them since November, I'd be sending USCIS a novel larger than "War and Peace" and The Bible combined!!! This is only up to this date!

Yes, you are correct.

125% of $24,130 = $24,130 x 1.25 = $30,162.50

Thank you my good person! It is much appreciated!

I know this may be a stupid question. But I will ask because I need to know. I am self-employed and have not filed my tax returns for 2006. I need to make sure my income is sufficient on my taxes before I send any papers to for the K-1 visa. According to 2007 Federal Poverty Guidelines for a family of 5 (this includes my fiancee' when she arrives here), the guidelines state my annual income should be $24130. Now to reach the correct amount of 125% over that amount, I would mulitply 24,130 by .25? This would give an amount of $6033.00. A 100% of 24,130 is 24310. Add the $6033 and this should give me the total amount required, $30163.00. Am I correct on this amount? If you know the correct formulation to this mathematic equation, I'd be happy to know it!

Do they look at the TOTAL GROSS or FED TAXABLE GROSS?

That is the one question I have not really been able to get a definite answer. Is it line 22 or line 37 on your 1040? Both amounts are different. I cannot find a number to contact USCIS to personally ask whether it is "Total Income" or "Adjusted Gross Income". I am self-employed and to complete I-134, I need to know what the correct answer is. People on here say line 22. Unless, I can actually find the true answer, I am bewlidered like you which one to use.

I agree. The USCIS is loosely interpreting IMBRA. In their minds, if you paid for membership to meet people they are going to say it is an International Marriage Broker. But, what it really boils down to is this. Do you have anything in your background that might influence this lady from Ukraine about possibly marrying you? A marriage should be entered with full knowledge and complete trust.

But, what is more concerning to me is that you haven't mentioned if you two have met. Email and even telephone conversations are great, but you need proof of having met each other. Any talk of marriage before that would be premature. I hope if you haven't met her, that you have plans for a trip to Ukraine soon. The spring is a wonderful time to visit, especially in May.

Good Luck and keep us posted about your progress.

Thanks for the attention to the question I had. I was able to find the answer after some time. And I must list that we did meet through an "international marriage broker" according the change of law in 2006. You were wondering if we have ever met personally. As of this date, no I have not met her. My friends in Ukraine have personally met her. But I will be with her in 16 days for 2 weeks in Odessa. This is the last requirement I need to fulfill on my behalf to apply for the fiancee visa. I have been to Ukraine 3 other times this past year and a half. I love it over there! My fiancee and I spend anywhere from 4-10 hours a day on Yahoo IM with webcams. It was some time after communicating the way we have on a daily basis, we knew what we both wanted. Believe me, I am not wealthy at all. I've disclosed EVERYTHING from my profile even mentioning my 3 daughters living with me that would prevent any lady from thinking that I offer the "Easy life full of luxuries". Besides, my fiancee's mother hops the computer and speaks with me now.

I found out the term USCIS has defined as "International Marriage Broker". This should help for anyone in the future if they have questions regarding the same situation on their I-129F form.

What is the definition of "International Marriage Broker (IMB)"? Are there exceptions? Does this law apply to my favorite international correspondence website on the Internet?

Answer: IMB is defined very broadly in this law, as are all relevant terms in this law. (Bo Cooper, former INS General Counsel from several years ago, actually drafted this law; he sits on the board of directors of the feminist Tahirih Justice Center and intended to provide broad abuse protection to immigrant fiancées and brides.)

The definition of IMB, under Section 833(e)(4)(A), is any corporation, individual, or legal entity, whether or not existing under the laws of the U.S., who charges fees for providing dating, matrimonial, matchmaking or social referrals or is "otherwise faciliating communication between individuals."

There are, under Section 833(e)(4)(B), TWO IMPORTANT EXCEPTIONS, : 1) "The Non-Profit": a traditional matchmaking organization of a cultural or religious nature which offers its services on a non-profit basis under law, tyically a state-registered corporation, and 2) "The Non-Primary Business with Comparable Rates": a domestic dating service or other primary service whose principal business is NOT international dating and which charges comparable rates for comparable services to all individuals, men and women, domestic and foreign.

Your favorite international correspondence website on the Internet would in fact be subject to this law, IF the exceptions enumerated above do not apply.

Some U.S. clients and IMBs are asking if the IMB would "qualify" for an exception if they don't charge fees for the lady's personal contact. The safe answer would appear to be: only if the other qualifications of Exception No. 1 apply. An IMB's claim to an exception based in the statement that "We don't charge fees for lady's contact or any dating service", but coupled with an admission that the company generates revenue and profits, however small, from such things as advertising fees for related services such as flowers, candy and cards, Google "ad-words", or charitable donations from members, carries a risk that the "non-profit" exception does not genuinely apply.

That is the question. The website where I met my fiancee is exactly like "Yahoo Personals". You only pay a small membership to use the site to meet other people. You do not pay for addresses or phone numbers. This is why I am caught whether the site I met my fiancee is to be considered an "International Marriage Broker" according to I-129F.

I want to know how the USCIS defines as a "INTERNATIONAL MARRIAGE BROKER" in I-129F? I met my fiance on a personals website, RussianEuro.com. I do not know if this site is deemed as a "International Marriage Broker" service as defined by the USCIS. I paid for a year-long membership with unlimited membership contact. They do not monitor or censor letters, instant messenging, etc. She contacted me first with a positive message through this website. We immediately moved to using Yahoo Instant Messenging because I can log our chat sessions. But I did not know this would come in handy later on as our relationship had progressed to love and the discussion of marriage.

If anyone has a detailed description from USCIS that defines an "INTERNATIONAL MARRIAGE BROKER", I would greatly appreciate it! Thanks for your time! ;-)

THIS QUESTION PERTAINS TO I-134 WHERE I HAVE TO LIST MY ANNUAL INCOME. I AM SELF-EMPLOYED. ON MY 2006 FEDERAL TAX RETURN, I HAVE LINE 22 (TOTAL INCOME) AND I HAVE LINE 37 (ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME). WHICH AMOUNT DO I WRITE ON MY I-134 FOR MY ANNUAL INCOME? LINE 22 OR LINE 37? BOTH AMOUNTS ON LINE 22 AND LINE 37 ARE OBVIOUSLY DIFFERENT. I HAVE RESEARCHED THROUGH THE FORUMS AND I HAVE FOUND CONTRADICTING ANSWERS. I WISH TO AVOID MY I-134 BEING DENIED BECAUSE THE WRONG AMOUNT WAS WRITTEN ON THE I-134. I WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE A REPLY TO THIS QUESTION FROM SOMEONE WHO IS SELF-EMPLOYED AND HAVE SUBMITTED THEIR I-134 RECENTLY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME!