We initially submitted an I-485 and I-130 for a marriage green card (married to a US citizen) with a joint sponsor and received a Request for Initial Evidence a week later:
RFIE text:
1. The joint sponsor, on Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, must be a United States citizen, United States National, or Lawful Permanent Resident of the United States. Submit evidence of the joint sponsor’s status.
2. Based on the documents submitted, we could not determine that the petitioning sponsor on Form I-864
Affidavit of Support, is qualified. In order to be a qualified sponsor, the petitioning sponsor's Form I-864 must
be properly completed and signed, and the supporting documents must establish that the petitioning sponsor's
income meets 125 percent of the federal poverty guideline for the sponsor’s household size. See Form I-864P
for information on the Federal Poverty Guidelines.
If the petitioning sponsor's income does not meet 125 percent of the federal poverty guideline for their
household size, you must obtain a qualifying joint sponsor who demonstrates the ability to support you or
submit evidence of assets. See Form I-864 Instructions for more information. If you decide to obtain a joint
sponsor (or a different joint sponsor), you will need to:
Submit a completed and signed Form I-864, Affidavit of Support, from the joint sponsor. All pages must
be present and of the latest edition date.
Provide the joint sponsor's Social Security Number on Form I-864.
Provide a complete and correctly calculated household size on Form I-864.
Submit a complete copy of the joint sponsor's Federal income tax return and all supporting tax
documents (W-2s, 1099s, Form 2555, and tax schedules) for the most recent tax year.
Submit evidence of the joint sponsor's status as a United States citizen, United States National, or
Lawful Permanent Resident.
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.
If the petitioning sponsor or the joint sponsor is unable to meet the income requirements, they may qualify
based on the cash value of their significant assets. Assets must equal the stated difference between the
sponsor’s income and 125 percent of the federal poverty guideline for the sponsor’s household size.
Assets must equal the difference for applicants filing as orphans.
Assets must equal three times the difference for a spouse or child of a United States citizen.
Assets must equal five times the difference for all others.
Acceptable evidence of assets:
Bank statements covering the last 12 months (statements will be averaged over a 12 month period) or a
statement from an officer of the bank or other financial institution in which the sponsor has deposits, the
account balance averaged over a 12 month period, and current balance;
Evidence of ownership, value, and dates acquired of stocks, bonds, and certificates of deposit;
Evidence of ownership, value/equity, and dates acquired of other personal property;
Evidence of ownership, a recent licensed appraisal or county tax assessment, any mortgage/lien or lien
release of any real estate, and dates acquired.
For further instructions and the latest edition of Form I-864, visit the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov. See
Specific Instructions and Specific Requirements listed in the Form I-864 instructions for complete information.
Additional Information about us:
1. For I-864, we originally submitted:
a. I-864 form for petitioning sponsor
b. Petitioning sponsor’s 2023 pay stub (biweekly 6 months)
c. Petitioning sponsor’s employment verification letter
d. Petitioning sponsor’s 2022 tax return
e. Petitioning sponsor’s declaration of non-filing for 2021 and 2020
f. Petitioning sponsor’s IRS transcript of non-filling for 2021 and 2020
g. Beneficiary’s 2023 pay stub
h. Beneficiary’s employment verification letter
i. Beneficiary’s 2022 tax return
j. I-864 form for joint sponsor (US born US citizen)
k. Joint sponsor’s 2020, 2021, and 2022 tax returns (not tax transcripts)
l. Joint sponsor’s 2023 pay stub (December)
m. Joint sponsor’s birth certificate
n. Joint sponsor’s marriage certificate
2. We submitted the joint sponsor (who is a US citizen)’s birth certificate (in her maiden name) and marriage license (with both her maiden name and married name) with the initial application. We wrote “COPY” on the top of each of the two. The birth certificate listed the joint sponsor’s name, parents’ names, and place of birth.
3. We did not see the joint sponsor’s birth certificate and marriage license in the files in the “Documents” tab on my USCIS online account (but some other documents we submitted were not present either).
4. Our joint sponsor is married and files taxes jointly but we only filed an I-864 for her not her spouse (she alone qualifies).
Questions:
1. How should we respond to the RFE? Just upload the joint sponsor’s birth certificate and marriage license?
2. Is point 2 (“Based on the documents submitted…”) referring to an issue other than the joint sponsor’s birth certificate and marriage license, or is it referring to a different issue? I.e., what should we submit in response to point 2?
Thanks so much in advance for your help!
