I-864 "Domicile and country of residency"

[Etta&James 0]

Hi VJ Friends,

We are just days aways from my interview at the Embassy, and freaking out a bit about for I-864, numbers 12, 13 and 15. My wife is USC. So, in form I-864:

12. "Mailing address": should this one be our UK address?

13. "Place of Residency": should this be an address in the US? (we CAN use my wife's parents address, as she kept bank accounts in the US which mail her statements over there.

15. "Country of Domicile": is this again the US address, or the UK one?

Thanks to whoever might have the wisdom to provide us with some answers!!

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Hi VJ Friends,

We are just days aways from my interview at the Embassy, and freaking out a bit about for I-864, numbers 12, 13 and 15. My wife is USC. So, in form I-864:

12. "Mailing address": should this one be our UK address?

13. "Place of Residency": should this be an address in the US? (we CAN use my wife's parents address, as she kept bank accounts in the US which mail her statements over there.

15. "Country of Domicile": is this again the US address, or the UK one?

Thanks to whoever might have the wisdom to provide us with some answers!!

Have you read the instructions. Start on page 3 with this part--

Item Number 5. Country of Domicile.

This question is asking you to indicate the country where you maintain your principal residence and where you plan to reside for the foreseeable future. If your mailing address and/or place of residence is not in the United States, but your country of domicile is the United States, you must attach a written explanation and documentary evidence indicating how you meet the domicile requirement. If you are not currently living in the United States, you may meet the domicile requirement if you can submit evidence to establish that any of the following conditions apply: (then continue reading)

Also the London Embassy has their bit about intent to domicile here http://london.usembassy.gov/faq_i864_domicile.html

Edit--it sounds like you may be using the expired version of the I-864 base on the item numbers, so my page 3 refers to to the current instructions. Same general info.

Edited June 27, 2013 by Nich-Nick

[Jviddy 1]

This is the same area i'm struggling with and i don't think the instructions are very clear or helpful

[Etta&James 0]

Thanks Nich-Nick, I actually realized I had the old form a second later after posting, but couldn't edit my post. We do have now the current form - indeed, item No. 5 is Country of Domicile.

The key paragraph I guess is the following:

If I do not meet the U.S. residence requirement, can a joint sponsor file an I-864?

No, if you, as the sponsor, do not qualify because you do not meet the domicile requirement, a joint sponsor cannot be used. The sponsor must first meet all of the requirements of a sponsor, including domicile in the U.S., before there can be a joint sponsor.

So, in No. 5 we'll definitely write "United States", and in Number 2 "Sponsor Mailing Address", we'll also use a US address. Only in No. 3 "Sponsor Place of Residency", we'll write UK, as that's where we live now.

As per the instructions, we DO have proof that my wife - the USC - has maintain her US domicile, so I presume we should be ok.

Still, tricky stuff imo.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Thanks Nich-Nick, I actually realized I had the old form a second later after posting, but couldn't edit my post. We do have now the current form - indeed, item No. 5 is Country of Domicile.

The key paragraph I guess is the following:

If I do not meet the U.S. residence requirement, can a joint sponsor file an I-864?

No, if you, as the sponsor, do not qualify because you do not meet the domicile requirement, a joint sponsor cannot be used. The sponsor must first meet all of the requirements of a sponsor, including domicile in the U.S., before there can be a joint sponsor.

So, in No. 5 we'll definitely write "United States", and in Number 2 "Sponsor Mailing Address", we'll also use a US address. Only in No. 3 "Sponsor Place of Residency", we'll write UK, as that's where we live now.

As per the instructions, we DO have proof that my wife - the USC - has maintain her US domicile, so I presume we should be ok.

Still, tricky stuff imo.

You will take this form/proof and be face to face with a real live person at the interview, so have the opportunity to discuss it, or modify your answers. Even if you had domicile in the UK, that London link explains how you can show "intent to domicile" at your interview. In the past, people have shown correspondence with realtors or apartment locators about housing in the US. Or appraisals on their UK property. Or emails back and forth with removal companies.

The "intent to domicile" gets you around the law that says an I-864 can only be submitted by a person living in the US. It's especially helpful for those who are USCs but lived in the UK as adults so never registered to vote, had a bank acct, etc in the US.

Edited June 27, 2013 by Nich-Nick

[Etta&James 0]

Thanks for the advice

[Etta&James 0]

wooohooooo!!! Visa approved yesterday!

We ended up writing my wife's parents address in "mailing address" (in the US) and all the rest our UK address, it went totally fine!

[timo204 0]

Congrats!

Please indicate what did you put at last in 'country of domicile'? US or UK?

[Etta&James 0]

UK for Domicile. Actually UK address for everything, except "Mailing Address".