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2 Questions- 1- I just got a family member to cosponsor my spouse on the i-864 form, but my family member filed taxes jointly for the previous year. Does that mean that my family member's spouse also needs to fill out an i-864 since the taxes were filed jointly? 2 - I didn't have a paying job for the previous 6 years in China since I was on a student visa (for a Master's, then a PHD). What kind of proof is useful for proving I made below taxable income, which I would have to file if I checked that box on the i-864? Thanks everybody!

My wife had her interview this morning in GUZ, we had everything prepared very well. My wife is a CCP member but they didn't seem to care at all. They were mostly looking at my income, and asking if we could get a cosponsor. I have a job offer in the US for well above the requirements they need above poverty level. But it's just that, only a job offer, and I have not formally accepted it yet pending salary and benefit negotiation. They didn't think this is enough. My situation is as follows, originally I was going to have my father sponsor me, he is retired and is receiving his pension, social security, and my late mothers pension as well. He has a very sizable savings,would they generally be able to accept a retired person as a cosponsor? He is single and has no dependents. My wife got a green slip and no blue slip, they basically insinuated to my wife that as soon as she had cosponsorship that she would be able to get her visa. Attached is the green slip https://ibb.co/bJHOkQ

My father got his tax transcripts for 2016, 2015, and 2014. On page 5 Part 6. item number 2. My current individual annual income is. My father and mother jointly file taxes together. Would my father put down where it says income Wages, Salaries, Tips, Etc? It goes on to say total income. Then it says adjusted gross income. I think this is what he should put down. This would be for 2016. Also does this mean my father needs to fill out an I-864a Form between my mother and his self? On page 6 Part 6. Item 19.a. 19.b. 19.c. I think he should just put down the amounts the tax transcripts show as adjusted gross income? Thank you

Thank you I-864 Help needed My wife and I have started filling out our I-864. I have a few questions. My wife is Chinese and I'm from Tennessee. First question is my father is our sponsor. On page one of the I-864 Part 1 section 1.d. I think is what my father should check? Second question is Page 4 Part 5. Sponsor's Household Size my wife and I will be living with my parents until we can get settled, it will be my wife and I, and my parents what should I do on line 7. Is it better to include my father's income with my income? I have not worked since August 2016 since I have been in China. My income for last year is below the poverty line. Third question is Page 5 Part 6. 2. I think I should put down what my W-2 has down for last year 2016? Thank you

Hello once again community. I am in the process of doing the I-864 now. My parents will be my joint sponsors; my father is doing an I-864 and my mother is doing an I-864A. I just learned that my mother has a new job. She obviously won't have many pay stubs from her new job. I am thinking to ask my mother to get a letter from her old employer saying her position, salary, and how long she worked there, and then ask for a letter from her new employer saying the same thing. I will also ask for pay stubs from her old job Would that be the best approach to this situation? Also, I'm guessing for her current individual annual income, she would calculate her new weekly salary by 52 and put that number on the form, even though it's November? Thank you very much!

I will be using my brother as a Joint Sponsor on the I-864. His income is obviously stated on his tax returns from every year and every year his income has been well above the Federal Poverty Guidelines. Is a letter from his employer verifying his current salary a required document? Thanks for your help! -Flash

Dear Mam or Sir, I will be taking my wife and step-daughter to Guangzhou next week for their immigration interview. I have searched for a specific answer to the following question but can't find it. My confusion is this: I filed two separate petitions, one for my wife and one for my 15 years old step-daughter. I am now currently filling out two separate I-864 forms. Since I am using my wife and my assets, should my wife fill out a form I-864A? One of her U.S. based accounts are exclusively in her name. I want to use our assets on the I-864 since I have no U.S. based income. I might have a sponsor lined up but want to try to avoid it if possible. Also, I am wondering how much a job offer really helps. I am in China and am luck enough to have received an offer in the United States. Thank you so much for all of your help on this site. I have been reading this information for almost 2 years and am grateful!

Hello, I am phyrwrks. I am a US native with a Chinese wife. We were married in China and I am staying on a visa. I ma having trouble with my financial qualifications. I am searching for a sponsor/cosponsor or benefactor for financial assistance. I expect to be able to go back to work and my wife will receive a green card and will be able to work, as well. We do not have the resources required to show financial independence. I don't anticipate having difficulty supporting us in the US, but the paperwork has become a roadblock. Thank you all for viewing my request and bless you for support and assistance. Happy Holidays, phyrwrks

My mother is the co-sponsor for my wife. She (my mother) is not married, but she was married until 2013, so her taxes were filed jointly until then. My question is: does that mean my former step-father needs to fill out an i-864a? I'm guessing he doesn't, but since my mom provided her tax records from 2012-2014, I'm wondering if the embassy will be like... "What's up with that?". Does there need to be some kind of affidavit explaining the situation? Thanks very much. -Sam

I posted two topics yesterday, and I've got a couple more questions to add. I'm just going to condense all my posts into this one and hopefully an admin can delete my earlier two posts... Sorry to clutter up the forum with posts. We leave Monday morning China time to go to Guangzhou. Really hoping someone can get to these questions if they have the time. Joint sponsor questions: 1. Should joint sponsor send photocopies of their birth certificate? Or is a passport photocopy enough? 2. I read on "immihelp.com" that the joint sponsor needs to provide evidence that they have resided in their home for at least 6 months AND proof of their relationship to the petitioner. Is that true? 3. My mother is the co-sponsor for my wife. She (my mother) is not married, but she was married until 2013, so her taxes were filed jointly until then. My question is: does that mean my former step-father needs to fill out an i-864a? I'm guessing he doesn't, but since my mom provided her tax records from 2012-2014, I'm wondering if the embassy will be like... "What's up with that?". Does there need to be some kind of affidavit explaining the situation? Petitioner questions: 4. My Chinese phone number doesn't fit in the boxes provided on the i-864. Is writing "See Attachment" in the boxes okay, even though it fits awkwardly with the spacing of the boxes? 5. Part 6. of i-864 - Income you are using from any other person who was counted in your household size. Should I include my wife (the immigrant) and her $0 income? 6. Alien Registration Number - We don’t think my wife has one, but on our I-130 approval letter that was sent in the mail, it says “Beneficiary A-Number: A000-000-000”. Am I supposed to write that on the i-864? 7. For Mailing Address and Place of Residence of petitioner, if I use my current address in China, should I then write an affidavit explaining that I am leaving this residence as soon as the visa is approved and have maintained domicile at my mother's address in the U.S.? Thank you and I apologize if some of these have been answered here before.

My mom agreed to be help sponsor my wife for her spousal visa. The problem is, she doesn't make very much money. She has a small condo in America, and makes a secretary salary. Also, last year she was out of work for 8 months because she moved from New York to Florida. If she makes around 20,000 USD per year, with some assets including her condo, do you think I need to consider getting a different sponsor? Is it possible to have two different people co-sponsoring my wife at the same time? It is possible for my mom to ask one of my friends. I am only 26 and don't make very much money myself. I love my wife and really want to move with her to America this year. I would appreciate any help answering my questions. -Dave

Does my joint sponsor need to send her 2013 tax returns with her I-864 form? She doesn't plan on finishing her 2013 returns until April. Also, does anyone know if my joint sponsor needs to be a family member? In the instructions it doesn't say anything about providing pay stubs. Some people on this forum said pay stubs were necessary. Which is it?

My husband, the USC, currently has an annual income of $50K and upon our relocation to the US, it will increase to about $90K. We will of course be including an official letter from his employer stating these facts. Would you still advise for a co-sponsor even though these salaries are well above the required 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines? We have no problem finding a suitable co-sponsor, however, if there is no need for it, we would prefer to avoid the hassle.

I am filling out theDS-260 Online information page - in place of the old DS-230 form and the website keeps asking me for an Invoice ID number. I have looked over all of my information, especially the e-mails and letters from NVC (which informed me that I can now schedule for an interview) and I cannot locate the Invoice ID number anywhere. So, my questions are many-fold: 1) Where can this number be found and how do I request for one if it was not included in the information I have already been provided? 1.5) Is the Invoice ID number only given to me once I have paid for the interview? 2) Also, the payment for the interview and application, must it be paid before going in to the consulate for an interview or can it be paid in the consulate itself prior to interviewing? 3) Last question - do I need to complete the DS-260 form prior to scheduling for an interview or can I schedule an interview first without completing the DS-260 form, as I have only used and submitted the DS-230 form before?

For K1 visa that government requires the petitioner to complete the I-134, which current requirements are that income be 100% of the poverty guideline. Then, later to adjust status, the petitioner must complete the I-864, which current income requirements are that income be 125% of the poverty guideline. Because some USC may have trouble meeting this requirement, they allow these documents to be supplemented by a joint sponsor. I know some of the members here have chosen that route. I am not sure about how those petitions worked out in the end, but just found this piece written by immigration lawyer Ilona Bray, J.D., of the NOLO publishing company: First time I've heard this, but of course I haven't really been paying much attention to the visa world for the last few years. Anyone heard of someone being refused visa based on income when they have a joint sponsor? Or, for that matter, being refused based on income at all?

Wife's appointment is on the 27th. Feel like we're in pretty good shape and have everything just about lined up, but in reading back through all the threads here to ensure we've crossed our t's and dotted our i's i noticed something... It seems like the vast majority of people have co-sponsors on the I-864. Is that an unofficial requirement or something? I'm now living stateside (DCF'd but since then have taken a job back in the US), fully employed and make a salary that far exceeds poverty guidelines. Based on my tax returns and current salary (pay stubs + letter of employment as proof), I can adequately support her without issue. As such, I had no plan of getting any sort of co-sponsor. But again, after reading through everything, I'm wondering if that's somethign I should reconsider. Any thoughts or advice on this? Thanks, Charlie

Hi everybody, Yesterday was a great day as my wife passed her interview and the visa should be here in a week or so! It feels so good to have this weight lifted off our shoulders. Since I learned most of the process and documentation needed from this website, I thought it appropriate to share our success story with a few tips/lessons learned. Sorry, this will be a long one... Background: I married my Chinese wife in 2009 while we were both expats working in Netherlands. A year later our daughter was born. We had initially decided that we wanted to move to the US so we started the immigration process in Amsterdam. After the I-130 stage but before the interview, we changed our minds. Our company had announced a new focus on China so many job opportunities arose in Shanghai (we both work in the same company). Now, about 3 years after moving to China (my wife had been living in Europe for 8 years), we have decided this time we are indeed ready to move to the US and settle down. Immigration process: We filed the I-130 in Beijing on March 21st and were quite surprised that the notification of approval came within 10 business days. For the I-130, I had brought 50 photos, our international marriage certificate from NL (original is in English among a few other languages), my daughter's birth certificate as well as consolar report of birth abroad. Document collecting: We thought this would be pretty straightforward but it proved to be a bit of a pain in the ass. First was my taxes. While living abroad I knew I had to file taxes and I knew that all my income would be excluded under the foreign income exclusion. So when I tried to efile, I was frustrated that turbotax would not let me file as married because my wife didn't have a SSN. Also, there was no point for me in the ITIN as her income would also be completely excluded so not tax benefit. I filed as single for my tax purposes just to get it filed and I did this for three years. Oops. When I joined this forum I realized this could create a problem so two months ago I filed the 1040X. The only correction was the check box from single to married-filing separately. The IRS still hasn't processed the correction and I'm not sure they even will bother since it doesn't affect money owed to them or money owed to me. But I wanted to have that for the GUZ to clearly show I'm married. Next were the police certificates. My wife was having a heck of a time with the police in Shantou (her Hukou) as they wanted to state that she had no police record in their district, rather than all of China. Luckily, she has a good friend who happens to work in the police dept there and she was able to pull a few strings to get that handled. I need to buy this lady some flowers! Additionally, my wife had previously lived in Belgium, France, and Netherlands. Luckily, we had police reports in 2010 from our previous immigration efforts for Belgium in France (both countries she hadn't lived in since 2005). However, we found out that even though the police certificates were issued years AFTER she left those countries, they couldn't be used since they were issued in 2010. Apparently even these expire after one year. So we had to again request police certificates. So Belgium and France were basically stating that, yep, we didn't make a mistake on the previous report. She really didn't have a police record! Irritating but we were pleasantly surprised that they arrived in China about two weeks after requesting them. We also learned that we could not request one from NL. The embassy in Guangzhou must to so on behalf of us. The translations also proved to be a bit complicated as every agency was accustomed to translating Chinese to English but not French to English. My wife spent quite some time asking around who could translate and also certify/notorize the Belgium/France police certificates. For the I-864 I had enough assets to qualify as meeting the threshold (I don't have a job lined up in the US yet). However, I learned from this website it is always a good idea to have a joint sponsor so I asked my sister to be my wife's sponsor (my sister makes a very comfortable salary). And this paid off as they did indeed ask my wife for a joint sponsor so I'm very happy we were proactive on this. Now, my biggest worry, domicle. I was very nervous about this so I tried as much as possible to provide overkill. I have a daughter and another kid due in less than two months so I really, really did not want to be forced to move back to the US and first find a job. I provided many documents with my parents address: my US bank account, child's college fund, 2 US credit cards, mutual fund account, IRA account, etc. I also had my parents write a letter stating we would live with them temporarily while looking for new jobs when returning to the US. I also had a few emails with my companies recruiters in the US stating our intention to relocate to the US. OK, on to the interview.... I waited with my wife in the long lines outside at 7am. We finally get to the front where the CGI-Stanley girls were putting barcoded stickers on the passport. My wife wasn't paying attention but I immediately noticed the girl put a different person's sticker on my wife's passport. I immediately told the girl (in Chinese) that she made a mistake but she ignored me. I again kept telling her it was wrong and explained again that it was not my wife's name. I even pointed to her master sheet's with all the names and showed her the correct one. "This is my wife" I showed her. She was a bit flustered and I think a bit embarrassed that a foreigner was correcting her mistake. Anyway, my wife went to her document intake and interview. She had provided a few originals such as our international marriage certificate and consular report of birth abroad for our kid. I stressed to her that we needed these back. They took them and said she would get them back before her interview. Later they called her back to collect these originals. She was smart and before just stuffing them in her bag she double-checked the documents. Sure enough, they weren't ours. They mistakenly had given her documents for someone else. A second mistake! Be sure to double check everything! Other than that, the interview was a breeze and they didn't ask her for half of the things we had ready at hand (including her resume). My wife was in at 7 and done by 10, though they did give her priority since she was pregnant. So we'll have the visa within a week or so! However, we can't move back right away as my wife is too far along in her pregnancy so we'll have to have our baby in Shanghai and do another Consular Report of Birth Abroad and make sure we enter the US by December 21, as that is the day the visa will expire. I told my wife, as long as I'm back before Xmas I'll be happy so now it's a must. It's been quite a journey with loads of documents and I'm so happy it's now done. One additional tip: do not get all worked up about possible ways to be denied a visa. It's important to know the key items that can cause this but I was really concerned with domicile and spent far too much time on various internet forums regarding failing due to domicile, which was completely unnecessary since it was out of my hands and most of the crap I was reading were about other countries domicile issues and not China. In the end it was a breeze. That's all I can think of right now. A big thanks to the community!! Steve

Hello all. We're a DCF at P3 now. Couple questions about the I-864: 1. We're using my Dad as a joint sponsor, so I know that he has to fill out an I-864, and provide 3 years of tax returns, a copy of his contract at work, and a copy of his passport photo. Does he need to provide anything else? He's really hesitant to do this and I'm trying to keep the number of personal documents he needs to provide to a minimum. 2. My Dad and mom are still married, and my mom works. Under what circumstances does she need to file an I-864a? My Dad's income is enough to qualify for the joint sponsorship, but I'm not sure if they file their income taxes jointly or separately. 3. My parents are weirded out by the idea of sending these personal documents (tax returns) via FedEx to China. Is it ok to scan and print documents like the work contract, tax returns, and I-864? If so, which documents are ok to scan and email to my wife in China for printing? 4. I'm back in the USA now. Is it ok that my address on the I-864 is a US address, or should I just put the Chinese address I used on the I-130? 5. Does Guangzhou care if the I-864 joint sponsor is a family member or a friend? The whole joint sponsor thing is putting a strain on my relationship with my parents. I have a friend who would willingly joint-sponsor my wife. Which is better? Thanks in advance for anyone who has any thoughts. This green card process is driving me nuts.

Hello I am preparing for my interview. My co-sponsor retired already, so for the interview, I am going to give the VO my co-sponsor's 2012 tax return photocopy, driver's license photocopy and i-864 , is that enough? He doesn't work now so he does't have a w2, right? Thanks in advance.

I'm working on P3, and the i-864 affidavit of support. Since my income is in China, and thus (1) isn't much, and (2) won't continue after we make it to the USA, my mom has agreed to submit an i-864a. My question arises from the fact that her taxes are filed jointly with her husband. The i-864a form asks for "total income" as listed on the 1040 tax return. Since they file jointly, that "total income" line is their joint income. However the form also uses the word "individual" income. I assume that this means income for just the one person (in this case my mom), especially since there is only a place for one person to sign the form at the end. My mom and her husband could both file these i-864a forms if it would help in some way, but my mom's income is enough on its own, and besides even if they both did it, it still wouldn't be clear how to fill out the form, given that it still asks for "individual income" and only has space for one person's information on each form. So I think it makes the most sense to ask only my mom to do an i-864a and only count her income. So my proposed solution to this is to just use the income numbers from my mom's W-2's themselves (and attach the W-2s along with the tax returns). Does this seem right? My concern is that the income numbers on the i-864a don't match the income numbers on the tax returns (since the tax returns include two people's income). Either way they're both above the income requirement (125% of poverty line), so it shouldn't matter, I just don't want to delay the process with improperly filled out forms. Another minor concern is household size. When we arrive in the USA, we will be living with my mother and her husband. We are only using my mom's income for the i-864a, so we only need to count her as a member of the household, but it seems strange to count her and not her husband. On the other hand, the instruction page says you don't need to count parents etc as a household member unless you are using their income to meet the income requirement. So I guess we don't need to include him. Any thoughts?

In adding oneself to the sponsor's I-864, when it's then being processed by the NVC, which looks better to them? Would it be the status of "household member" or "joint sponsor"? My wife is the sponsor (a citizen applying for her unmarried daughter over 21). We have gotten the approval from NVC and paid for the DS-230 and I-864 but haven't sent them in yet (I have a previous post which had some general questions about that). I called NVC and they mentioned that I could do either but I'm wondering, which would carry more weight? I would guess 'joint sponsor", right? -Thanks!

I was double checking what my wife will need to turn in on the first day at the embassy along with the white books, and I-864 and my joint-sponsor's I-864, W2 (last three years), and tax returns (last three years). I also have my joint-sponsor's pay stubs last six months. Only thing I'm missing is my joint-sponsor's bank statements. If this a big no no? Should I be worried?

We got an RFE yesterday concerning my wife's AOS and of all things it was for proof that the joint sponsor (my father) is a "United States Citizen, United States National, or Lawful Permanent Resident of the United States." It says, "Submit evidence of the joint sponsor's status." "For more information, see Form I-864, page 3, 'What Is A Joint Sponsor?' For the most current version of Form I-864 including the instructions, go to "Immigration Forms" at http://www.uscis.gov or call (800) 870-3676." I re-read this section and it does not state that I must prove that my father is one of the above. I don't understand why they don't know that he is a citizen from the information we submitted. We sent in his past 3 year's Tax Reports (all meeting the income requirements) and properly filled out his own affidavit of support. We have the same last name which I know doesn't mean anything but it seems like something they would assume, and if it's something they don't assume then why not include this information in the requirements to begin with? It is not specific on what evidence will meet the requirements. But the easiest thing for him to make copies of is his passport. I am wondering which pages (if not ALL?) would be enough. I will also try to get him to copy his birth certificate, but I am tired of asking him for help. Has this happened to anyone else? Anything I could have done to avoid this? Are they "punishing" me for something they don't like about the fact that I am a full-time law student and my father is the joint sponsor? What evidence should I send that will work without question? Thanks.

What are a co-sponsor's obligations, and how long are they responsible for the person moving to the US?

It would be nice if anyone could post an example form of the I-1864 A. Would anyone happen to have a sample form?