Intent Letter and Relationship letter

[mintonmatt]

Hi guys,

 

I was wondering what you guys might think about my intent letter. This is the first and hopefully last time I have to go through this process. I have been told that my letter is too casual and that my letter about my relationship with my spouse has too much information,

 

Any thoughts? What should I omit?

 

My letters are below:

 

Intent Letter:

 

 

To whom this may concern:

 

I am writing this letter to attempt to provide proof of my intent to re-establish domicile in the United States as per the requirements of the I-864 form.

I currently live in Thailand with my wife. My wife and I intend to move to the United States and live with my close friend and his family at their residence in Redmond, Washington, temporarily, while we look for a home to buy. We intend to move there shortly after her immigrant visa is processed.

I have a permanent mailing address in the US where my mail has been going and where all of my belongings are currently stored. I also have a current bank account in the state of New York through Bank of America which can be used nationally. I have had this account since 2005 and continue to pay my school loans and credit cards every month utilizing this account.

I first came to Thailand to visit my family, who all live in Bangkok, in 2011. My mother had decided to return to the country of her origins in 2004. My parents were getting older and I hadn’t seen them for seven years since I was living in the states. I decided to stay awhile and shortly thereafter decided to start school there to get a degree that would allow me to work abroad and continue to travel.

That all changed after I met my wife. She was already in visa proceedings to go study in the US. She had been accepted at a university in Oklahoma and she dropped all her plans to make a life with me. We got married and have been extremely happy since. I decided to stop going to school in mid-2013 and started making plans to return to the US to start a family and return to Washington State largely due the political situation here. I worry about our safety and it has gradually gotten worse. We actually came to this conclusion around May 26, 2013 when a bomb was detonated at a store front on our main road. Currently, we live across from Ramkhamhaeng University where 4 students were killed and scores were injured in shootings and a bomb attack on Nov 30, 2013. I feel Bangkok is no longer a safe place.

Upon return, my close friends and I plan to start up an online business while I find employment in the tech sector and or customer service/sales sector. Returning to the games industry is also an option. I will also seek to finish my education in night school to open doors of opportunity in the future.

My wife has completed her certification to teach Chinese and intends to finish her education in Washington State and then continue for a Masters in Education.

I thank you for your time in this matter and hope we will have met all parameters and requirements needed to begin the rest of our lives in America.

Sincerely,

 

xxxxxxxxxxx

 

 

Relationship Letter:

 

To whom this may concern:

 

I first met my wife at my professor’s birthday party. Interestingly, a few weeks before I was to attend his party, he told me “You know, there’s a girl I know, who would be perfect for you”.

Little did I know that the woman he was referring to would become my wife. We met briefly and unfortunately, I was not able to stay at the party. A couple of days later I received a message on Facebook. It was her. She had “liked” one of my silly photos. I messaged her back and we started to chat…a lot. We found that we had a lot of things in common. Our favorite cartoons as children were the same and we started to notice that we would type the same things when we were talking. We talked and talked for hours on end about anything and everything. We were quickly becoming great friends.

She later invited me out to dinner with a bunch of other students. It would be the first time seeing each other since the party. When I sat down next to her, I felt more comfortable than I had ever felt in my life. I wasn’t sure if she had feelings for me for more than a good friend, but the way she looked at me and smiled when I talked to her made me feel something I had never felt. It literally felt as if I had known her forever. We all went to a lounge afterward and we chatted some more and a man selling roses walked by. I decided to buy a rose in front of everyone. I then handed it to Jijun (Daisy). All of the other girls were jealous. It was a great moment.

We became inseparable and started spending copious amounts of time together. We gravitated towards one another. If we weren’t near one another, we were chatting on various chat apps and sharing photos and ideas and bits of our lives to one another. I knew in my heart I had found my “soul mate”. The one I was supposed to be with. She was my dream girl. I had a fortunate opportunity in meeting her, yet there was a sad reality upon the horizon. Jijun (Daisy)had been accepted to a school in the USA and was planning on leaving in a few short months for the states. We hadn’t expected to meet one another. We hadn’t expected to fall so deeply in love. I decided to just take it one day at a time and to enjoy the time that we had together.

Daisy’s parents had already made plans to visit and I was delighted to finally meet them. I didn’t feel nervous at all and we all had a great time. As the departure date approached for her to return to China with her parents, she dropped a huge bombshell. She had decided to cancel her visa appointment at great expense, as her parents had already paid the necessary visa fees, and told me that she was going to stay with me in Bangkok and see where our relationship would go. When she returned from her Phuket trip, our families had dinner and it was then I walked up to her father and told him how crazy I was about his daughter and that I wished to marry her. I had learned to say it in Chinese. He approved. I was so elated. Later that night as we said our final goodbyes, Jijun’s father pulled me aside and told me that he trusted in me that I would take care of his daughter and that he was very happy to see his daughter so happy.

 

The most amazing aspect was what my mother did. There had been a ring she promised to give me one day to ask someone to marry me. Problem was that she had never liked any of the women I had dated, so I was not sure if my mother would accept Jijun. I was amazed at how nice and sweet my mother was toward her. She had refused to meet all but one of my exes in the past. I had asked my mother for the ring and she had told me that she had sold the ring long ago. I was quite upset. I had planned on giving the ring to Jijun. One day, my mother had asked her to meet her for the day. I was amazed that my mom would ask to spend time with her. When she returned from their meeting, she was beaming. She then showed me her hand. The “lost ring” was on her finger. My mother had lied to me. She hadn’t sold it. She was holding on to it for the right girl. She wanted to make sure I didn’t give it to another. So my mother, who has hated everyone I had ever dated, personally gave Daisy my engagement ring. It was an amazing way to show she had accepted Jijun as her future daughter-in-law.

We began to live together and planned to go to China to get married. We went to Chengdu for a month-long vacation and the day finally arrived. I married my dream girl on April 18^th, 2013.

Things have been amazing since then and I couldn’t have dreamed to ever be so happy in my life. I have such a great reason to wake up each day. We have talked a great deal about our future and decided it would be best to return to the United States to finish our education and shortly thereafter, start a family. When I think about this future, I smile a great big smile and breathe a sigh of contentment that I have my life partner at my side each day, looking towards the future, together.

 

Thank you for reading.

Yours,

 

xxxxxxxxxxx

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest ExChinaExpat]

Hello MintOnMatt, welcome,

 

Thanks for taking the time to post your letters of such a personal nature for feedback. There is a lot of emotion involved in the visa process that comes out in your letters. For that reason, I think it's important to remember your audience: The US Government Immigration offices and those who work for them. While they are human, they also have a job to do. Are they void of emotion? Who can know? So, it's very important to stick to just the facts. You may be too young to remember a old American television show called: Dragnet from the 1950s and was relaunched in the 1970s. It featured a couple of Los Angeles detectives who every week investigated some kind of crime. Joe Friday was the main character, and his words always ring in my mind whenever he questioned a witness to a crime. The witnesses had a tendency to drone-on-and-on about what they saw, what they were doing when they woke up, what they had for breakfast, and the like. Joe Friday was noted for saying: "Just the facts maam". Maybe you can google it and get the idea. Anyway, keep in mind government people want "just the facts." To give them that, I suggest you compose your letters in a date format that makes it easy for the reader to scan.

 

For example:

 

01/12/2011: Met with friends for dinner. Spotted a hot babe sitting in the corner alone. Walked up to her and asked her to join us. She did, and later we walked together.

 

01/13:2011: Woke up with the hot babe, now known as Shiela, and had breakfast at Dennys. She gave me her number and asked me to call later.

 

1/14/2011 - 5/22/2011: Have been calling and meeting with Shiela for a few months now. Wow, she's great! Ready to bump to the next level.

 

 

Anyway, all levity aside I hope you get the idea. I am trying to illustrate how to keep it a little shorter and stay to just the facts without getting too personal. In my opinion, using a timeline approach when writing letters like these not only helps the reader, but the writer also.

 

Good luck

Edited December 8, 2013 by GuangDongExpat (see edit history)

[mintonmatt]

Something more like this?

 

To whom this may concern:

 

Here is a list of dates detailing my relationship with Jijun Dong

Sept 8^th 2012 - I first met Jijun ‘Daisy’ Dong at a friend’s birthday party. Shortly after, we began to chat regularly and started to spend time with one another.

Sept 21st 2012 - We began our courtship.

Nov 9^th 2012 - I met Jijun’s parents and asked her father if I could marry his daughter at dinner with our parents present.

March 30^th 2013 - I went to China to meet the rest of her family including her grandparents

April 18^th 2013 - I married Jijun in Chengdu, China

May 7^th - May 16^th 2013 - Honeymoon in Taipei, Taiwan

May 17^th 2013 to present - Currently living together in Bangkok, Thailand.

 

All dates herein are truthful to the best of my knowledge.

 

Thank you for your time,

 

xxxxxxxxxx

[Guest ExChinaExpat]

Something more like this?

 

To whom this may concern:

 

Here is a list of dates detailing my relationship with Jijun Dong

Sept 8^th 2012 - I first met Jijun ‘Daisy’ Dong at a friend’s birthday party. Shortly after, we began to chat regularly and started to spend time with one another.

Sept 21st 2012 - We began our courtship.

Nov 9^th 2012 - I met Jijun’s parents and asked her father if I could marry his daughter at dinner with our parents present.

March 30^th 2013 - I went to China to meet the rest of her family including her grandparents

April 18^th 2013 - I married Jijun in Chengdu, China

May 7^th - May 16^th 2013 - Honeymoon in Taipei, Taiwan

May 17^th 2013 to present - Currently living together in Bangkok, Thailand.

 

All dates herein are truthful to the best of my knowledge.

 

Thank you for your time,

 

xxxxxxxxxx

 

Yes, I think that's all that's needed. It's clear and easy to read. You can include a few photos (no more than six) with dates and names handwritten on the back. Then, during the interview, there may be additional questions. Because you have both lived it together, it will be easy for you to elaborate at that time. But, it's not likely they will even ask more details about how much you love each other. Pity, but that's the facts.

 

:-)

Edited December 8, 2013 by GuangDongExpat (see edit history)

[danb]

Mintonmatt, welcome to the forum. I like you letter. But like GDE said about the facts. They are probably very important. A suggestion be if you could have is that the facts can be interweavon with the supporting evidence that you will be presenting . Ie.. a pictureof having dinner or at your wedding with your folks, her folks and your wife. Also some info that supports you relationship with your wife. The apartment that you live in with leases or bills in both of you names. Good luck , Danb