Hiya Kristen,
This will be a long one. I understand that you probably know quite a bit of this already, but I'll try and be clear and cover as much as I can just incase.
DS-230: No, you dont have to send off your DS-230 with your I-130. It helps to hurry things along if you do, but its not a requirement.
The traditional way of doing it probably doesnt take much longer really. It goes like this :
- Send in I-130.
- Wait for news that the petition was ok'ed.
- Wait some more for the DS-230 packet to be sent to you.
- Fill out the DS-230, send it in.
- Wait for your interview date and affidavit packet.
If you send them both in at the same time you get to say in your coverletter that both were submitted simultaneously. This helps the people dealing with your OK'ed I-130 to find your husband's DS-230 and continue processing without having to wait. So the steps then become:
- I-130 and DS-230 sent at the same time.
- Wait for I-130 approval letter.
- Wait some more for the interviewdate. In the mean time start working on your I-864.
Thats a really long winded way of saying that, huh?
I-864: Im afraid I cant agree entirely with John's advice about the Tax returns.
US Citizens, no matter where in the world they live, do not have to file tax returns if they have ZERO income for a tax year. If you had no personal income in the UK or in the US in any given tax year, you DO NOT need to file.
In a cover letter accompanying your affidavit you should make it clear that you did not have X number of tax returns because you did not have income in XYZ years. It is completely acceptable not to have tax returns if you had no income.
For example, I had worked only 2 years out of the 3 years I was required to submit tax returns for. I was unemployed when I submitted my affidavit. My income from those 2 years was made in the US for 1 year and in the UK for the second year. I filed late for the second year because I didnt realize I had to file. The year I didnt submit tax returns was because I was not working and had no income of any kind. I made it clear in my cover letter that I could not submit a tax return for that reason.
All of this was perfectly acceptable. They didnt bat an eyelash at the fact that I was only able to submit 2 tax returns and that I was unemployed when I submitted the affidavit.
The fact that you have not worked in the UK, are currently unemployed, and do not have tax returns (because you had no income) for the last 3 years will NOT make you inellegible to sponsor your husband.
If you have enough in assets to meet the "income / asset" requirement than you will be able to support your husband on your own without a co-sponsor. The new poverty guidelines for 2004 are due out very soon if they have not been released already.
You should calculate your household size and find the "125% above the poverty line" figure on the newly released guidlelines for that household size.
Because you have no income you have to come up with the $ figure in assets. Times the figure by 5 and you have the total amount of assets you must show to INS.
For example: In 2003 the guidelines looked like this -
Household size of 2
Poverty Line = $12,120
125% Poverty Line = $15,150
If the US citizen in that household was not earning at least $15,150 in at least the most recent of the 3 last tax years, they would have to use assets to make up the difference.
In this example you are the US Citizen in a household of 2. You have NO income in any of the three tax years. You must use assets in order to sponsor, therefore you must show $15,150 x 5. You must have at least $75,750 in assets.
So If you have a house, cars, savings, positive bank balance, and / or investments and their current value totals $75,750 or more, then you meet the requirement to sponsor.
Remember the figures I used were for 2003 and the 2004 guildlines should be the ones that you use. They shouldnt have gone up much so you can use the figures I demonstrated with to get a good guess of what you'll have to show.
And again, it is NOT a problem that you are currently unemployed. Many of us expats who are going back with spouses didnt have jobs when we applied for the visas. Missy, for example, isnt employed right now and they did just fine. Its also not a problem that you didnt have any income personally in the last 3 years and dont have tax returns because of it.
If it makes you feel better, have your sister make up her co-sponsor affidavit and send it to you. Hold it back at the interview unless they say your assets arent enough to be the sole sponsor. That way you have some back up - just in case.
I hope that helps. Your situation isnt unusual and its nothing they havent seen day in and day out.
I know that was WAY long and probably really repetative (with bad spelling all around). I hope it helped.
Sarah
