The I-130 Petition of Alien Relative is a “Relationship Verifying Process” that creates a high level of “document requirements” for marriage-based filings. The younger the relationship/marriage, the less evidence generally exists. This blog post will discuss how to start preparations before filing an I-130 (or if an I-130 is already pending, how to increase evidence).
In order to begin starting a life together, USCIS has broken many aspects of a relationship into categories. For all relationships, Photos and Communication, are absolutely required and are great starting places to bolster your Bona Fide Evidence. The Following categories will add more structure to your preparations.
Below is a more thorough review of how many joint photos to provide:
Spouses are expected to have access to each other’s money / finances. A Joint Bank account is MANDATORY if the immigrant has a Social Security Number. When someone doesn’t have a Social Security Number, banks are not generally able to add an immigrant on an account as the Social Security Number is needed for either FDIC Compliance or as a bank policy.
If you are able to have a Joint Account, USCIS would require 12 months of statements, or as many as possible. Meaning, if you’ve been married for 2 years, and have a joint account for 3 years, USCIS would want 3-years of bank statements. The more the better.
No US Citizen likes to “play” with IRS filings. As such, the IRS 1040 Tax Return and IRS Tax Return Transcript is a great piece of evidence to prove a marriage. Although a Social Security Number is generally needed, Immigrants (and even US Citizens) can look into an ITIN or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number to facilitate the “joint” tax filing.
This category is probably the most applicable to married couples. the following list can show how many things can actually be used to help prove marital home:
Mandatory:
Super Highly Recommend providing at least 3 of the following that contains BOTH SPOUSE’S NAMES:
If your relationship started 5 years ago, then USCIS expects evidence spanning 5 years. Although it is a marriage-filing, USCIS wants to see the full relationship and communication is 100% mandatory for any marriage. Ideally, USCIS wishes to see proof of communication for the following phases of the relationship:
The Types of Communication Proof can be:
In the US Military, a spouse is required to be added into the DEERS System, which would provide the following:
These are great marital records to be provided to USCIS. More guidance can be found here:
Social Media Posts are ideal pieces of evidence for younger individuals and are quite common. USCIS likes this form of evidence because social media posts are (1) time-stamped, and (2) can link the people present in the post or photo. Moreover, holding you and your spouse out to the public as “a relationship” or as “a spouse” helps show to an officer that a significant other is important in someone’s life.
No, Social Media does not need to be provided by both spouses. Meaning, at least 1 spouse may be able to provide this type of evidence. However, both spouses sharing their lives on social media, and all posts and photos are recommended to be provided to USCIS. The more evidence the better. Screenshots of the posts are sufficient.
A summary, introduction, and timeline of a relationship can help “condense” a relationship into a quick bite-size snapshot. “A Letter to your USCIS Officer” is a nice courtesy. The following post will help explain further. However, a summary is INSUFFICIENT by itself. There must be evidence to prove a relationship, and a letter is not considered evidence.
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