Support/Sponsorship~Two part question

[JC1970]

I am the petioner/US Citizen
My fiance is a British Citizen (Born in Germany)

Even though I am making 26,707 a year plus child support of 6,000 a year, I would more than qualify at a total of 32,707. My question is, if by chance would I need a co sponsor, and could they be from a different state?

My fiance's cousin is in Tennessee and I am the main sponsor in Minnesota.

Proof of relationship:
Phone records of calling each other.
Photographs of us together. (2)
A receipt from my fiance when he bought me a gift from Manchester
A luggage tag stating he flew to Minnesota
Cards he sent me plus the envelopes with the royal mail stamps on them
His passport stamped/ proof of being in Minnesota
Emails to each other from ******** & a social networking website

Am I ok as far as proof of relationship goes? I know I worry about the "what if's", but I want to make sure I've got enough info together.

We both intend to marry and are free to do so. I have all the forms and copies made, tax returns copied,w2's,copies of both our decrees, letter from the bank stateing my average balance, when account opened, etc.

I will be sending the petiton out in February. What has anyone else who made it out fine, send with the petition? I want to send the most I can, to save time and money. Replys would be greatly appreciated. I wont be sending the tax income and other stuff now, until later. Just working ahead of time.
Thank you. Cheers

[BigJoe5]

Your financial info is all that is required, it does not look like you need a co-sponsor.

At this point all you NEED to show is that you two have recently met. Your photos and his passport along with freedom to marry info. is all you have to show. Lastly, your expressions of an intent to marry each other finishes it.

People needlessly worry because of all the horror stories out there, those stories come from the worst of the worst. Real relationships are easy to show.

[JC1970]

Thanks big joe for your reply.Yes I do worry. I just want to do everything the right way.
Thank you

[nichole]

You won't need a co-sponsor unless you have a really big family. It is a little early for a bank letter. They would like to have something fairly recent to the interview. You could order tax transcripts now for 2008, 2009 since they're free and can be used for AOS. Your 2010 tax return will be needed by the time of the interview next year because I'm sure it will fall after April 15. Keep in mind that the poverty level guidelines normally changeFeb/Mar and could be higher.

In general, London wants to see two proofs of income. Your 2010 tax return is going to be expected. If he gives them 3 years, they'll hand 2 back before the interviewer even sees them. The second evidence could be a couple of months of your most recent pay stubs or a letter from your employer stating position, how long, yearly salary. I would suggest you prepare those and mail over around the time you get the approval of the petition so they are considered recent.

As far as the original petition, keep in mind they are firstly looking to see if you meet the criteria, not how much in love you are.

US citizen - birth certificate showing you are born in US (or other proof if not)

Both free to marry - divorce decrees. A tip on this is the UK decree looks more like a letter and has been overlooked by USCIS. On the photocopy of it you submit, use a highlighter to mark the paragraph indicating it is final. And look at the very bottom of the page for a teeny, tiny footer that says "decree absolute" and highlight that.

Both intend to marry - the letters from each of you stating you are free to marry and intend to. There are sample letters on this website. Dated and signed in ink. No email versions. Originals not photocopies.

You have met in person within last two years - This is where the passport stamps showing entry into the US comes in. Boarding passes are better than an itinery because it shows he got on the plane. We sent credit card statements showing we each made purchases in Harrod's on the same day. Also we had Best Buy receipts that printed our names and my home town store address on them for the same date. Those kinds of things show proof of physically being in the same place. His receipt for a gift he bought in Manchester doesn't show anything.

Those are the real basics. Emails and phone logs are extra fluff in my opinion so don't over-do those. You don't want your petition so over loaded with your love life that they can't find the basics they need to approve the petition.

One more heads up for the interview. Often people not born in the UK will get put in AP (additional processing) after the interview. I've seen at least a dozen be in AP for 2-8 weeks while they do optional security checks they don't do on UK born folks. Most are foreign students studying in England, but at least one held a British passport and had lived in the UK since infancy, but born in Pakistan. Just don't buy plane tickets or make big specific wedding plans until he has the visa in hand, even if the interview goes well and the officers indicates he is approving. There have been many delays receiving the visa in those cases, even when they were told "you're approved." Don't know how Germany will play into the equation being EU, but I wanted to mention the possibility before you make plans. One guy missed his wedding. Others lost money on plane tickets. Some barely made their wedding with much stress and panic.

Good luck to you!

[JC1970]

Thank you Nicole for your reply. Helpful to us as always.
I will let my fiance know about the AP. It's good to know that. We won't be making wedding plans until he is actually here with visa in hand.