Does the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines accept co-sponsors / joint sponsors for a K1 Visa Application?

Short Answer:

It depends. It’s not a yes. It’s not a no. There is no clear-cut answer to this one. It’s a risk you have to take.

There has been no official announcement  (meaning if they accept it or not, they only mention that laws do not disallow co-sponsorship) by the U.S. Embassy Manila about their policy for accepting joint or co-sponsors when applying for a K1 Fiancé(e) Visa. The Consular Officer’s decision is based on “totality of circumstances” and their own discretion.

Very Long Answer (Explanation):

What most people don’t think about (And this is just my opinion), and something you should read so you can understand why this seems arbitrary:

When successful applicants go to the U.S. under a K1 Visa, they don’t get to work right away. They have to get married (within 90 days) and say they got married on Day 80 of 90, file AOS/EAD/AP paperwork (which costs a whole lot of money, by the way) and then wait for 2-3 months after you submit paperwork to get the EAD/AP Combo Card to allow you to work. But that doesn’t end there, the AOS application is still ongoing for the next 3 or so months. That’s at least 5 months or so of no work for the K1 Visa Recipient / Foreign Spouse from the date of U.S. Entry. Add in the factor that it’s might not be that easy to find work in the state they intend to live in (depends on the State’s unemployment rate / available jobs) which could add more months of unemployment for the Foreign Spouse.

The U.S. Citizen Fiancé(e) is the one financially responsible for you as he is your main sponsor, signing the I-134 Affidavit of Support. This serves as a basis for the Consular Officer to decide on whether the USC Fiancé(e) is financially capable to support the K1 Visa applicant on his own annual income and (liquidatable) assets. The USC Fiancé(e) must surpass at least 100% of the Poverty Guidelines. By themselves.

You are entering into a marriage / commitment and not passing the Poverty Guidelines (after all considerations of savings and assets) means you won’t be able to take care of / provide for your soon-to-be spouse. Say your soon-to-be-spouse is going to be working and helping with the finances later on after you get married. What about the months of not being employed because the Foreign Spouse isn’t legally able to work? Or if there’s a K2 Visa Derivative (K1 Visa Applicant’s child), who’s going to provide for their daily needs? If the Consular Officer is not convinced that the USC Petitioner will be able to provide for the K1/K2 Visa Applicants on his own, then the applicants will be deemed as Public Charge, and this is something that makes them ineligible as K1/K2 Visa recipients.

The 100% is just the I-134, Affidavit of Support though. Suppose you pass the 100%, Great. What about future USCIS Processes? Adjustment of Status (AOS) requires Form I-864 Affidavit of Support and supporting Financial Documents. Form I-864 requires the Sponsor to pass 125% of the Poverty Guidelines. This is probably why there has been confusion between the prescribed percentages on Poverty Guidelines. This information is mostly overlooked by K1 Visa Petitioners and/or Applicants.

Safest bet?

Make sure the USC Petitioner passes 100% (at least close to 125%) on his/her own.

“U.S. immigration law requires that all K nonimmigrant visa applicants establish that they are not likely to become a public charge.  Petitioners in K visa cases are generally expected to provide the adequacy of their own financial resources to ensure that applicants, after admission into the United States, will not become primarily dependent on the U.S. Government for subsistence.”

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K Visas and the I-134 Affidavit of Support (IV)
VISATISFIED VOYAGER
Official Blog of U.S. Embassy Manila, Philippines

With my case, my then-fiancé-now-husband was a graduating college student, works full-time, recently gotten a promotion as a manager (but we lacked documentary proof of monetary increase, hence we got a 221G; we complied right away and have been approved.) I also had a good earning potential: I work in I.T., have a university degree, and have been in a managerial role for over 4 years before moving into the US. Consular Officers mostly just look at the USC Petitioner’s earning potential / financial status. If Consular Officers are going to look at “totality of circumstances” they should be looking at the K1 Visa applicant’s earning potential, too.

Remember: This ALL depends on the Consular officer’s definition of “totality of circumstances” and their own discretion. But I digress.

So back to the original question:

On the K1 Visa Stage, can the US Citizen Petitioner ask another U.S. Citizen to be a co-sponsor?

It depends. On what you ask? Familial ties.

We had a co-sponsor, my husband’s best friend who earns an annual income of 5 figures close to 6 ($ XX,XXX), waaaaay above the 125% Poverty Guidelines. What’s the result? Our co-sponsorship was denied. Why? Because the I-134 is not a legally binding document.

(Also something to note: This might not legally bind the Sponsor and his financial responsibilities over the Applicant but signing the I-134 alone means the USC Petitioner confirms the veracity of the information in the document. Signing the Form I-134 is under penalty of perjury under U.S. Law.)

This is an excerpt from a post on U.S. Embassy Manila’s Blog, The Visatisfied Voyager:

“While our immigration law does not disallow joint sponsorships for K nonimmigrant visa applicants, joint sponsors in nonimmigrant visa cases are not legally bound to address the financial needs of the applicant and are, therefore, not always sufficiently credible to overcome the public charge provisions of Section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.  For this reason, petitioners should be able to demonstrate their ability to maintain an income of at least 100% of the federal poverty guidelines for their prospective household sizes.”

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K Visas and the I-134 Affidavit of Support (IV)
VISATISFIED VOYAGER
Official Blog of U.S. Embassy Manila, Philippines

Co-sponsors are not legally-bound to support the K1 Visa Applicant. The way I look at it is (and most possibly why non-familial co-sponsors are denied): They’re not the one’s marrying the applicant nor will be related by law. The reason might be funny, but it is true. There is no legal ties between the K1 Visa Applicant and the non-familial co-sponsor.

So why are there other cases that were approved WITH co-sponsorship?

Well, what I’ve observed with people I personally know and their cases: Their I-134 co-sponsors are related / have strong familial ties to the USC Petitioner: USC’s parents, aunt/uncle, siblings. Most especially if they live in the same house as the USC Petitioner.

One thing you always have to remember throughout the entire process is that every case varies, every case is unique. It might have worked on some people you know, some people you’ve heard about and/or read about online, but it doesn’t mean it would work for you. It doesn’t mean it would work for everyone else. There is no assurance that co-sponsorship would work. It’s a risk you have to take.

What should we do now then?

• The USC should strive to get a higher-paying job and/or promotion so he can pass the Poverty Guidelines on his own or;
• Get a co-sponsor / joint sponsor that is a member of the USC’s family. Both the USC petitioner and the Co-sponsor signs each his own I-134 Affidavit of Support and submits supporting documents of their claims on the Form I-134.

Joint sponsors must be:

• Be U.S. citizen or national or a permanent resident
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Be domiciled (live) in the United States
• Meet all of the financial requirements of a sponsor pursuant to INA 213A

As defined by USCIS:

“A joint sponsor is someone who is willing to accept legal responsibility for supporting your family member with you. A joint sponsor must meet all the same requirements as you, except the joint sponsor does not need to be related to the immigrant. The joint sponsor (or the joint sponsor and his or her household) must reach the 125% income requirement alone. You cannot combine your income with that of a joint sponsor to meet the income requirement.”

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Affidavit of Support
USCIS.gov

Some things you need to remember:

• I-864 is a legally-binding document.
• Same requirements with Primary Sponsors apply to Joint Sponsors.
• Needless to say, it’s the same duties, responsibilities and obligations too.

If you’re asking someone to be your joint sponsor, it’s only fair to let them know what being a Joint Sponsor entails. Show them the links below:

• What are my duties and responsibilities as a Sponsor signing the Form I-864?
• When will my obligations as a Sponsor on I-864, Affidavit of Support end?

Now what I’ve explained above should NOT be taken, in any way, as an ASSURANCE that your co-sponsorship (especially with U.S. Embassy Manila) will be accepted, but a guide in choosing the sponsor wisely that the Consular Officer might consider for your case.

Again, it all boils down to:

• The Petitioner’s own annual income/savings/assets
• The Consular Officer’s discretion

Fast Forward:

If your K1 Visa has been approved based entirely on the USC Petitioner’s income, savings, and assets but does not surpass 125% of the Poverty Guidelines for the next stage, Adjustment of Status (AOS), What do you do? Click here to find out the answer.

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Sources:

• USCIS.gov – Form I-134, Affidavit of Support
• USCIS.gov – Form I-864 Affidavit of Support
• USCIS.gov – HHS Poverty Guidelines
• USCIS.gov – I-765, Application for Employment Authorization
• USCIS.gov – Public Charge