The Affidavit of Support—When

The Affidavit of Support—When do I need it? By: Nicole C. Dillard, Esq. 不少客人向我們谘詢到有關移民申請中the Affidavit of Support (Form I-864) 以及financial sponsor的問題，對此以下我們會談談一些相關的問題與信息。 Our office often receives questions regarding the Affidavit of Support (Form I-864) and whether they should include it with their Applications to Adjust Status. Under the law, every person who immigrates based on a relative petition must have a financial sponsor. If you choose to sponsor your relative’s immigration to the United States by filing an Immigrant Visa for Alien Relative (Form I-130), then you will also need to agree to be the financial sponsor. Additionally, a sponsor is also required for a family member coming to work for a relative, or for a company in which a relative owns 5 percent or more of the company. The Affidavit of Support helps to ensure that new immigrants will not need to rely on public benefits such as Food Stamps, Medicaid, Supplementary Security Income (SSI) and Temporary Assistance for Need Families, in order to survive in the United States. In other words, the alien will not become a public charge to the United States. If the person for whom you file an Affidavit of Support becomes a permanent resident and is later given certain public benefits, the agency that gave the benefits can require that the sponsoring relative repay that money. The sponsoring permanent resident or U.S. citizen is financially responsible for the alien relative that they sponsored for 10 years or until the person becomes a U.S. citizen. If the individual sponsoring the petition does not file the Affidavit of Support, then the sponsorship is not complete and the person will not be given permission to immigrate based on that petition. The financial qualifications for the affidavit of support requires the sponsor to prove an income at or above 125% of the Federal poverty level. (For active duty military personnel, the income requirement is 100% of the poverty level when sponsoring his/her husband, wife, or children). If your income does not meet the requirement, your assets such as checking and savings accounts, stocks, bonds or property may be considered in determining your financial ability. The Federal poverty levels are updated each year by the Department of Health and Human Services. If you do not meet financial qualifications, income of certain other household members can be added in to your income level if they sign a contract on Form I-864A, Affidavit of Support Contract Between Sponsor and Household Member, agreeing to make the income and/or assets available for the support of the relative applying for permanent residence. If you still cannot meet the financial qualifications, another person must complete a separate affidavit of support to become a joint financial sponsor of the person’s immigration. The joint sponsor must meet all sponsorship requirements separately, including the minimum income requirements for his/her household, and must be willing to assume, along with you, financial liability for the sponsored immigrants. ______________________________________________________________________________ 本文由範毅禹律師事務所提供 本律師事務所精辦各類勞工應聘及專業移民申請 (包括H-1，L-1，EB-1，EB-2，NIW，勞工卡，綠卡等申請)。所有申請由多位美籍律師及擁有15年經驗的範毅禹律師親自處理，我所並特設中英移民網站。內有最新移民新聞資訊及由律師主持的移民問答集，歡迎讀者流覽查詢。 www.Fan-Law.com CALIFORNIA : Fan, Fitzpatrick & Thompson, LLP. 370 E. Glenarm St., Pasadena , CA 91106 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] MARYLAND : Fan, Fitzpatrick & Thompson, LLP. 230 North Washington Street, Suite 400 , Rockville , MD 20850 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] All sponsors must be United States (U.S.) citizens or permanent residents, be at least 18, and be living in the U.S. (including territories and possessions) when they file the affidavit support.