Minimum Income Requirements 

Only the U.S. Sponsor’s income is considered when determining if you meet the income requirement.

The Fiancee Visa and the Spouse Visa do not have the same income requirements. Applicants for a Fiancee Visa will need to show that their U.S. Sponsor’s income is 100 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Applicants for a Spouse Visa will need to show that their U.S. Sponsor’s income is 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.

Required Annual Income (For Fiancee Visa)
$20,440, if 2 Persons in Family or Household
$25,820, if 3 Persons in Family or Household
$31,200, if 4 Persons in Family or Household

For each additional person, add $5,380

Required Annual Income (For Spouse Visa or Green Card)
$25,550, if 2 Persons in Family or Household
$32,275, if 3 Persons in Family or Household
$39,000, if 4 Persons in Family or Household

For each additional person, add $6,725

The Financial eligibility thresholds are lower for
active military, and higher for residents of Alaska or Hawaii.

How to prove your Income.

To demonstrate income, the US sponsor normally provides his or her most recent Federal Tax Return, 3 to 6 pay stubs showing ‘Year to date’ earnings, or a letter from the employer confirming employment, job title and what the expected annual pay is.

Cash Assets can count as an alternative to income.

In some cases, a sponsor’s income may be too low, but instead he or she has ‘money in the bank’. In that case, Cash assets, can be used as a substitute for annual income. ‘Cash’ assets are assets which can be easily converted (sold) to cash. For example: stocks, bonds, certificates of deposit, monies in a checking account can be used. Other types of assets can also be used.

Cash Asset Equivalents

$5 in cash assets = $1 annual income

For example, a Fiancee Visa sponsor, with NO income, and no dependents (so has a household of 2 persons) would need to have $102,200 in cash assets to qualify for a Fiancee Visa.

5 x $20,440 = $102,200

Alternatively, a combination of income and assets will work. For example, if the sponsor’s retirement income is $10,000 per year, then he should have at least $48,600 cash assets to qualify.

$20,440 – $10,000 = $9,720 x 5 = $48,600 cash assets needed.

Using a Financial Joint-sponsor

If the sponsor’s income or assets are not enough to achieve the eligibility threshold, the sponsor can ask a relative or friend to act as a joint-sponsor. Just like buying a car, the joint-sponsor is essentially ‘co-signing’ your visa application.

When a joint-sponsor is used, the size of the household increases. The combined household (for financial calculations) would include the household size of the sponsor combined with the household size of the joint-sponsor.

For example, a college student petitioning for his fiancee, asks his father to be a joint-sponsor. Both the student and father must each complete an affidavit of support. The student’s household is just 2 persons, himself and his fiancee. The father’s household would be father, mother, and the two siblings still living at home. Thus, the combined household would be 6 persons, (2 from the student and 4 from the father) meaning an acceptable combined income to support the 6-person household would have to be at least $41,960 or more.