Most of the USCIS and Department of State forms that you will have to submit during this process must be submitted with certain required supporting documentation or evidence. It is critical that you be sure to include all of the required supporting documentation with your petition. The most common reason that petitions are rejected or returned is a result of the petitioner's failure to include all of the required supporting documentation.

This Guide provides specific instructions and checklists for the supporting documentation you will need to submit. Be sure to read those instructions carefully and double-check that you have included all the required documentation before submitting the petition.

You do not need to provide originals of the requested documentation. In fact, the USCIS discourages applicants from submitting originals. If the USCIS wants to see an original document they will ask for it but this is uncommon. Be sure to keep copies of all supporting documentation that is submitted for your records and keep the originals in a safe place.

In some cases, this Guide provides samples or examples of certain types of supporting documentation you will need to submit in order to help you identify and locate the documents required. These are samples only and you must submit your own documents.

In other cases, this Guide provides document templates in Word format that you can download, complete and submit as your document. When using these documents be sure to follow the instructions carefully and enter the data required to complete the template.