janeth8711

Sorry CAProgrammer, only just seen your reply.
He will only have to file taxes back to May last year right?
Just to mention he has Dual citizenship and has not lived in the US for a few years.

CAProgrammer

It doesn't matter when he found out he was a USC, he needs to file for all the years he was a USC and earned income. If that is 10 years then he will need to back-file for 10 years. He may or may not actually owe any tax, it would depend on what he earned...

Edit: Actually, it isn't if he earned income, but if he earned income above a certain threshold so if he earned $300 when he was 18 he will not need to file for that year. The threshold limits are available http://www.irs.gov/publications/p501/index.html from the IRS website. He should get in touch with the IRS office at the London Embassy (they are located on the same premises but they aren't actually part of the embassy) and they can help him figure it all out.

CAProgrammer

US Citizens are required to file income tax returns with the IRS regardless of where they live. See this thread http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=690216 for a similar situation..

Noorah101

For now, he should file at least the most current 3 years of tax returns (at this time, that would be 2010, 2009, and 2008). He should submit a 2011 tax return by April 15, 2012.

Once you guys are sorted out in the USA, he should file back tax returns for any year he earned income over the IRS minimum requirement.

Rene

S Folinsky

1. Do note that the G-325 form is not, repeat not, required for the petitions for the step-children.

2. On the tax returns, the earned income exclusion leads to most, but not all, people not owing tax.

S Folinsky

It is sometimes easy to get overwhelmed in the process. And these days there may very well be an overabundant supply of information available on the internet -- much of which is wrong.

[It also happens in these forums. If I see it and think it is really wrong, I might kick and scream somewhat. There are some things that I think are wrong but fall in the "no harm, no foul" category and I often refrain from comment].

Sometimes, assistance in navigation is reason enough to hire an immigration attorney. As an analogy: I think I can figure out my own tax returns to "fill out the forms" -- but I use an accountant.

janeth8711

This makes no sense to me. He lived in the US from been 8-21 on a green card. Returned to UK to help family. His green card expired so he made the decision to abandon it as he didn't know when or if he could return.
It was only on this forum last year that people suggested he try the child citizen act of 2000 to see if he was eligible. He was and received his US passport in may 2011. So why should he have to do tax returns ? We Haven't a problem doing them for the last year but we or the US didn't Know he was a citizen.
I have looked at IRS webbiest and it says under extreme circumstances he may not have to file guess we will just have to contact them and find put for sure

Noorah101

All US citizens are required to file a US tax return (if they earn over a certain level of income), no matter where they live in the world, and no matter whether they realize they are a USC or not. Now that he knows he was a USC, he should file the tax returns.

He will need to show the most current 3 years of tax returns in order for you to get your visa. If he only wants to file 2011, then so be it, but if the ConOff asks for 2010 and 2009, and he doesn't want to do them, you won't get your visa.

Otherwise, I suppose he doesn't have to feel pressured to do any years further back than 2009 unless IRS comes after him.

Rene

janeth8711

What I'm trying to say is....... if he had not applied for his US passport, even though he was a US citizen, the IRA wouldn't have asked him to do tax returns because he wasn't formally a citizen? I know we will have to do them just seems a little unfair.

Noorah101

Having a US passport in hand makes no difference. Lots of USC's don't have a US passport. Applying for and receiving a US passport doesn't formally make him a USC, nor does the fact that he didn't have one mean he wasn't one.

He evidently formally WAS a USC, he just didn't know it at the time.

Rene

jeffreyhy

Did the IRS (I presume that's what you meant to write) ask him to submit tax returns? It generally doesn't, it leaves it up to the individual to comply with the law. What do you mean "formally" a citizen? What's 'formal' about being a citizen or not being a citizen? What's unfair about it? If one expects to enjoy the benefits of being a US citizen, such as being able to petition for a relative to immigrate to the USA, why shouldn't they be subject to the responsibilities of being a US citizen?

janeth8711

Yes the IRS and we shall comply with the law.

I thought this forum was to ask questions about emigrating ?.. And not to get slated for every comment you put on here?..
We are not tax dodgers we shall file. It's a fair enough question

jeffreyhy

Interesting that after your husband applied for a passport the DOS passed that information on to the IRS, and the IRS contacted him about filing tax returns.

Yes, this forum is primarily about US immigration. But when posters make comments it should be no surprise if other posters also make comments in response? Nobody has suggested that you are tax dodgers, and it's quite possible that there is no tax is owed to be dodged.

Regards, JEff

janeth8711

We haven't been contacted by the IRS I was enquiring so we can get it sorted before we get to that stage of our petition. That's why I was asking the question about how far back he needed to file