martincr

Hi all,

I have my IR-1 interview on Thursday and 'discovered' that my sponsor has not filed their taxes for >3 years - having lived in the UK for around 15 years (no excuse, I know).

Q1. Is it possible to file these online using software such as Turbo Tax and receive an acknowledgement in order to make the interview worthwhile?

Q2. It appears to be currently impossible to file online for free. Are there better tools rather than Turbo Tax that people could recommend?

I gather we need to complete a 1040 and a 2555 only.

Thanks as always-

FK Murphy

My wife USC has lived in the UK most of her life and has not been able to file taxes online and has always had to do this via the standard overseas way, through the mail. No sure if this has changed though.

Noorah101

I don't know the answers to your questions, but I have a couple of my own:

1. Has she earned enough income to warrant filing a tax return for those years?

2. Are you going to be using a Joint Sponsor?

Worst case scenario is that you go to the interview lacking the tax returns, and if the ConOff wants to see them, she will give you time to get them filed and return copies to her. Then she can approve your visa.

Rene

jeffreyhy

Don't know about available filing methods, but acknowlegement of filing is not needed and serves no purpose. What is needed, if tax returns were required by tax law, is either a complete copy of the tax returns or IRS tax transcripts. Maybe. Couldn't say without knowing the details of your wife's income situation. Regards, JEff

martincr

1. Yes.
2. No, she's my sponsor(!).

martincr

She's worked here in the UK full time for the best part of 15 years.

Noorah101

I'm not sure why you used an exclamation point there, but I was asking because many USCs who live and work in the UK don't qualify financially on the I-864. Therefore, a joint sponsor is used. If a joint sponsor is used, the USC's lack of tax returns could become less of an issue.

Rene

martincr

Ah. Fair play.
It was more because all this information has come to light today.

Noorah101

Thanks for explaining

Rene

jeffreyhy

I can't contain myself any longer - you've been married to her how long, and you are just now findig out that she hasn't been filing US tax returns? US tax returns are so aggravating that she would have made you suffer along with her had she been filing. The lack of which should have made you immediately raise the question when you first learned than I-864 requires copies of the sponsor's tax returns.

Or have you only just now looked at the I-864?

Regards, JEff

ian-mstm

To clarify, you have an immigrant visa interview on Thursday. The IR-1 part of it doesn't come into play until you actually enter the US.


Right, no excuse. All USCs are required, by law, to file a US tax return if they earn more than the IRS threshold for filing.

Regardless, go to the interview. Your visa will not be approved until such time as the sponsor submits the tax returns. You will be allowed time to submit that information and provide proof of such to the officer.

Ian

martincr

Yep. Long story, aggravating answer.

I only just noticed this was part of the I-864.

martincr

Thanks Ian.

md95065

... but the fact that US tax returns are indeed so aggravating is not something that would typically occur to someone who was accustomed to the UK system ...

jeffreyhy

Read my post again, carefully, in particular the part that you omitted from the quote.

Regards, JEff