Teuchtar

Hi

My Husband (US) has not filed taxes since he's been here (8 years), we have the I-130 approval and have deliberately stalled the process since we aren't leaving until June next year. Ideal, as I know I will have to file his taxes for him for the affadavit of support. Trouble is, i literally don't even know where to start...has anyone seen anything like an idiots guide out there to start?

Thanks
Caroline
(and, yes, I know he should have filed but he didn't...and yes, I know he should do the work but it'll be me...!)

ian-mstm

Sadly, the IRS at the US Embassy in London is no longer helping people. You'll need to get the forms from www.irs.gov and go from there. Your specific tax questions should be posted in the main USA forum because, strictly speaking, it's not an immigration issue.

Ian

Teuchtar

Thanks Ian

ian-mstm

See my edited post... things, apparently, have changed!

Ian

Teuchtar

Yeah, I went in to mild panic when it said it was closing on the website, so thanks for the update. Will post anything else on the USA forum.

theOAP

Not an idiots guide, but a dummies guide instead.

https://americansabroad.org/files/11..._and_Jeker.pdf

Amounts given are for US tax year 2013, so you'll have to look for the latest amounts from the IRS site.

Internal Revenue Service

The standard starting kit is a form 1040, Schedule B, form 8965 (ACA exemption), and either form 2555 OR form 1116 (see dummies guide). And don't forget FinCEN 114 and/or form 8938 if you meet the requirements for filing either.

Any additional sources of income (some pensions, savings, investments, self-employment, ISA's, etc.) may require additional forms. Remember, generally, tax free in the UK is not tax free in the US.

You may want to investigate the Streamlined programme for past non-filers.

http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Inter...nce-Procedures

If more than one year of returns are due, the Streamlined programme will probably be a must, provided the oversight of not filing was non-wilful.


The following two sites may also be of use:


http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Inter...-United-States


http://www.irs.gov/publications/p54/

nun

Some good links from theOAP, but I'd like to ask why he is not doing his own taxes and leaving this up to you? Have you thought about what happens after he gets up to date with taxes and the I-130 is presumably accepted. Do either of you have jobs in the US and what will you do about healthcare? You should be able to work out things and emigrate easily enough being married to a US citizen, but the attitude of your husband towards taxes doesn't inspire me with confidence.

Steve_

Well, the official place to start is IRS publication 17: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p17.pdf Good luck with that.

Publication 54 is also the main bit but the PDF that theOAP links to above is pretty good.

Where it gets tricky is with things like ISAs and pensions. To cut a very very long story very very short, get rid of ISAs. Pensions are recognized under the tax treaty but because the tax systems are substantially different, various nastiness can ensue.

The IRS has a new "streamlined" procedure for people living abroad who've failed to file for awhile: U.S. Taxpayers Residing Outside the United States

Various accountants want your business, e.g. Get Help With Expat Tax Preparation - Expat Tax Professionals

Teuchtar

Thanks for the great info and feedback.

nun - me choosing to file his taxes says more about me than him and has no bearing whatsoever on his attitude or our pending move, nor does it have anything to do with whether we will have jobs or not. I do the finance in my house, end of.

nun

I would look at getting your husband into US tax compliance and file the required back taxes. Once you have the immigration stuff worked out you will want to work out your US health insurance. That will greatly depend on your employment status and the state you live in.

Teuchtar

Yup, all understood. Taxes will be up to date by the end of the year, immigration stuff is in progress and I have a number of employment opportunities all of which include pretty comprehensive health insurance. I think we're good at this stage