UK DCF -- the ins and outs and ups and downs

[Holly2234 66]

Hi all! My husband and I (Im British and he is American) are about to file our I-130. He lives here under a 3 year leave to remain at the moment and we have a daughter who will have dual citizenship (Just need to book the appointment to do it).

[Daca 7]

My waiver was approved on Friday. :)

They are going to collect my passport on Wednesday and as soon as it comes back we are of to America Yippee!!!!

[Keeto 12]

Yaaaaaay!!!! Congrats!

[Adriene H 89]

Congratulations!

[prolific8 0]

Hello all,

At some point in the near future my wife and I would like to move to the US, she is a US citizen and has lived here for five years. She now has indefinite leave to remain.

I'm a little concerned at the possibility she will not be an adequate sponsor as she no longer lives in the US, but even more concerned when I read about still needing to file taxes in the US - does this apply to every US citizen regardless of whether or not they work? She has several bank accounts still in the US along with a savings account, but no "income" to speak of - is she still required to file taxes? I'd rather straighten this out now before any harm comes along the road!

[Tiekey 1]

Hello all,

At some point in the near future my wife and I would like to move to the US, she is a US citizen and has lived here for five years. She now has indefinite leave to remain.

I'm a little concerned at the possibility she will not be an adequate sponsor as she no longer lives in the US, but even more concerned when I read about still needing to file taxes in the US - does this apply to every US citizen regardless of whether or not they work? She has several bank accounts still in the US along with a savings account, but no "income" to speak of - is she still required to file taxes? I'd rather straighten this out now before any harm comes along the road!

If she had no income at all, then she wouldn't generally need to file. If her income exceeded the threshold for filing (which can vary depending on situation, but generally from $3,700 - $19,000) (2011 figures - previous years are less - if over aged 65, then slightly more) then she'll need to file. Generally, there's no tax for UK residents, as the Foreign Tax Credit/Totalization agreement takes care of any tax, but depends on situation).

Even if she earned less than this, it is sometimes worth filing anyway, to claim tax credits etc if you have children, or other circumstances.

I'm happy to advise, if you give more information.

Edited May 8, 2012 by Tiekey

[prolific8 0]

Thanks for the fast reply. She has a job here where she earns about £24k pa. In the US she has a checking account, a savings account and a CD. Those accounts probably net her less than $50 a year.

Does she still need to file based on her UK income?

[Tiekey 1]

Thanks for the fast reply. She has a job here where she earns about £24k pa. In the US she has a checking account, a savings account and a CD. Those accounts probably net her less than $50 a year.

Does she still need to file based on her UK income?

Yes, definitely. Although there won't be any tax to pay. The good news is that any penalties are tax related, so there won't be any penalties. Technically, she'll have to go all the way back, but pragmatically the IRS will be happy with 6 years.

If you have children (that are US citizens) you will get a refund (child tax credits) of $1000 per child per year, going back to 2008.

You can either do it yourself, or through an accountant. The US Embassy in London has a list. (In order to be upfront, I will point out that I am on the list (1st one, I think), but feel free to shop around). You can PM me if you want.

I am on this board primarily to get information regarding a IR-1 (we're moving to the US, my wife's the USC), but if I can help with advice on taxes, I'd be glad to. I'm really greatful for everyone's help on this board, so am happy to repay

Edited May 8, 2012 by Tiekey

[prolific8 0]

Phew! What a relief - she was worried she was going to be stung with heavy penalties. In our defense, we genuinely weren't aware that she still needed to file in the US. Ignorance is not an excuse of course, but we had that mindset and so here we are.

Do you have any idea what kind of documentation she will need? She came to the UK in July 2007, and we got married in September of that year. She has been working since early 2008 or so. I highly doubt we have her payslips/P45's/P60's dating back that far, in fact, I'm certain we don't! We have no children, so perhaps that makes it slightly easier.

Edited May 8, 2012 by prolific8

[Tiekey 1]

Phew! What a relief - she was worried she was going to be stung with heavy penalties. In our defense, we genuinely weren't aware that she still needed to file in the US. Ignorance is not an excuse of course, but we had that mindset and so here we are.

Do you have any idea what kind of documentation she will need? She came to the UK in July 2007, and we got married in September of that year. She has been working since early 2008 or so. I highly doubt we have her payslips/P45's/P60's dating back that far, in fact, I'm certain we don't! We have no children, so perhaps that makes it slightly easier.

Shouldn't be a problem. If you call HMRC and ask for a tax calculation for 2007/8, 2008/9, 2009/10, and 2010/11 then they will send it to you in the post. It shouldn't take more than a week or two. 0845 300 0627. You'll have to manually apportion the income/tax between the years (US uses Jan 1- Dec 31 but UK uses April 6-April 5), but it shouldn't be too difficult.

[Keeto 12]

Notice of Approval just arrived in the post!! Yay!! The "real" journey has begun....

No email, no text message, although the G-1145 was completed in full...hang in there guys it is happening....albeit slowly.

Edited May 10, 2012 by Keeto

[Tiekey 1]

Notice of Approval just arrived in the post!! Yay!! The "real" journey has begun....

No email, no text message, although the G-1145 was completed in full...hang in there guys it is happening....albeit slowly.

Fantastic! I mailed about a week before you, so hopefully another week to go!

[Keeto 12]

Good luck Tiekey!

I got a bit confused with this "Approval" today, as for some reason I was under the impression that I'm supposed to get NOA1 and THEN NOA2. Not directly to NOA2.

So I've scanned the docco to help someone else to not get confused. Maybe, it's just me that gets easily confused but anyway...

For those who don't know this is what a NOA2 from London USCIS looks like if you file DCF.

Obviously I have removed all personal details and also the Field Officers signature.

HTH someone!

[Holly2234 66]

Hey all, we're thinking of doing the I-864's quite soon so theyre ready to go when the time comes. My husband (the USC) doesnt have any tax returns for the past two years. He wasnt required to file because of being unemployed so thats not really an issue. My father in law will be the joint sponsor. What documents do we need from him? Just the w-2 and tax returns (sorry if my language is wrong here, im dont really know what im talking about! I just need to know what to ask for!) What do i do with it then? Send it to London or just take it to the interview?

Thanks

[Keeto 12]

Hey all, we're thinking of doing the I-864's quite soon so theyre ready to go when the time comes. My husband (the USC) doesnt have any tax returns for the past two years. He wasnt required to file because of being unemployed so thats not really an issue. My father in law will be the joint sponsor. What documents do we need from him? Just the w-2 and tax returns (sorry if my language is wrong here, im dont really know what im talking about! I just need to know what to ask for!) What do i do with it then? Send it to London or just take it to the interview?

Thanks

Holly, have you read this on the embassy website already?