Taxes and Citizenship denial!

[NickD 203]

yup! Yer Right !

With questions during the AOS and US citizenship stages, certainly would not take a causal view on this subject. Like did you ever come to the USA, did you ever fail to file taxes. Would be a much different story if you came here, worked a couple of months, and never planned on coming back. USCIS takes paying taxes very seriously, after doing some research, this seems to be a very complicated subject.

To the best of my knowledge. on table 6.1 at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p54.pdf, the USA has no tax treaty with Brazil. I take this, you have to pay taxes. Was completely ignorant of this subject until a nice person pointed out, there is such a thing as an 1040NR form with some odd 70 pages of instructions to follow, that another bunch of forms to fill out besides this.

This was not one of our problems, so never encountered it. Ours, since my stepdaughter's biological father, abandoning her when she was 7 years old and moving to a different country was tracking him down so we could get his permission to bring her here. If that wasn't bad enough, had to get his permission with the exact date and flight number before they would let her board the plane.

If I were you, would find a good tax attorney to straighten this matter out that is experience with international tax laws. Either that or spend hours trying to hack it out yourself.

[erica_itz 5]

guys, thanks for all the answers!

Well, when I came here those times as a j1 holder I had no idea one day I would marry an american and move to the US! And had no idea I had to file taxes if I wasn't a resident! Hundreds of international students do Work and Travel every year and don't file taxes! We are completely clueless about it!

I was taking a look at both my W2's and here's what they say (both times I worked in Alaska):

2008: Gross pay - $8171.62; AK SUI (I don;t know what that is) - $40.86 and that's it! No federal income tax withheld!

2009: Gross pay - $3126.76; AK SUI - 15.63; Federal income tax withheld: $88.00!

I'm more confused than ever now! I emailed the HR lady of 2008 about the federal taxes and she responded "We don’t deduct those from J-1 paychecks automatically".

So now I don't know what it means... but I probably owe a lot of money.

And from what everyone responded me here, the best thing to do is actually to go ahead and file those tax returns, right?

And I'll probably need professional help, cuz this is all too confusing for me! I don't think I can file it on my own! This is frustrating!

[Okalian 41]

guys, thanks for all the answers!

Well, when I came here those times as a j1 holder I had no idea one day I would marry an american and move to the US! And had no idea I had to file taxes if I wasn't a resident! Hundreds of international students do Work and Travel every year and don't file taxes! We are completely clueless about it!

I was taking a look at both my W2's and here's what they say (both times I worked in Alaska):

2008: Gross pay - $8171.62; AK SUI (I don;t know what that is) - $40.86 and that's it! No federal income tax withheld!

2009: Gross pay - $3126.76; AK SUI - 15.63; Federal income tax withheld: $88.00!

I'm more confused than ever now! I emailed the HR lady of 2008 about the federal taxes and she responded "We don't deduct those from J-1 paychecks automatically".

So now I don't know what it means... but I probably owe a lot of money.

And from what everyone responded me here, the best thing to do is actually to go ahead and file those tax returns, right?

And I'll probably need professional help, cuz this is all too confusing for me! I don't think I can file it on my own! This is frustrating!

No it's much simpler than you think. You don't need to file for either years ...in 2008, the minimum gross $ to file was $8950 and $9,350 for 2009, so as far as USCIS is concerned, you're not required to file.

Additionally, it's never too late to file for taxes. The only concern you should have is any interests incurred (if you owe taxes at all).

Edited March 9, 2013 by Okalian

[CarlosAndSveta 808]

guys, thanks for all the answers!

Well, when I came here those times as a j1 holder I had no idea one day I would marry an american and move to the US! And had no idea I had to file taxes if I wasn't a resident! Hundreds of international students do Work and Travel every year and don't file taxes! We are completely clueless about it!

I was taking a look at both my W2's and here's what they say (both times I worked in Alaska):

2008: Gross pay - $8171.62; AK SUI (I don;t know what that is) - $40.86 and that's it! No federal income tax withheld!

2009: Gross pay - $3126.76; AK SUI - 15.63; Federal income tax withheld: $88.00!

I'm more confused than ever now! I emailed the HR lady of 2008 about the federal taxes and she responded "We don't deduct those from J-1 paychecks automatically".

So now I don't know what it means... but I probably owe a lot of money.

And from what everyone responded me here, the best thing to do is actually to go ahead and file those tax returns, right?

And I'll probably need professional help, cuz this is all too confusing for me! I don't think I can file it on my own! This is frustrating!

No it's much simpler than you think. You don't need to file for either years ...in 2008, the minimum gross $ to file was $8950 and $9,350 for 2009, so as far as USCIS is concerned, you're not required to file.

Additionally, it's never too late to file for taxes. The only concern you should have is any interests incurred (if you owe taxes at all).

You should file returns for both 2008 and 2009. Based on the information that Nich-Nick posted earlier you definitely need to file a return for 2008 since your income is more than the amount of the personal exemption which means that you probably owe tax for 2008. You should file for 2009 to see if you get back the $88.00 of Federal Income Tax that was withheld. If you don't file your 2009 tax return by April 15, 2003 you will lose the potential $88.00 refund that you are entitled to.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

guys, thanks for all the answers!

Well, when I came here those times as a j1 holder I had no idea one day I would marry an american and move to the US! And had no idea I had to file taxes if I wasn't a resident! Hundreds of international students do Work and Travel every year and don't file taxes! We are completely clueless about it!

I was taking a look at both my W2's and here's what they say (both times I worked in Alaska):

2008: Gross pay - $8171.62; AK SUI (I don;t know what that is) - $40.86 and that's it! No federal income tax withheld!

2009: Gross pay - $3126.76; AK SUI - 15.63; Federal income tax withheld: $88.00!

I'm more confused than ever now! I emailed the HR lady of 2008 about the federal taxes and she responded "We don’t deduct those from J-1 paychecks automatically".

So now I don't know what it means... but I probably owe a lot of money.

And from what everyone responded me here, the best thing to do is actually to go ahead and file those tax returns, right?

And I'll probably need professional help, cuz this is all too confusing for me! I don't think I can file it on my own! This is frustrating!

Alaska State Unemployment Insurance.

[NickD 203]

Take a look at the tax rate schedules for the 1040NR instructions at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040nr.pdf. For that kind of income, rates are an astounding 28-33% Can't find that treating exemption with Brazil, could be one for less than 183 days present in the US during those years. See they cut that down to over 31 days for 2012.

Can't seem to find any standard deductions for that 1040NR like on the 1040EZ, but can used the Schedule D for some deductions, didn't dig into that.

Can call the IRS at 1-800-829-104, but will have to be asked to be directed to that non-resident section. Have your W-2's handy, dates, your employer, and status.

Yes, this system is way over complicated, get a migraine every year doing taxes, it's changed every year. Surprised my fellow Americans don't rebel. Bad enough I have to collect sales tax for the state, on my own time. Can deduct what you pay for a tax preparer, but that only means you do not have to pay taxes on that amount. Should be able to deduct that amount off your owed taxes. Then maybe the IRS would simplify it.

[Okalian 41]

You should file returns for both 2008 and 2009. Based on the information that Nich-Nick posted earlier you definitely need to file a return for 2008 since your income is more than the amount of the personal exemption which means that you probably owe tax for 2008.

Incorrect. Unless he/she is married filing separately, they DON'T need to file for the said years.

[NickD 203]

Incorrect. Unless he/she is married filing separately, they DON'T need to file for the said years.

How can you reply with such certainty when the time comes, this question will be asked?

5. Do you owe any Federal, state or local taxes that are overdue?

Couldn't find this exact same question in the I-485, but subject may well come up since the OP already visited the US with an honest explanation as to why. It's far better to check into it than to be rejected, even if external help is required.

[vicmo 1]

Incorrect. Unless he/she is married filing separately, they DON'T need to file for the said years.

Stop giving bad advice! Married fling separately doesn't even have anything to do with previous years! The OP was single in 2008, 2009 and if it is determined that they need to file for those years, they should put their filing status as 'single non-resident alien' for those years

Below are both the tax form and instructions for 2009. The tax tables change every year, so you need to make sure you use the appropriate one

http://controller.os...ll/f1040nre.pdf

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/i1040nre--2009.pdf

Edited March 10, 2013 by vicmo

[vicmo 1]

IRS prefers if you round to the next whole number, I did a quick calculation and for 2009 you income was less than the personal exemption for non-resident aliens (3650), so you are owed a refund of $88.

For 2008, assuming you don't have any allowable deductions; your AGI (Adjusted Gross Income) would be 4672 (8172-3500 exemption), you would need to pay $468 + interests and penalties.

Of course, you should confirm this numbers with your tax professional

p.s. You don't have to figure out interests and penalties, IRS will do it for you and send you a bill after you file your tax return. See page 10 of the instructions (Under Interests and Penalties):

http://www.irs.gov/p...40nre--2008.pdf

Edited March 10, 2013 by vicmo

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

IRS prefers if you round to the next whole number, I did a quick calculation and for 2009 you income was less than the personal exemption for non-resident aliens (3650), so you are owed a refund of $88.

For 2008, assuming you don't have any allowable deductions; your AGI (Adjusted Gross Income) would be 4672 (8172-3500 exemption), you would need to pay $468 + interests and penalties.

Of course, you should confirm this numbers with your tax professional

p.s. You don't have to figure out interests and penalties, IRS will do it for you and send you a bill after you file your tax return. See page 10 of the instructions (Under Interests and Penalties):

http://www.irs.gov/p...40nre--2008.pdf

The interest and penalties can add up. I would expect to pay at least double your tax liability, if not more. After an audit, for two years, that was about what it came to.

[NickD 203]

The interest and penalties can add up. I would expect to pay at least double your tax liability, if not more. After an audit, for two years, that was about what it came to.

Darn audits, if you discovered new deductions, won't let you take those. But still better than worrying about getting caught later by lying on that N-400. They can deport you for that.