RFE for I485

[aussie_jason 195]

Stop over complicating things, her net income as per the IRS is irrelevant.

Is the gross amount on her W2 enough? If so then just use that along with pay stubs and letter of employment from that position, if not then you will need to work out what her total gross income from the 1099-MISC is and include that.

Taxes for the overwhelming majority of people are not difficult to file, you just transcribe your W2's and 1099's then either itemize any deductions or just claim the standard deduction, most people will just claim the standard deduction so it is a simplistic process.

This isn't a scenario where throwing as much as you can up against the wall hoping that enough of it will stick is a good idea, you want to be clear and concise so you need to stop trying to complicate matters.

[LUAL 43]

Thank you for your informantion.

I should have stated earlier that the same company that the US citizen works for gave her the W-2 back in July 2013...then after one month, she decided to switch to a 1099 with the SAME COMPANY. She is on a 1099 and compensated with the company monthly. Her compensation salary is over the 125% poverty guideline for a 2-person household. We think that the USCIS messed up our case or didn't read carefully that she makes enough to sponsor applicant. Maybe the problem is that last year she was studying instead of working, therefore the 2012 taxes dont show money. But it states "current income" which is over poverty guidelines.

(Also, she cannot file her 2013 taxes because she is waiting on a a schedule K1 property ownership that will not be ready in time, Therefore she will file an extension for the tax return)

[aussie_jason 195]

Well if she has been 1099 since July/August then she should have two 1040-ES forms for 2013 that should form proof of income.

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

I think it's 5 times.

This is what the RFE says:

* Assets must equal the difference for applicant's filing as orphans or a spouse or child of an active duty military member.

* Assets must equal three time the difference for spouse or child of a United States Citizen.

* Assets must equal five times the difference for all others.

So since she is the petitioner/sponsor/US spouse, she has to show 5 times since I'm not a US citizen ... Isn't it unfortunately true?

When the USC petitioner/sponsor is sponsoring their spouse or child, then it is 3 times. Your wife is sponsoring you, her spouse, so it is 3 times.

Stop over complicating things, her net income as per the IRS is irrelevant.

This is just not so when speaking of income derived from self-employment. It is not the same as if you are employed by someone and receiving a W-2. They do not tend to accept your total personal income amount until it shown on line 22 of the most recent 1040 as proof of your actual income. It is more difficult to deal with proving income for the self-employed if they have not yet filed taxes on it yet. What the taxes show is definitely not irrelevant for the self-employed.

Thank you for your informantion.

I should have stated earlier that the same company that the US citizen works for gave her the W-2 back in July 2013...then after one month, she decided to switch to a 1099 with the SAME COMPANY. She is on a 1099 and compensated with the company monthly. Her compensation salary is over the 125% poverty guideline for a 2-person household. We think that the USCIS messed up our case or didn't read carefully that she makes enough to sponsor applicant. Maybe the problem is that last year she was studying instead of working, therefore the 2012 taxes dont show money. But it states "current income" which is over poverty guidelines.

(Also, she cannot file her 2013 taxes because she is waiting on a a schedule K1 property ownership that will not be ready in time, Therefore she will file an extension for the tax return)

Does she have quarterly statements from her self-employment? Those can also be helpful for proving self-income amounts. An extension is generally not helpful for someone that is self-employed. The USCIS will most likely want to see the taxes. It doesn't work as easily as just showing the W-2 and extension.

You can only send what you have though. You can show more assets. You can have her file the extension so she has that for the RFE and explain why that extension is needed. Provide the 1099s and any other proof you have of what she makes, monthly bank statements showing how much is deposited each month could help too. Anything you can provide to prove the income without having the 2013 taxes done yet is your best bet.

[aussie_jason 195]

This is just not so when speaking of income derived from self-employment. It is not the same as if you are employed by someone and receiving a W-2. They do not tend to accept your total personal income amount until it shown on line 22 of the most recent 1040 as proof of your actual income. It is more difficult to deal with proving income for the self-employed if they have not yet filed taxes on it yet. What the taxes show is definitely not irrelevant for the self-employed.

That's what I was meaning to say but didn't go into enough detail to qualify what gross/net is in the eyes of the IRS for self employed as I was feeling lazy so thank you for expanding. It doesn't sound like the OP's wife has been filing her estimated taxes so they could be in for a bit of a shock if they have been treating the 1099 like a W2, that may be why they think her income now qualifies.

[LUAL 43]

When the USC petitioner/sponsor is sponsoring their spouse or child, then it is 3 times. Your wife is sponsoring you, her spouse, so it is 3 times.

This is just not so when speaking of income derived from self-employment. It is not the same as if you are employed by someone and receiving a W-2. They do not tend to accept your total personal income amount until it shown on line 22 of the most recent 1040 as proof of your actual income. It is more difficult to deal with proving income for the self-employed if they have not yet filed taxes on it yet. What the taxes show is definitely not irrelevant for the self-employed.

Does she have quarterly statements from her self-employment? Those can also be helpful for proving self-income amounts. An extension is generally not helpful for someone that is self-employed. The USCIS will most likely want to see the taxes. It doesn't work as easily as just showing the W-2 and extension.

You can only send what you have though. You can show more assets. You can have her file the extension so she has that for the RFE and explain why that extension is needed. Provide the 1099s and any other proof you have of what she makes, monthly bank statements showing how much is deposited each month could help too. Anything you can provide to prove the income without having the 2013 taxes done yet is your best bet.

That's what I was meaning to say but didn't go into enough detail to qualify what gross/net is in the eyes of the IRS for self employed as I was feeling lazy so thank you for expanding. It doesn't sound like the OP's wife has been filing her estimated taxes so they could be in for a bit of a shock if they have been treating the 1099 like a W2, that may be why they think her income now qualifies.

Thank you guys for keep answering, we really need and appreciate your feedback.

So we will try our best to show that her income now is higher than the 19662$ for an household of 2 listed on the poverty guideline. How? with pay stubs, bank statements, letter of the employer.

We will also show that the total assets she owns is higher than 3 times the 19662$ ( so basically higher than 60000$). How? Will it be okay to put 60000$ in her bank account as a gift and show that?

[aussie_jason 195]

If her income is sufficient then you do not need to worry about assets at all.

On a 1099 she is her own employer and any amounts quoted by the company she is doing the work for will not be what USCIS needs to see and bank statements also will not help for the same reason. She needs to complete the 1040 for her 1099 and see what line 22 comes to. She should already have two 1040-ES filed for the last two quarters of last year.

[LUAL 43]

If her income is sufficient then you do not need to worry about assets at all.

On a 1099 she is her own employer and any amounts quoted by the company she is doing the work for will not be what USCIS needs to see and bank statements also will not help for the same reason. She needs to complete the 1040 for her 1099 and see what line 22 comes to. She should already have two 1040-ES filed for the last two quarters of last year.

The thing is the since the 1040 es are not required to have, she did not file them so she does not have them right now..

and on her 1099 there are only 6 months for last year so it does not show enough income.

Edited March 8, 2014 by LUAL

[Dave&Roza 748]

We will also show that the total assets she owns is higher than 3 times the 19662$ ( so basically higher than 60000$). How? Will it be okay to put 60000$ in her bank account as a gift and show that?

Not a good idea as cash can come and cash can go. Now if you had that amount for a significant amount of time then great, but to suddenly come into $60,000 two weeks before you send off the RFE it can easily disappear.

Show your current income via the employment letter and pay stubs. I would file for the income tax extension and include that as well. If the income is above $19,662 then it is up to you to decide if you want to include assets, but if you do include assets, please, please, make certain they are well documented with appraisals of their fair market value. Just to be clear here, you need $60,000+ in assets if you would only use assets ($19,662 times 3); only need assets that equal three times the short fall of your income from $19,662--for example if your income is $15,000 than you would need assets equal to (19,662-15000)*3 or $13,986 in assets to be over the 125% poverty level.

Good luck,

Dave

Edited March 9, 2014 by Dave&Roza

[Dave&Roza 748]

The thing is the since the 1040 es are not required to have, she did not file them so she does not have them right now..

and on her 1099 there are only 6 months for last year so it does not show enough income.

The 1040 ES is required for anybody earning income that does not have with holdings taken out--i.e. dividends, interest income, capital gains from the sale of a house, stock or other assets, self-employment income, etc. The IRS wants its money evenly throughout the year. If you happen to owe a large amount of taxes when you file, you will need to compute an under withholding penalty. I sold some stocks in the second quarter of one year and made estimate payments on that sale. I received a refund for the year, but because I underestimated the capital gains for the second quarter, I was hit with an underpayment or withholding penalty even though I received a refund due to over paying my taxes. I had to jump thru several more hoops (read complete more forms) to get that penalty down to something like $4, but it still pisses me off to this day that I got a sizable refund, but had to pay due to not paying enough in one quarter on the 1040 ES.

So be prepared to pay a penalty if you have not be making estimated tax payments last year and received a sizable income reported on the 1099. The only thing that will save you is if the employer did with hold federal taxes, but that is rare when being paid via a 1099.

Dave

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

Thank you guys for keep answering, we really need and appreciate your feedback.

So we will try our best to show that her income now is higher than the 19662$ for an household of 2 listed on the poverty guideline. How? with pay stubs, bank statements, letter of the employer.

We will also show that the total assets she owns is higher than 3 times the 19662$ ( so basically higher than 60000$). How? Will it be okay to put 60000$ in her bank account as a gift and show that?

Do you personally have enough assets just to put $60k in her bank account? You can simply skip adding them to her account(bad idea), since you do not have a joint one, and add your assets on her I-864. No 'gift' needed. The intending immigrant can list their own assets to help reach the requirement.

6. - 8. Assets of the Intending Immigrant.

You may use the assets of the intending immigrant regardless of where he or she resides. The intending immigrant must provide evidence of such assets with this form. Form I-864A is not required to document the intending immigrant's assets.

http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/i-864instr.pdf

You provide bank statements to prove the assets. Also, provide everything as mentioned before, the documentation showing the extension for 2013 was filed, letter from employer, pay stubs and bank statements showing how much she receives each month. All the documentation you can muster to prove the current income meets the requirement is what you want and need to send.

[LUAL 43]

Not a good idea as cash can come and cash can go. Now if you had that amount for a significant amount of time then great, but to suddenly come into $60,000 two weeks before you send off the RFE it can easily disappear.

Show your current income via the employment letter and pay stubs. I would file for the income tax extension and include that as well. If the income is above $19,662 then it is up to you to decide if you want to include assets, but if you do include assets, please, please, make certain they are well documented with appraisals of their fair market value. Just to be clear here, you need $60,000+ in assets if you would only use assets ($19,662 times 3); only need assets that equal three times the short fall of your income from $19,662--for example if your income is $15,000 than you would need assets equal to (19,662-15000)*3 or $13,986 in assets to be over the 125% poverty level.

Good luck,

Dave

The 1040 ES is required for anybody earning income that does not have with holdings taken out--i.e. dividends, interest income, capital gains from the sale of a house, stock or other assets, self-employment income, etc. The IRS wants its money evenly throughout the year. If you happen to owe a large amount of taxes when you file, you will need to compute an under withholding penalty. I sold some stocks in the second quarter of one year and made estimate payments on that sale. I received a refund for the year, but because I underestimated the capital gains for the second quarter, I was hit with an underpayment or withholding penalty even though I received a refund due to over paying my taxes. I had to jump thru several more hoops (read complete more forms) to get that penalty down to something like $4, but it still pisses me off to this day that I got a sizable refund, but had to pay due to not paying enough in one quarter on the 1040 ES.

So be prepared to pay a penalty if you have not be making estimated tax payments last year and received a sizable income reported on the 1099. The only thing that will save you is if the employer did with hold federal taxes, but that is rare when being paid via a 1099.

Dave

Do you personally have enough assets just to put $60k in her bank account? You can simply skip adding them to her account(bad idea), since you do not have a joint one, and add your assets on her I-864. No 'gift' needed. The intending immigrant can list their own assets to help reach the requirement.

You provide bank statements to prove the assets. Also, provide everything as mentioned before, the documentation showing the extension for 2013 was filed, letter from employer, pay stubs and bank statements showing how much she receives each month. All the documentation you can muster to prove the current income meets the requirement is what you want and need to send.

Thank you so much guys,

in the end we decided to use a joint-sponsor so here is what we are going to do, please we would really appreciate your feedback.

The US citizen, spouse of the applicant CAN NOT BE THE SPONSOR and unfortunately we realized that only now.

To avoid all problems her dad offered to sponsor me (the applicant). So we will send:

- RFE

- a cover letter saying that since she(the US citizen and spouse) has been working only since July 2013, the tax return may show insufficient income even if she is working with a salary > 19,662 (which is the income requirement for the poverty guideline), so we decided to use a different sponsor

- a new I864 signed by her dad showing sufficient income (>200,000$)

- we will attach the 2012 tax return showing that

- the bank statement for the previous 12 months

- a bank letter saying that he has been a client there for a lot long time with an average balance of >200.000$. So that will cover the asset too.

- his ID page on the passport showing he is US citizen

would it be okay?

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

The USC petitioner/sponsor still needs to provide their own I-864, so you need to let them know that the father is being used a joint sponsor. Has he not filed his 2013 taxes yet either? And yes, using a joint sponsor that meets the requirement by far should work in place of proving your spouse has the required income.

[LUAL 43]

The USC petitioner/sponsor still needs to provide their own I-864, so you need to let them know that the father is being used a joint sponsor. Has he not filed his 2013 taxes yet either? And yes, using a joint sponsor that meets the requirement by far should work in place of proving your spouse has the required income.

This is an answer of the RFE so we do not need to send the I864 that we already sent when we filled the I485 right? that was from my wife (the US citizen) but unfortunately she still hasnt filled the tax return for 2013, neither her dad. So he will show the 2012 tax return. But I think that as long as he shows sufficient income (> 200,000 $ in the 2012 tax return) and sufficient asset (> 200,000 $ in the bank since 2010 )... it will be enough... right?

So again, we are sending:

- RFE

- a cover letter saying that since she(the US citizen and spouse) has been working only since July 2013, the tax return may show insufficient income even if she is working with a salary > 19,662 (which is the income requirement for the poverty guideline), so we decided to use a different sponsor

- a new I864 signed by her dad showing sufficient income (>200,000$)

- we will attach the dad's 2012 tax return showing that

- the dad's bank statement for the previous 12 months

- a bank letter saying that he has been a client there for a lot long time with an average balance of >200.000$. So that will cover the asset too.

- his ID page on the passport showing he is US citizen

and that should be all right?

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

Yes, you can send in a joint sponsor's documentation in order to meet the affidavit of support requirement. They are not supposed to ask for 2013 tax returns until after the deadline in April, but sometimes they still do. Since his income was so high though, they may just accept the 2012 taxes and supporting documents as they are. I hope they do. The USC spouse does not need to provide a new I-864 in this case, but they should still file the extension and send proof of having an extension, or at the very least mention in the cover letter statement that she will be filing for an extension so the 2012 tax return is the most recent available, just to satisfy the RFE asking for the most recent taxes. I wish you good luck for finally getting the affidavit of support accepted and getting your green card soon.