Urgh... RFE about I-864...

[blueniv 5]

So... taxes and income. We just received a RFE for taxes filed in 2013 and proof of income. My husband started working for a company in Seattle starting last Feb and makes more than enough money to sponsor a household of 2 (around 40k). With the I-864 we sent all the paystubs we had (4-5 months worth), a letter from his employer stating he is employed full time and makes 40k a year and a letter stating that we are unable to file any tax returns because this year is the first year he's not a dependent. So do we now file his parents' 2013 tax return seeing as he was a dependent under them? He's never had to file taxes solely for himself.

Also, just to be safe, we now want to add his mother as a co-sponsor. When she files as a co-sponsor, can she use the combined income of her and her husband as her income or does she use solely the income of her as an individual? They file taxes jointly.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Being a dependent does not mean that the person does not have to do their own tax returns. You guys are confused.

Dependent kids also need to file their own tax returns if they worked. You just get less exemptions because someone else claims you as a dependent.

The parent claim the person as a kid, but they do not add the kid's income or pay taxes on it.

Did your husband work last year?

Edited August 14, 2014 by Harpa Timsah

[blueniv 5]

Being a dependent does not mean that the person does not have to do their own tax returns. You guys are confused.

Dependent kids also need to file their own tax returns if they worked. You just get less exemptions because someone else claims you as a dependent.

The parent claim the person as a kid, but they do not add the kid's income or pay taxes on it.

Did your husband work last year?

No he didn't, he was a student

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

His being a student also has nothing to do with whether he needs to file taxes or not.

If he did not work, then you need to say he was not required to file taxes, by law, because he had no income. The explanation that he was a dependent or that he was a student is not acceptable, because it is just not true. You will need to do that, no matter what.

If you want to use the mom as a co-sponsor, and she files joint taxes with the dad, then she needs to fill out I-864 and the dad needs to sign I-864A, saying it is okay to use the joint income for the sponsorship. Include all supporting evidence and proof of her USC status.

[blueniv 5]

His being a student also has nothing to do with whether he needs to file taxes or not.

If he did not work, then you need to say he was not required to file taxes, by law, because he had no income. The explanation that he was a dependent or that he was a student is not acceptable, because it is just not true. You will need to do that, no matter what.

If you want to use the mom as a co-sponsor, and she files joint taxes with the dad, then she needs to fill out I-864 and the dad needs to sign I-864A, saying it is okay to use the joint income for the sponsorship. Include all supporting evidence and proof of her USC status.

Yeah in the meantime I found out about the I-864A, thank you

We did include a letter stating just that, that he had no income and therefore was not required to file any taxes. Unless student loans count as income? I think I'm better off letting my husband sort this mess out because I really don't know the first thing about US taxes :S it seems much more complicated than Dutch taxes, the employer usually takes care of everything.

Thanks for the information, I appreciate it

[SBB 74]

a letter stating that we are unable to file any tax returns because this year is the first year he's not a dependent.

The only acceptable reason for not filing the tax return is that his earnings were below the filing threshold ($10,000 for a single filer in 2013), not because he was a dependent. To be able to make a convincing case to the IRS, he will have to know how much he made last year. Did he really make $0 in income in 2013? Does he have no savings in interest bearing accounts? Did he do absolutely no paid work for the whole year? If so, I would write my letter to the IRS as such:

Dear Sir or Madam,

I [spouse's name here] did not file a tax return for 2013 as my earnings for the year were [insert amount here], which is below the $10,000 filing limit.

It also may just be easier to file the return anyway to show that he has no income.

Edited August 15, 2014 by SBB

[blueniv 5]

We met with an accountant, the tax return business has been taken care of. The only thing which still confuses me is why they claim he doesn't make 125% of poverty guidelines seeing as this year alone he's earned enough gross income to sponsor a household of three. We sent in all available pay stubs and a statement from his company (not some mom and pop store either, it's a big multinational) that he is employed full time and shows his annual income. But w/e, my mother in law is going to co-sponsor just to be safe.

[CowBoE 429]

Harpa is correct.

A child can be claimed as a dependent on parent's tax filing,

but the child can also file (if the child has income).

And in my son's case, he only made few thousand in part time jobs

and he got back most of the fed taxes.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

We met with an accountant, the tax return business has been taken care of. The only thing which still confuses me is why they claim he doesn't make 125% of poverty guidelines seeing as this year alone he's earned enough gross income to sponsor a household of three. We sent in all available pay stubs and a statement from his company (not some mom and pop store either, it's a big multinational) that he is employed full time and shows his annual income. But w/e, my mother in law is going to co-sponsor just to be safe.

The reason they said it was not good, it because you did not supply the correct evidence (probably the dependent thing).

They say it is not good if you don't have the correct evidence.

And be careful, if with the RFE you again do not supply the correct evidence, then your whole case will be denied. In some ways its more difficult to get a co-sponsor now, because that is a lot of paperwork that could go awry. Make sure you get proof of USC for the parents and complete tax returns for them (or tax transcripts).

You also must correctly explain why the husband did not file taxes before (he is still the main sponsor).

Edited August 15, 2014 by Harpa Timsah

[kettlefish 10]

So... taxes and income. We just received a RFE for taxes filed in 2013 and proof of income. My husband started working for a company in Seattle starting last Feb and makes more than enough money to sponsor a household of 2 (around 40k). With the I-864 we sent all the paystubs we had (4-5 months worth), a letter from his employer stating he is employed full time and makes 40k a year and a letter stating that we are unable to file any tax returns because this year is the first year he's not a dependent. So do we now file his parents' 2013 tax return seeing as he was a dependent under them? He's never had to file taxes solely for himself.

Also, just to be safe, we now want to add his mother as a co-sponsor. When she files as a co-sponsor, can she use the combined income of her and her husband as her income or does she use solely the income of her as an individual? They file taxes jointly.

The requirement is 6 months pay stubs btw. Perhaps that is a sticking point? Did you write a note explaining why you don't have that?

Also if you can scan the RFE perhaps we can more clearly see what they're asking. or compare to mine over here

I agree with Harpa though, you got to be careful in how you respond. I asked a bunch of people and figured it out. and had a very clear cover letter showing what they claimed was missing and how i've corrected it etc. It went through just fine after that. Do not reply to the RFE if you still have confusion....

[blueniv 5]

The requirement is 6 months pay stubs btw. Perhaps that is a sticking point? Did you write a note explaining why you don't have that?

Also if you can scan the RFE perhaps we can more clearly see what they're asking. or compare to mine over here

I agree with Harpa though, you got to be careful in how you respond. I asked a bunch of people and figured it out. and had a very clear cover letter showing what they claimed was missing and how i've corrected it etc. It went through just fine after that. Do not reply to the RFE if you still have confusion....

We only had paystubs from March through June because my husband started his job at the end of February and we did explain in a separate note why we were unable to provide 6 months worth of paystubs. My RFE is the same as yours, except I don't have that first request, the one asking for proof of employment and paystubs, which now confuses me even more.

His mother is sending us copies of her tax returns of the last three years and yesterday we met with an accountant and got his 2013 tax return sorted (0 earned, 0 owed whoohoo...). My deadline for the RFE is November 3, and to be sure we're going to have an attorney look everything over to make sure we have all the correct evidence.

Also, in the meantime, I think we have 6 months worth of paystubs and a couple of bonuses. Should we send those in too?

Edited August 15, 2014 by blueniv

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Be careful - the mother might not understand what a complete tax return is and send you something that is incomplete. Then you will be denied. It is better to ask her to request tax transcripts from the IRS.

[blueniv 5]

Be careful - the mother might not understand what a complete tax return is and send you something that is incomplete. Then you will be denied. It is better to ask her to request tax transcripts from the IRS.

Gotcha, we'll also do that then. And to make sure, we'll also go back to the accountant we went to yesterday seeing as she was a Russian lady married to a USC and likely had to go through the same process

Btw, what if it gets denied? Can I immediately file another I-485?

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Yes, you can file again if you get denied.

Make sure you get proof of current employment from mom, proof of her USC, and I-864A from the dad.