CR1 Financial Evidence

[spatnatz 0]

Hello all,

I am a US citizen petitioner who is preparing documents for my Chinese wife's interview here in China. I was looking at some of the requirements for tax forms, and noticed that if I am not below the poverty line (I'm not), I must either provide a tax return, or a statement saying why I didn't file one. The latter is the case for me; because I was working in a foreign country, I didn't realize that I still had to file taxes.

Here's the situation: I came to China in August 2015. Before that, I didn't make enough money to need to file taxes. The amount that I made from August onward was considerable, but I had thought I was eligible for the foreign income exclusion. I also didn't realize that I still had to file, even with the exclusion in place. I hadn't filed for any recent tax years, either (I'd just gotten out of university with very little income).

So, if I have no tax returns, is this a serious issue? What evidence can I submit in lieu of it? Options that come to mind are

1) The letter stating why I didn't file

2) A statement from my employer verifying my earnings, and the amount of Chinese taxation on it

3) A copy of my employment contract including a statement of my monthly pay

4) Statements from my bank here in China

Would any of these work? Anything else I should consider including? I would be grateful for any input here.

[Hypnos 6,578]

You will need to file back taxes. Your wife will not be able to receive a visa until you do.

[Penguin_ie 5,996]

Hypnos is correct; you need to backfile. You won;t need to PAY anything, but you do need to file.

[kris&me 572]

You may not owe federal taxes but you do have to pay into medicare and social security with the tax return

Edited October 31, 2016 by Ryan H
Reason for edit: to remove double post.

[Michael and Ganna 104]

They will want to see tax transcripts.....Not a letter that anyone can make up.