DCF in London - January 2020

[os306 103]

17 minutes ago, AlanD26 said:

Ah the joys of taxes.

 

So my wife (USC) has been living in the UK for 8 years now, she hasn't filled her taxes for a while, so this is going to be a fun and interesting experience. We have US friends living here who are going to help us file as me being a UKC have no idea what I'm doing and she hasn't done them in some time. Does anyone have any good links or tips for filing from abroad? We will obviously be Googling ourselves but if anyone has used one thats been helpful, we would really appreciate this. We have also just had our first son born 3 weeks ago, so are both just living a blur at the minute. Trying to find time to all this between trying to stay awake will be interesting haha.

 

Am I reading what you're saying correct in that I, as a UKC, need also file along with her as I'm her husband?

 

In visa news, we got out I-I30 approval through on March 16th (filed February 10th) and are still waiting for our case number (now into week 9 of getting that letter) so it does look like things are backed up at the embassy, which is to be expected. Has anyone else got their case number through recently?

 

As The4Sands states, you won't need to file as a UKC, but your wife should file as "married filing separately". Has your wife been working in the UK and earning an income? If not, back-filing your taxes should be pretty straightforward. If she has been making an income in the UK, the IRS requires that this be declared, but the "Foreign Earned Income Exclusion" means that she could have earned up to the GBP equivalent of $105,900 without being taxed on that amount by the IRS. The important thing is that, as a US citizen living abroad, any foreign income does need to be declared. Take a look here: https://brighttax.com/blog/im-an-expat-and-ive-never-filed-taxes-what-should-i-do/ 

 

We had a terrible accountant (based in the US) who had no clue about any of this, so for two years we were told there was no need to declare any income earned in the UK, which turned out to be wrong.

[AlanD26 14]

Ah OK brilliant, thanks for clearing that up.

 

Yeah, I'm not expecting her to owe much, if anything at all, its just the time consuming processing of having to back date everything. We didn't anticipate moving to the US and were going to stay here in the UK, hence she didn't bother filing, but family circumstances have changed.

 

Thanks for the link, it looks really helpful. She has indeed been working, pretty much all the time she has been here. 

Edited May 20, 2020 by AlanD26

[The4Sands 67]

1 minute ago, AlanD26 said:

We didn't anticipate moving to the US and were going to stay here in the UK, hence she didn't bother filing, but family circumstances have changed.

Same here, although I hadn't filed in the past because I thought I didn't have to because of how little I earned.  Then they changed it so that, if you're married and you earn more than $5, you have to file.  We hadn't planned on living anywhere other than the UK either, but as you say, things change.  Now I'm in the middle of trying to get British citizenship as well so we can come back some day (at the moment we're planning 5-10 years in the States, although who knows!).  

[AlanD26 14]

1 minute ago, The4Sands said:

Same here, although I hadn't filed in the past because I thought I didn't have to because of how little I earned.  Then they changed it so that, if you're married and you earn more than $5, you have to file.  We hadn't planned on living anywhere other than the UK either, but as you say, things change.  Now I'm in the middle of trying to get British citizenship as well so we can come back some day (at the moment we're planning 5-10 years in the States, although who knows!).  

 

We sound like we are in the exact same position.

 

Annie (my US wife) needs to apply for British citizenship and get herself a UK passport (not sure if you've looked into this but its expensive) which we hadn't planned on doing. As Im sure you're aware, if you leave the country for longer than 2 years you Indefinite Leave to Remain is no longer valid. We also plan to be the US for a period of time (we actually cant agree how long we want to be there for)  and then settle back in the UK.

 

Between having a baby and applying for a Green Card, this COVID-19 business couldn't have come at worse time. Still, patience is a venture so will just wait for my case number to arrive in the post.

[The4Sands 67]

1 minute ago, AlanD26 said:

Annie (my US wife) needs to apply for British citizenship and get herself a UK passport (not sure if you've looked into this but its expensive) which we hadn't planned on doing. As Im sure you're aware, if you leave the country for longer than 2 years you Indefinite Leave to Remain is no longer valid. We also plan to be the US for a period of time (we actually cant agree how long we want to be there for)  and then settle back in the UK.

Strangely enough, I have literally just gotten to the end of the online naturalisation form.  It was so long!! And the price has gone up since the last time I looked at it.  A whopping £1349.20 exactly.  Thankfully I did know it was going to be expensive (which makes sense considering the cost of the other parts of the journey so far: spouse visa £800, ILR £1000) and planned accordingly (and had some help from the in-laws as they want to make it as easy as possible for us to come back).  The online form told me I would find out it I was successful within six months.  I am hoping it will be sooner than that.  

 

One of the things we have only just started considering is how long we would need to live in the States so that that my husband doesn't have the same issue I am having now.  My parents are quite a bit younger than my husband's so I can easily envision that we would want to be here in the UK as they get into their twilight years, and then would want to go back the US as my parents do the same.  I haven't actually had the head space to look that far down the road of a green card journey, but will need to do so eventually.  The system is not really designed for people like us who genuinely make/have a "home" in more than one country.   

[The4Sands 67]

Well, I heard back from USCIS today.  They acknowledged receipt of my RFE and essentially said that my I-130 is in the queue to be adjudicated and if I don't hear from them by July, I can contact them again.

 

That was not what I was hoping to hear.  But others have had approvals, right? So they actually are adjudicating and I just have to wait my turn, right?  I will be honest and say I am pretty disappointed 😔.  Even if it is unreasonable...

[os306 103]

2 minutes ago, The4Sands said:

Well, I heard back from USCIS today.  They acknowledged receipt of my RFE and essentially said that my I-130 is in the queue to be adjudicated and if I don't hear from them by July, I can contact them again.

 

That was not what I was hoping to hear.  But others have had approvals, right? So they actually are adjudicating and I just have to wait my turn, right?  I will be honest and say I am pretty disappointed 😔.  Even if it is unreasonable...

Sorry that it wasn't exactly the news that you were hoping for, but it's good that they have acknowledged that they are actually opening petitions/RFE documents. From what I recall, your RFE was pretty straightforward (they just wanted a certified copy of your marriage certificate). Therefore, it sounds like 99% of the leg work for the processing of your petition is done, and that the only thing they are waiting for before ticking the 'approval' box is the marriage certificate itself. I wouldn't be surprised if you are one of the first to hear back.

 

In the meantime, have you had any luck with obtaining your tax transcripts? I was able to get through to someone from the IRS yesterday, but she informed me that tax transcripts are not currently being issued out as the department that does this isn't quite up and running yet.

 

 

[The4Sands 67]

1 minute ago, os306 said:

In the meantime, have you had any luck with obtaining your tax transcripts? I was able to get through to someone from the IRS yesterday, but she informed me that tax transcripts are not currently being issued out as the department that does this isn't quite up and running yet.

You got through!! I'd called several times in the past month or so and just got a message saying they weren't manning the phones anymore due to COVID.  Sorry they couldn't help you, but it's a start at least.  I haven't been working on it at all because I have a job interview tomorrow for job with the State and I've been prepping for the interview and because I've been up to my ears in applying for my citizenship here. I need to get back on to it now.  Will maybe try to call on Friday and see where I get to.  Thanks!

[Robyn-n-Kris 72]

1 hour ago, The4Sands said:

Well, I heard back from USCIS today.  They acknowledged receipt of my RFE and essentially said that my I-130 is in the queue to be adjudicated and if I don't hear from them by July, I can contact them again.

 

That was not what I was hoping to hear.  But others have had approvals, right? So they actually are adjudicating and I just have to wait my turn, right?  I will be honest and say I am pretty disappointed 😔.  Even if it is unreasonable...

At least you've heard from them. I've still not received an email. I'm emailing them now to see if they are still just going through all of the mail. 

[Robyn-n-Kris 72]

Just got my email in. I can breathe now!

[Wuozopo 4,293]

2 hours ago, The4Sands said:

One of the things we have only just started considering is how long we would need to live in the States so that that my husband doesn't have the same issue I am having now. 

Your husband becomes an LPR the day he enters the US on his visa. Three years from that date, he is eligible for US citizenship based on remaining married to his American petitioner . He can put in his application 90 days before his eligibility date. Like the rest of immigration, there is a long queue so even though eligible in three years, it could be some months waiting before it’s done and dusted. 

[The4Sands 67]

28 minutes ago, Robyn-n-Kris said:

Just got my email in. I can breathe now!

Yay!! Congrats.  I'm so pleased they finally got back to you.  

 

10 minutes ago, Wuozopo said:

Your husband becomes an LPR the day he enters the US on his visa. Three years from that date, he is eligible for US citizenship based on remaining married to his American petitioner . He can put in his application 90 days before his eligibility date. Like the rest of immigration, there is a long queue so even though eligible in three years, it could be some months waiting before it’s done and dusted. 

Thanks @Wuozopo Thanks, that completely answers my question.  So we could certainly apply for his citizenship within the time-frame we're considering. That's really helpful.

[FA081 9]

On 5/20/2020 at 9:48 AM, AlanD26 said:

Does anyone have any good links or tips for filing from abroad? 

 

So first time filer, I’m getting caught up with everything in the past. I’m using Expat Tax Online - https://www.expattaxonline.com

 

i found them on reddit as someone recommended them and they were a reasonable price. I ended up negotiating and got a fantastic deal on the streamlined process. Waaaay cheaper than anyone else I’ve seen. So far they’ve been amazing. I can’t say much else as I’ve only started the process but definitely enquire and negotiate. 
 

I’m filing married separately because obviously my husband doesn’t have an SSN or ITIN so his income isn’t considered at all. The accountants said this is the preferable route otherwise the UKC’s income comes into it and also a taxable amount. 

[os306 103]

On 5/20/2020 at 11:44 AM, os306 said:

Sorry that it wasn't exactly the news that you were hoping for, but it's good that they have acknowledged that they are actually opening petitions/RFE documents. From what I recall, your RFE was pretty straightforward (they just wanted a certified copy of your marriage certificate). Therefore, it sounds like 99% of the leg work for the processing of your petition is done, and that the only thing they are waiting for before ticking the 'approval' box is the marriage certificate itself. I wouldn't be surprised if you are one of the first to hear back.

 

In the meantime, have you had any luck with obtaining your tax transcripts? I was able to get through to someone from the IRS yesterday, but she informed me that tax transcripts are not currently being issued out as the department that does this isn't quite up and running yet.

 

 

Just an update in case this helps anyone: I was able to get through to the IRS international helpline (tel: +1 267-941-1000) and speak to a representative who was able to mail out our 2017, 2018, and 2019 tax transcripts. Not sure how long they will take to arrive in the UK, but it's good that these are now being sent out. I did ask again if they could fax them instead, but was told they no longer do this.

[The4Sands 67]

25 minutes ago, os306 said:

Just an update in case this helps anyone: I was able to get through to the IRS international helpline (tel: +1 267-941-1000) and speak to a representative who was able to mail out our 2017, 2018, and 2019 tax transcripts. Not sure how long they will take to arrive in the UK, but it's good that these are now being sent out. I did ask again if they could fax them instead, but was told they no longer do this.

Woop woop! It was on my list to call them today.  I will def try to get a hold of them.  Thanks, @os306!