RFIE says I don't make enough money which I do, but I may have made a mistake in the form...

[vincentlina 74]

2 minutes ago, Villanelle said:

Everyones situation is different. The above was referring to someone who only files schedule C and deducts expenses. You do that but you also claim (26) wages out of the business income. So your income for the purposes of the 864 is whatever wages you pay yourself + any extra profits the business is left with after all the deductions. (providing you are the sole owner). Not everyone who does schedule C/operates a self employed business pays themselves wages from it. It depends on how you do things/how you set up the business. Thats why you need to provide a tax transcript or copies of all pages/schedules from the return. You should be fine if your (self paid) wages are over the guidelines as they will consider that as well as the profits you are investing back in to the business. 

Ok, thank you for your response. What you said does make sense (as it's in alignment with the logic of what I initially thought with my i864/returns). I feel so much more relieved now.

[carmel34 3,661]

3 hours ago, vincentlina said:

Your answer is somewhat confusing in that, what is the point of the "wages" you earn as a self-employed person? This is the monies I am able to allocate for myself (and my family) living expenses....this is what I have available to support my family. The net profit is monies "left" back after my living/surviving income (26) and from subtracting my wages and other self-employed expenses from my gross. My net profit (31) is what I usually put back (reinvest) into the business operations -- not used to survive with. So, what is the "wages" (26) section for? Thanks in advance.

Read the instructions for Schedule C carefully.  Line 26 is only for wages paid to other people, i.e., your employees, if any, NOT to yourself.  Here is the relevant information for line 26 to clarify, from the IRS website:

 

"Do not include salaries and wages deducted elsewhere on your return or amounts paid to yourself."

 

What you did is to try and reduce your tax liability by paying yourself as an employee.  This is not correct, so you might want to re-file.  The "net profit" from line 31 is the amount for the I-864.  If you re-file a corrected return, your net profit will increase, which is good for the I-864, but you may have to pay more in taxes.

[vincentlina 74]

8 minutes ago, carmel34 said:

Read the instructions for Schedule C carefully.  Line 26 is only for wages paid to other people, i.e., your employees, if any, NOT to yourself.  Here is the relevant information for line 26 to clarify, from the IRS website:

 

"Do not include salaries and wages deducted elsewhere on your return or amounts paid to yourself."

 

What you did is to try and reduce your tax liability by paying yourself as an employee.  This is not correct, so you might want to re-file.  The "net profit" from line 31 is the amount for the I-864.  If you re-file a corrected return, your net profit will increase, which is good for the I-864, but you may have to pay more in taxes.

 

8 minutes ago, carmel34 said:

Read the instructions for Schedule C carefully.  Line 26 is only for wages paid to other people, i.e., your employees, if any, NOT to yourself.  Here is the relevant information for line 26 to clarify, from the IRS website:

 

"Do not include salaries and wages deducted elsewhere on your return or amounts paid to yourself."

 

What you did is to try and reduce your tax liability by paying yourself as an employee.  This is not correct, so you might want to re-file.  The "net profit" from line 31 is the amount for the I-864.  If you re-file a corrected return, your net profit will increase, which is good for the I-864, but you may have to pay more in taxes.

Thank you for your response. But I'm curious, I have already "submitted" my tax returns/i864 to the NVC site. It does not allow you to modify or edit once submitted. So, what do you think are my options here even if I refiled? NVC says they only look at the documentation submitted via the case site, so how would I have the opportunity to correct this, if you have any ideas? Thanks.

[Cndn 98]

Same thing happened to me. I sent a return. And yes, they send a generic RFIE back without specifying the reason (unfortunately). I got the same letter saying my husband doesn’t make enough money when he in fact does. So I quickly sent back an IRS transcript (easy to get online by the way). That solved the problem. 
 

It’s frustrating because the instructions state that a copy of the return is acceptable, but it seems some officers don’t feel that way and would prefer a transcript. Get the transcript in and it should resolve things. Good luck. 

[carmel34 3,661]

2 hours ago, vincentlina said:

 

Thank you for your response. But I'm curious, I have already "submitted" my tax returns/i864 to the NVC site. It does not allow you to modify or edit once submitted. So, what do you think are my options here even if I refiled? NVC says they only look at the documentation submitted via the case site, so how would I have the opportunity to correct this, if you have any ideas? Thanks.

Two options.  File a corrected tax return with the IRS, then do a new I-864 and upload it with the revised tax return or transcript to "additional documents" via CEAC, then call NVC to tell them what you did.  Or just take the new I-864 and corrected tax return or transcript to the visa interview.  Good luck!

[vincentlina 74]

18 hours ago, carmel34 said:

Two options.  File a corrected tax return with the IRS, then do a new I-864 and upload it with the revised tax return or transcript to "additional documents" via CEAC, then call NVC to tell them what you did.  Or just take the new I-864 and corrected tax return or transcript to the visa interview.  Good luck!

Thank you very much for your info/advise. I must say thought that the way my taxes were calculated/done had less to do with me trying to reduce my tax burden than a novice blindly following an online "free" tax software application. Please try not to assume people's intention in the future without giving them the benefit of doubt. Again, thank you very much.

[vincentlina 74]

20 hours ago, Cndn said:

Same thing happened to me. I sent a return. And yes, they send a generic RFIE back without specifying the reason (unfortunately). I got the same letter saying my husband doesn’t make enough money when he in fact does. So I quickly sent back an IRS transcript (easy to get online by the way). That solved the problem. 
 

It’s frustrating because the instructions state that a copy of the return is acceptable, but it seems some officers don’t feel that way and would prefer a transcript. Get the transcript in and it should resolve things. Good luck. 

Thanks for your suggestions. I will try and do just that.