Returning Resident

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@TBoneTX she said someone told her that if she cant prove her protracted stay outside the US they wont listen to her or give her a chance to explain her self. How true is this? I mean she doesn't have a case of " Beyond her control "  so does this mean they wont listen to her explanations?

Edited May 30, 2020 by Child of the Sun1

[Villanelle 4,122]

It is very difficult for users here to give input because you gave very few details - and the ones you gave do not make sense. A W2 is a tax form you get at the end of each from your employer. It shows how much you earned and you use it to fill out your tax return (1040).  So you dont technically file a W2, you file a tax return. It seems she has a W2 from 2015 that she never filed a tax return with. So she has at least 1 tax return she failed to file. Also as a LPR you are required to file US tax returns for any income you earn any where in the world. Has she been earning income since 2015 anywhere? If so she probably has multiple years of tax returns she failed to file...

 

In order to qualify as the returning resident visa- you need to show you didnt abandon your residency which includes being current with taxes. Try to think of it more like how it is when someone first immigrates, they come with nothing, (no home, no car, no job, no belongings etc) vs someone coming back from an extended vacation- they come back to their car, house, personal belongings. You want to show you didnt abandon everything in the US. So where is all her stuff she left in the US? In storage? Does she have an apartment shes been renting where stuff has just been sitting? If she left with the intentions of returning then she would have stuff here still.

 

Often immigration views staying out of the US to care for a family member as something that is under your control. Its a hard decision for someone to have to make but it is ultimately a decision they make. People have been approved for the returning resident visa though when they were out of the US caring for a family member. It is going to depend on the specifics of the situation- and every situation is different. It is not going to be helpful to compare her case to someone elses since you can not change her facts to match someone elses who was approved... 

 

She needs to fill it out and see what happens. In general if she has no case it will be denied. If she fills out the application and they look at it and are not sure then in the interview they will gather additional information and make a decision. Its the same way all visa interviews are. Some people feel the Officers already make decisions before they talk to you so it doesnt matter what you bring or say. Other times its clear based on the interview what the person said in it and the docs they brought with them directly helped their approval. In general she shouldnt expect having a chance to 'explain herself' beyond what was written on the application. So she will want to submit a strong application. 

 

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Villanelle I regret to inform you in regrads about as a LPR you are required to file US tax returns for any income you earn any where in the world, that is not applicable becauae the tax law in the Philippines are different. US have no jurisdiction as such. Ive been Informed by a lawyer about this just now.  They have no jurisdiction on this, only in American or American territories. Otherwise you might have a different Interpretation of this

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Villanelle  she did Informed her landlord about not returning at that point because she herself wasnt sure when she can return. She said she have a round trip ticket and she just renewed her greencard before she left. Again, she didnt tell her landlord if she will be back because she is not even sure how long she will be gone. According to her, her parent was diagnosed with a lifetime illness and she tried to apply all options she can think of, but not of them was available and  the only thing available was her presence taking turns with her mother on helping dad because her mother can not shoulder all the responsibility by her self. She has the attestation letter from the doctor about her father's condition to prove the claim.

She also added that she wasnt aware of the full details of her father's health condition because nobody was telling her and her parents doesnt want her to get worried. Only time she found out about it was during her 3rd week stay in the Philippines. She said it was only for one month alone that she will be gone outside the US. That is also what she said to her employer and landlord.  She didnt know nor even the slightest idea that she will find her self In this kind of situation. She expected to live and retire in the US and not returning back to her country. Besides, she even said she has a daughter whom she left under the care of her ex bf. Right now the documents that she has are, attensation letter from the doctor, her daughter's ssn,copy of her round trip ticket. By the way I would like to add also about the round trip ticket. She said that if it was her plan to stay for good outside the US she should've purchased a one way ticket and just avoid renewing her Greencard. She said she could've save money right there especially renewing the GC because it cost her $450 at the time she renewed it. That was her statement

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Villanelle Oh by the way I forgot to tell you. She only have a few stuff, and she said those were all gone. She believes not too sure though. She asked her friend to save some of her stuff, but she doesn't know now because she lost contact with her friend

[Boiler 45,525]

6 hours ago, Child of the Sun1 said:

@Villanelle I regret to inform you in regrads about as a LPR you are required to file US tax returns for any income you earn any where in the world, that is not applicable becauae the tax law in the Philippines are different. US have no jurisdiction as such. Ive been Informed by a lawyer about this just now.  They have no jurisdiction on this, only in American or American territories. Otherwise you might have a different Interpretation of this

A LPR of the US is subject to US law and she says she is a US LPR, now if she is not I agree with your comment, sounds like she has been working in PI?

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Boiler US laws but US laws are not applicable in the Philippines. For example do you know you cant just request a copy of your tax that easy because how will you have a copy of that if you didnt go way over the tax bracket. That is one example that is very contradicting. Now have she been working in the Philippines? I believe she said yes, in order to helped he parents financially and to support her self to afford the process on this visa. Otherwise how can she apply for this visa if she doesnt have money? I think I heard that before as well, however in her case the is the question, How can an Individual support its self to afford the process if he/she is not allowed to have Income?

[Boiler 45,525]

Of course they are not, but she does want to come back to the US no? Where they are applicable.

 

The US taxes their residents on their world wide income, so sounds like she has a fundamental problem to resolve, is she saying she is a resident and therefore subject to US taxation or is she saying she is not a US resident and not subject to US taxation? 

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Boiler US taxation applies only within the US. Yes she wants to return in the US here is the question how can she request something Impoossible? are you saying SB1 visa is Impossible? If US have jurisdiction around the world, how can they adjust on the worlds taxation? I did asked you a question that you havent answred? how can she request it if that is not applicable in the Philippines?

[Boiler 45,525]

15 minutes ago, Child of the Sun1 said:

@Boiler US taxation applies only within the US. Yes she wants to return in the US here is the question how can she request something Impoossible? are you saying SB1 visa is Impossible? If US have jurisdiction around the world, how can they adjust on the worlds taxation? I did asked you a question that you havent answred? how can she request it if that is not applicable in the Philippines?

US taxes you on your Worldwide income, I have income from the United Kingdom, sadly the IRS does not ignore that income. The UK and the US taxation systems are very different, I have no knowledge of the situation in PI so can not comment.

 

I have made no comment about possibility or impossibility, I know very little about her situation, to make any such comment in the circumstances would be the definition of foolish.

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Boiler I agreed, and what you are only pointing out was the fact that it was on your exp however, that can still be different in some other aspects ( taking about the tax laws) one more thing however I also observed, was in the guidelines of this sb1 visa they used the term " taxes " or " Filling taxes " This can be easily misunderstood for the term it's self can be referring 

to US taxes.  Too vague for the term. If so anybody read the guide lines. For average joe that can be understood like that

[Boiler 45,525]

Not sure what you mean, the US is only interested in your US taxes.

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Boiler on the proof of ties it said " Proof of your ties to the United States and your intention to return (Examples: tax returns, and evidence of economic, family, and social ties to the United States) 

So you can see it shows tax return, not specific global tax. For an average joe this can be confusing. It is not pointing specifically on the taxes where the LPR currently reside outside the US

[Boiler 45,525]

There is no differentiation, as I have said many many times LPR's are taxes on their worldwide income like USC's so the reference is to that. There is no such thing as a specific global tax it is just part of the normal taxation system. This is an immigration form it is not designed to give tax guidance Most people with international ta issues will need professional guidance.

[Child of the Sun1 0]

@Boiler I think you missed my point. The point is any average person who would read this can easily misunderstood that. If there is no specific term which I assumed, it should be layout in a manner that an average person can understand.  When you say tax return  it be easily taken US tax return. Can you say that all nations have tax returns? Can you say that an average person can easily understand that it also, pertains on their tax return at their own country of origin?