I-864 Tax return question

[wildllama 0]

I potentially have a problem and need some advice please. I was living in Japan with my fiancee for the last 3 years and just moved back to the US this summer. I spent a total of 6 years in Japan and didn't file taxes for the last 3 years. How will this affect our application?

Can I file everything else that I have, get a co-sponser, explain my situation and hope for the best. I realize that I might have some tax penalties but will this hurt our chances? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Ryan

[Singers 0]

The first thing you need to do is file for the last 3 years... It won't hurt your chances but they will require either tax transcripts or proof you didn't need to file. RFE's for tax information is very common and they won't be able to get past it until they have the necessary information.

USCIS is not interested in your tax situation so if you do have penalties that is between you and the IRS. It won't hurt your adjustment of status.

[ELW 5]

I lived in India for 21 years and never filed taxes because I was not working for a salary (just room & food). The first year I filed tax returns in my life was 2006. For the Consulate interview and then here for AOS, I sent in my 2006 returns, an explanation of why I didn't file, tax transcripts from the IRS (where they checked a box that I had not filed for the other years), and a printout from the IRS website specifying those who were not legally bound to file tax returns (which included me, because I was making under the required minimum annual income).

We were approved with no questions whatsoever, both at the Consulate in India and for the AOS here in US.

[u2rsobad 0]

I lived in Japan for 15 years and filed taxes each year along with a form 2555 which exempts you from paying/ not filing federal taxes in the US if your salary was below the requirements for that year(at the time I came back I think it was equal to $74,000 USD) As someone else said, if you were exempt from filing, then you need to explain why that was, or file for the last 3 years so you have tax records to prove your income.

PS: If you worked for a Japanese company and either you filed or they filed your Japanese taxes for you, you should still have a statement (like our W-2's) to show your income for each year. The American Embassy website in Japan has a list for each year and the average yen rate to be used for tax filing purposes that will help you.

Good luck.

[wildllama 0]

Thanks for the advice and sorry for the delay. I lost internet service for a week at a time when I really need it. Anyway, I think I will file the best I can now and begin tracking down the forms from Japan that I'll need so I can be prepared for the RFE.

If I file for AOS and an EAD at the same time will an RFE slow down the EAD process? My wife isn't so worried about the green card, more about being able to work.