amended tax return anyone with expierence

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

I hope your attorney will advise that you file the amended tax return (I've had to do that, and the USCIS could care less) and get straight with the government.

If he filed returns using normal and legal business accounting methods, there is no need to file amended returns. You are correct, the USCIS couldn't care less. You meet the guidelines with current income first, last years income is very much less important.

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

Is the OP wanting to amend his tax return because he actually has income earned that was not reported on his tax return? Or does he want to amend just to report additional income to meet the income requirements required for a K-1 visa?

If its the first case, then I would amend my return. If its the second then Gary covered that very well.

My presumption, having done this for many years myself, is that he has claimed as business expese many allowable items for business use. Perfectly acceptable and legal. It DOES reduce your personal income and tax liability (that's the point) but then when you have to show income for a particular purpose, it comes back to bite you. Try to get a home mortgage, at least now. But lots of times that is not an issue for someone.

I understood it was his intent to file an amended return, NOT claim the legitimate business expense (or some of them) thereby shifting the income from the business to himself and increasing (by a whopping amount) the tax due.

If it was an "Oops, I forget about that contract" and there is additional, real, income then you have to file an amended return.

I read that he under reported his income.

OP -- :rofl: Tried to screw Uncle Sam and now he is screwing you.

Having prepared business tax returns for many years, I did not read it that way. I also had exactly the same questions for exactly the same reason when I presented my I-134 last year. (I knew about it in enough time to consider it when I filed the taxes initially, but had the same question)

As it turned out it just wasn't very important. They went by current income first which makes perfect sense when you think about it. Why would you have to meet the guidelines LAST year? You need to meet them NOW.

I presume he did not under-report his income. Any one that thinks it is "unfair" can simply start their own business, risk their own money, pay their own healthcare insurance and take unpaid vacations the rest of their life. Go for it! Then you too can "screw the government".

[sjr09 155]

Is the OP wanting to amend his tax return because he actually has income earned that was not reported on his tax return? Or does he want to amend just to report additional income to meet the income requirements required for a K-1 visa?

If its the first case, then I would amend my return. If its the second then Gary covered that very well.

My presumption, having done this for many years myself, is that he has claimed as business expese many allowable items for business use. Perfectly acceptable and legal. It DOES reduce your personal income and tax liability (that's the point) but then when you have to show income for a particular purpose, it comes back to bite you. Try to get a home mortgage, at least now. But lots of times that is not an issue for someone.

I understood it was his intent to file an amended return, NOT claim the legitimate business expense (or some of them) thereby shifting the income from the business to himself and increasing (by a whopping amount) the tax due.

If it was an "Oops, I forget about that contract" and there is additional, real, income then you have to file an amended return.

I read that he under reported his income.

OP -- :rofl: Tried to screw Uncle Sam and now he is screwing you.

Having prepared business tax returns for many years, I did not read it that way. I also had exactly the same questions for exactly the same reason when I presented my I-134 last year. (I knew about it in enough time to consider it when I filed the taxes initially, but had the same question)

As it turned out it just wasn't very important. They went by current income first which makes perfect sense when you think about it. Why would you have to meet the guidelines LAST year? You need to meet them NOW.

I presume he did not under-report his income. Any one that thinks it is "unfair" can simply start their own business, risk their own money, pay their own healthcare insurance and take unpaid vacations the rest of their life. Go for it! Then you too can "screw the government".

So true so true I have been small Lic.contractor for the last 16 years! It's not all fun and games! Un-like 9-5er's who can turn it off at the end of the day, your business is on your mind 24-7 365 days.

[jman1 0]

Is the OP wanting to amend his tax return because he actually has income earned that was not reported on his tax return? Or does he want to amend just to report additional income to meet the income requirements required for a K-1 visa?

If its the first case, then I would amend my return. If its the second then Gary covered that very well.

My presumption, having done this for many years myself, is that he has claimed as business expese many allowable items for business use. Perfectly acceptable and legal. It DOES reduce your personal income and tax liability (that's the point) but then when you have to show income for a particular purpose, it comes back to bite you. Try to get a home mortgage, at least now. But lots of times that is not an issue for someone.

I understood it was his intent to file an amended return, NOT claim the legitimate business expense (or some of them) thereby shifting the income from the business to himself and increasing (by a whopping amount) the tax due.

If it was an "Oops, I forget about that contract" and there is additional, real, income then you have to file an amended return.

I read that he under reported his income.

OP -- :rofl: Tried to screw Uncle Sam and now he is screwing you.

Having prepared business tax returns for many years, I did not read it that way. I also had exactly the same questions for exactly the same reason when I presented my I-134 last year. (I knew about it in enough time to consider it when I filed the taxes initially, but had the same question)

As it turned out it just wasn't very important. They went by current income first which makes perfect sense when you think about it. Why would you have to meet the guidelines LAST year? You need to meet them NOW.

I presume he did not under-report his income. Any one that thinks it is "unfair" can simply start their own business, risk their own money, pay their own healthcare insurance and take unpaid vacations the rest of their life. Go for it! Then you too can "screw the government".

Gary, thanks for your advice!! I'm begining to see some hope I've been really sweating this. I only have 1 brother for familly and he doesn't make enough, so a cosponser is not an option. Yes I was/am considering not over inflating, but not claiming as much expenses. So you siad you had exactly the same question but knew before you filed. Therfore, did you meet the min on last year before you filed or did you just show your present income X12? I know that I probably sound like a scratched record. SORRY. I also have gathered that the most important thing is a real relationship, which I am sure we can prove. I've seen Pen (my fiancees nik name) 3 times and have lots of supporting "evidence". How about your other two years before Alla arived, before you met her? Ok now I can imagine you thinking what part of what you've said don't I understand. Please be patient with me. In adition, you're right after first being a commercial fisherman then saving my money and buying a 27 foot boat in Oregon making every decison wheather to kill us all trying to cross a breaking sand bar, to if our sandwitches had ham and cheese, or turkey and cheese; then becoming a licensed contractor after the feds shut that down, I really don't understand how claiming expenses that are incured with business makes me a tax welch. Thanks for your advice Gary.

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

Is the OP wanting to amend his tax return because he actually has income earned that was not reported on his tax return? Or does he want to amend just to report additional income to meet the income requirements required for a K-1 visa?

If its the first case, then I would amend my return. If its the second then Gary covered that very well.

My presumption, having done this for many years myself, is that he has claimed as business expese many allowable items for business use. Perfectly acceptable and legal. It DOES reduce your personal income and tax liability (that's the point) but then when you have to show income for a particular purpose, it comes back to bite you. Try to get a home mortgage, at least now. But lots of times that is not an issue for someone.

I understood it was his intent to file an amended return, NOT claim the legitimate business expense (or some of them) thereby shifting the income from the business to himself and increasing (by a whopping amount) the tax due.

If it was an "Oops, I forget about that contract" and there is additional, real, income then you have to file an amended return.

I read that he under reported his income.

OP -- :rofl: Tried to screw Uncle Sam and now he is screwing you.

Having prepared business tax returns for many years, I did not read it that way. I also had exactly the same questions for exactly the same reason when I presented my I-134 last year. (I knew about it in enough time to consider it when I filed the taxes initially, but had the same question)

As it turned out it just wasn't very important. They went by current income first which makes perfect sense when you think about it. Why would you have to meet the guidelines LAST year? You need to meet them NOW.

I presume he did not under-report his income. Any one that thinks it is "unfair" can simply start their own business, risk their own money, pay their own healthcare insurance and take unpaid vacations the rest of their life. Go for it! Then you too can "screw the government".

Gary, thanks for your advice!! I'm begining to see some hope I've been really sweating this. I only have 1 brother for familly and he doesn't make enough, so a cosponser is not an option. Yes I was/am considering not over inflating, but not claiming as much expenses. So you siad you had exactly the same question but knew before you filed. Therfore, did you meet the min on last year before you filed or did you just show your present income X12? I know that I probably sound like a scratched record. SORRY. I also have gathered that the most important thing is a real relationship, which I am sure we can prove. I've seen Pen (my fiancees nik name) 3 times and have lots of supporting "evidence". How about your other two years before Alla arived, before you met her? Ok now I can imagine you thinking what part of what you've said don't I understand. Please be patient with me. In adition, you're right after first being a commercial fisherman then saving my money and buying a 27 foot boat in Oregon making every decison wheather to kill us all trying to cross a breaking sand bar, to if our sandwitches had ham and cheese, or turkey and cheese; then becoming a licensed contractor after the feds shut that down, I really don't understand how claiming expenses that are incured with business makes me a tax welch. Thanks for your advice Gary.

I discoverd this website and got great advice here before I filed my 2007 tax return, which is the one I presented at my interview last August. So I was faced with the same decision, claim less legitimate expenses and increase my GROSS income (line 22) and pay a boatload more taxes or claim all the expenses I could and then document current income. I never even considered a co-sponsor, I could probably find one, but I felt it was a little crazy for a 50+ man with his own business for many years, so was pretty determined not to do that.

In the end, after taking every possible deduction, my 2007 income was barely under the requirement for a family of 4 (my wife has two sons). Then one of the sons decided to come this year as the timing was not good for his school responsibilities, so I think, we were considered a family of 3 at the interview which would have put my 2007 income slightly OVER the 2008 guidelines. All of which is a lot of talk about nothing. They really only considered the current income.

Yes, I calculated my current for 2009 based on year to date at the time (end of July '08) divided by 7, multiplied by 12. I attached a bank letter showing deposits for previous 12 months, I did not attach bank statements, only a letter. Our elder son has his K-2 to follow interview in a couple weeks and I have done exactly the same this year, though now presented the 2008 return which is well above the guidelines for a family of four anyway. However, I just know they will detach the tax return and everything else and just go by current income. Some consulates may be different it is true, but for Kiev, and from what I understand, Moscow also, you should be fine if you are currently above guidelines

The consulate barely glanced at the tax return, detached it and handed it back to me, never looked at the bank letter or anything else and kept only the affidavit itself. No questions asked.

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

Is the OP wanting to amend his tax return because he actually has income earned that was not reported on his tax return? Or does he want to amend just to report additional income to meet the income requirements required for a K-1 visa?

If its the first case, then I would amend my return. If its the second then Gary covered that very well.

My presumption, having done this for many years myself, is that he has claimed as business expese many allowable items for business use. Perfectly acceptable and legal. It DOES reduce your personal income and tax liability (that's the point) but then when you have to show income for a particular purpose, it comes back to bite you. Try to get a home mortgage, at least now. But lots of times that is not an issue for someone.

I understood it was his intent to file an amended return, NOT claim the legitimate business expense (or some of them) thereby shifting the income from the business to himself and increasing (by a whopping amount) the tax due.

If it was an "Oops, I forget about that contract" and there is additional, real, income then you have to file an amended return.

I read that he under reported his income.

OP -- :rofl: Tried to screw Uncle Sam and now he is screwing you.

Having prepared business tax returns for many years, I did not read it that way. I also had exactly the same questions for exactly the same reason when I presented my I-134 last year. (I knew about it in enough time to consider it when I filed the taxes initially, but had the same question)

As it turned out it just wasn't very important. They went by current income first which makes perfect sense when you think about it. Why would you have to meet the guidelines LAST year? You need to meet them NOW.

I presume he did not under-report his income. Any one that thinks it is "unfair" can simply start their own business, risk their own money, pay their own healthcare insurance and take unpaid vacations the rest of their life. Go for it! Then you too can "screw the government".

Gary, thanks for your advice!! I'm begining to see some hope I've been really sweating this. I only have 1 brother for familly and he doesn't make enough, so a cosponser is not an option. Yes I was/am considering not over inflating, but not claiming as much expenses. So you siad you had exactly the same question but knew before you filed. Therfore, did you meet the min on last year before you filed or did you just show your present income X12? I know that I probably sound like a scratched record. SORRY. I also have gathered that the most important thing is a real relationship, which I am sure we can prove. I've seen Pen (my fiancees nik name) 3 times and have lots of supporting "evidence". How about your other two years before Alla arived, before you met her? Ok now I can imagine you thinking what part of what you've said don't I understand. Please be patient with me. In adition, you're right after first being a commercial fisherman then saving my money and buying a 27 foot boat in Oregon making every decison wheather to kill us all trying to cross a breaking sand bar, to if our sandwitches had ham and cheese, or turkey and cheese; then becoming a licensed contractor after the feds shut that down, I really don't understand how claiming expenses that are incured with business makes me a tax welch. Thanks for your advice Gary.

Second part of answer...

I never presented any other years tax returns, only 2007 for interview AND AOS and had no problems, no questions, no requests for any other evidence (they never even asked for ANY documentation of ANYthing at the AOS interview, other than what I sent with the I-485)

Proving relationship was very simple in Kiev. In general I have heard they ask a few more questions in Moscow, but nothing difficult, a legitmate relationship generates its own proof without trying...don't worry. If you have a legitimate relationship, you HAVE proof.

As far as being a "welch"...this is a common misconception by people who really SHOULD remain working for an hourly wage all their life. It is a good thing to know one's limitations. They generally think they are doing well to get a big tax return, which is fine as I prefer they make interest free loans to the government with THEIR money, and that they are entitled to an employer, (you know, guys like YOU) to pay their insurance and continue their wages when they go on vacation, and give them sandwiches and even decide what to put on the sandwich, to protect them from injury in potentially dangerous jobs, but then gripe that the guy paying them can deduct their goodies as an "expense"

Yes, those people need to find the highest wage they can earn with the limited ability to understand they have...stay in that job...and pray for Barack Obama to make their life better for them.

Guys like you and me,,,we can do it ourselves. Good luck

Edited June 7, 2009 by Gary and Alla

[pushbrk 14,459]

Is the OP wanting to amend his tax return because he actually has income earned that was not reported on his tax return? Or does he want to amend just to report additional income to meet the income requirements required for a K-1 visa?

If its the first case, then I would amend my return. If its the second then Gary covered that very well.

My presumption, having done this for many years myself, is that he has claimed as business expese many allowable items for business use. Perfectly acceptable and legal. It DOES reduce your personal income and tax liability (that's the point) but then when you have to show income for a particular purpose, it comes back to bite you. Try to get a home mortgage, at least now. But lots of times that is not an issue for someone.

I understood it was his intent to file an amended return, NOT claim the legitimate business expense (or some of them) thereby shifting the income from the business to himself and increasing (by a whopping amount) the tax due.

If it was an "Oops, I forget about that contract" and there is additional, real, income then you have to file an amended return.

I read that he under reported his income.

OP -- :rofl: Tried to screw Uncle Sam and now he is screwing you.

He's not try to screw anyone he has claimed business expense maybe more then he should have but thats the point reduce your personal income less tax liabilty and it's all good with the IRS and is perfectily legal! ...One post said it best it will come back and bit you in the butt! it's the old Catch-22

Do this make a letter, "Projected Income for 2009" base this off your bank statments and furture contracts/jobs not your 1040 be real don't game it.... Keep it to one or two page at the most then put it in Affidavit form.

Good advice, but not necessary. The form asks for CURRENT annual income. No need to write a letter. Just project your current annual income basing the projection ond documented evidence. If you made $30,000 for the first half of 2009 it is perfectly plausible to state your current annual income as $60,000. If you have some big contracts or other unusal forms of income coig later in the year, add that to the figure. Support it with last 12 months bank statements, which to a self employed person are the same as "check stubs". Remember it is PERSONAL income not business income, they want to see.

For the record, no one is screwing anyone (not as I read it) this is perfectly normal and legal business accounting practice.

People with regular hourly or salaried jobs often don't grasp how sales and business peoples' tax returns differ from the norm.

I continued to do the same work but changed from "employed" W2 income to self-employed with a 1099. With similar income and deductible business related expenses, the difference in how the accounting is done resulted in the same tax paid but a far lower "total income" on the tax return. As an employee, the business expenses didn't reduce the gross income shown on the return but did reduce the tax paid. As self-employed, the same business expenses reduce both the tax and the gross income shown on the return. With income and expenses the same, the tax is the same but the gross income shown on the 1040 form is far different. Filing an amended return will result in unnecessarily paying more tax than is actually owed.

Not that long ago, employee business expense deductions were also handled in a way that reduced gross income on the return but that changed some years ago.

One suggestion that might apply is that if business income is lowered by a significant deduction for depreciation, you might simpy point that out and explain how it impacted tax due without impacting income.

[Gary and Alla 3,696]

Is the OP wanting to amend his tax return because he actually has income earned that was not reported on his tax return? Or does he want to amend just to report additional income to meet the income requirements required for a K-1 visa?

If its the first case, then I would amend my return. If its the second then Gary covered that very well.

My presumption, having done this for many years myself, is that he has claimed as business expese many allowable items for business use. Perfectly acceptable and legal. It DOES reduce your personal income and tax liability (that's the point) but then when you have to show income for a particular purpose, it comes back to bite you. Try to get a home mortgage, at least now. But lots of times that is not an issue for someone.

I understood it was his intent to file an amended return, NOT claim the legitimate business expense (or some of them) thereby shifting the income from the business to himself and increasing (by a whopping amount) the tax due.

If it was an "Oops, I forget about that contract" and there is additional, real, income then you have to file an amended return.

I read that he under reported his income.

OP -- :rofl: Tried to screw Uncle Sam and now he is screwing you.

He's not try to screw anyone he has claimed business expense maybe more then he should have but thats the point reduce your personal income less tax liabilty and it's all good with the IRS and is perfectily legal! ...One post said it best it will come back and bit you in the butt! it's the old Catch-22

Do this make a letter, "Projected Income for 2009" base this off your bank statments and furture contracts/jobs not your 1040 be real don't game it.... Keep it to one or two page at the most then put it in Affidavit form.

Good advice, but not necessary. The form asks for CURRENT annual income. No need to write a letter. Just project your current annual income basing the projection ond documented evidence. If you made $30,000 for the first half of 2009 it is perfectly plausible to state your current annual income as $60,000. If you have some big contracts or other unusal forms of income coig later in the year, add that to the figure. Support it with last 12 months bank statements, which to a self employed person are the same as "check stubs". Remember it is PERSONAL income not business income, they want to see.

For the record, no one is screwing anyone (not as I read it) this is perfectly normal and legal business accounting practice.

People with regular hourly or salaried jobs often don't grasp how sales and business peoples' tax returns differ from the norm.

I continued to do the same work but changed from "employed" W2 income to self-employed with a 1099. With similar income and deductible business related expenses, the difference in how the accounting is done resulted in the same tax paid but a far lower "total income" on the tax return. As an employee, the business expenses didn't reduce the gross income shown on the return but did reduce the tax paid. As self-employed, the same business expenses reduce both the tax and the gross income shown on the return. With income and expenses the same, the tax is the same but the gross income shown on the 1040 form is far different. Filing an amended return will result in unnecessarily paying more tax than is actually owed.

Not that long ago, employee business expense deductions were also handled in a way that reduced gross income on the return but that changed some years ago.

One suggestion that might apply is that if business income is lowered by a significant deduction for depreciation, you might simpy point that out and explain how it impacted tax due without impacting income.

Good point, Pushbrk. Another "bookmark" deduction is business use of a home, taken on the schedule C AFTER all other expenses, and deducted from "tentative profit". This is really a "gift", tax break, for self employed people who risk their resources to give other people jobs. I mean you PAY for your home whether you get to deduct a portion from your gross income or not. Hopefully consulate people may recognize this. Banks do when applying for loans, usually.

The ironic thing of this, as I always felt, as that if one of this man's EMPLOYEES petitioned a fiancee he would show w-2s qualifying him with far less "income" than the business owner really has. But because of IRS rules and where figures must be entered on a form, the business owner has a tougher time of it. And his option is to pay far more taxes than his employees. There ought to be a better way for self employed people, but for now there isn't. And fortunately CURRENT income is far more important.