A Bit Confused - Support Requirements

[FormerlyKnownAs 17]

I've been a member on this board for some time and I promise I've read tons of posts and guidelines, but I still have some questions about support. I hope some of the super smart members here will be able to help me out.

I'll describe my situation, which should help explain some of my confusion. I am single, recently divorced (on paper, though we were separated for years) and have custody of my two children - 15 & 16 years old. I haven't worked in a number of years, but will be returning to work very soon and should have no trouble finding a job where I can make at least the minimum requirement (for 4, correct?). I have concerns on two fronts... I understand that child support can count toward the requirement (and it should if they're counted on the number of people in my household that I have to support), but my children will age out of their support in the next several years. I wasn't planning on counting on this at all, but can someone comment on whether it will help meet the income requirement or not?

Also since my job will be a brand new job, will I have any problems? As long as I make a salary above the guideline and the employment is regular and permanent, will it be alright? I will be putting away some savings as well. My income tax from the last few years will be joint with my ex, they show plenty of joint income which I no longer receive... Just really unsure about all of this. Any advice would be so very appreciated.

As for my current relationship and how we plan on going about filing... We plan on marrying this year and filing CR1 later this year or next. Not sure if this makes a difference, but it's why I posted this here in the CR1 forum.

Thank you all so much in advance.

Edited March 28, 2011 by LongRoadHome

[Moosker 7]

I believe when you file, you must show the last 2 (3?) years tax returns, which shows your ability to sponsor the intending immigrant. Although you may make above the guidelines now with your new job, your past tax returns will not show that. Someone else may be able to clarify.

[wendy&tamer 10]

My ex husband was on the tax years I had to include (3). What I did was: type a letter explaining that John was my ex-husband and when were divorced (just so they knew his income shouldnt be included in my income). I know it should have been obvious since I was married to Tamer but I kept it simple with the explanation to whomever was reviewing my documents. I didnt include my child support, but I made enough without it. I would guess that you could include it, if you need to boost the income requirement. I hope this helps or gives you an idea on how to handle it.