Help! Questions about the Affidavit of Support (Form I-864)

[giselle_la 0]

Hello!

We are getting all the paperwork together for an Adjustment of Status for me, but we being having some issues filling the I-864 (Affidavit of support). I'm the beneficiary (wife) and my husband is the petitioner. Right now I have a B1/B2 tourist visa.

This is the situation, if you have any question please let me know:

My husband stopped doing his taxes since 2011 because he came to Tijuana and stayed here for 9 months as a long term volunteer for a foundation.

He later moved to Tijuana permanently on february 2013 and got a job in San Diego a few months later. The whole time he worked there he got paid under the table and lived in Tijuana. We married on January 2015 in SD, went back to Tijuana the same day, and moved to Oregon on march 2015.

He got a job on April as an assisting manager in a pizzeria here in Oregon and makes 18,000 a year aprox. meaning that we are going to need a joint sponsor.

I answered a few questions on the IRS website to know if my husband needs to fill a Tax Return for 2014 and it says he is required to file one.

My questions are:

1. In our case, for the form I-864, can we send a letter saying the following? :

"To Whom It May Concern:

I am Mr. P, Ms. P's husband and petitioning sponsor. I did not file an income tax return for the years 2011, 2012, 2013 or 2014 because I have not worked during my 2 year residence in the city of Tijuana, Baja California Mexico. Once I came to Tijuana, I was unable to find work and so used my savings and I was maintained by my wife upon her income and savings.

Signature:____________ “*

*This is a sample of a letter I found in other forum.

2. Does the joint sponsor have to fill up another form of the I-864 and write a letter to the USCIS?

[Lainie B 465]

Moving to "AOS from work, student, tourist visa" forum

[Lainie B 465]

It sounds like he needs to file his taxes for 2013 and 2014.

[Shauneg 762]

It sounds like he needs to file his taxes for 2013 and 2014.

[Ash.1101 1,755]

If you don't make any money you can't just simply file taxes. It's not a requirement to file under a certain number, I found that out this year when I went to file my whole 0 dollars income and was met with a "You do not qualify for tax filing due to being under the income requirement" after calling the IRS and looking it up, yup. You can send them a hard copy showing you made no money but to them that's the equivalent of sending nothing.

Now here's the catcher though, saying that he didn't work during that time when you just said that he worked there under the table makes that statement a lie. Depending on how much he made he may have had to file taxes, if he made a certain amount he may have had to file taxes. While yes, they may not be able to prove he worked, you just wanna be really careful with that.

If he is under the following he may not have HAD to file at all:

How much income do I have to make before I’m required to file taxes?

It depends on your gross income. For 2014, you must file a return if your gross income was at least:

• Single filing status:
  • $10,150 if under age 65
  • $11,700 if age 65 or older
• Married filing jointly:
  • $20,300 if both spouses under age 65
  • $21,500 if one spouse under age 65 and one age 65 or older
  • $22,700 if both spouses age 65 or older
• Married filing separately -- $3,950 for all ages
• Head of household:
  • $13,050 if under age 65
  • $14,600 if age 65 or older
• Qualifying widow(er) with dependent child:
  • $16,350 if under age 65
  • $16,850 if age 65 or older

This is from HR Block website: http://www.hrblock.com/tax-answers/services/jsp/article.jsp?article_id=66547

If he made less than what ever he would fit into category wise, then he simply needs to say he wasn't required to file taxes as he did not make enough. That's much better than lying and saying he didn't work. The numbers probably differ year to year but I'm sure they're searchable somewhere.

Check our your options, but you def don't want to get caught up in accidentally saying something that might cause them to be suspicious.





Edit: As for your second question. Yes the joint sponsor will also need to fill out a I-184. They shouldn't have to write a letter because they should have all of the required documents. The only reason you will have a letter is because ya'll lack a document. If you get a joint sponsor you need to make sure that they make enough and have EVERYTHING that is asked of them.

Edited June 11, 2015 by Ash.1101

[KayDeeCee 4,891]

If you were required to file taxes for any of the last 3 years and did not, then the back taxes need to be filed before submitting an I-864. If you did not file taxes because you were not legally required to do so according to the IRS pubs, then that is when you can include a statement explaining why you were not legally obligated to file.

A joint sponsor fills out their own separate I-864. Not sure what letter you are asking if they need. They need to submit their most recent tax transcript, letter from employer and/or recent pay stubs to prove their current income meets the requirement for their own household size plus the intending immigrant. They also need to provide proof of being a USC or LPR.

I suggest you carefully read through all the I-864 form instructions.