I-751 Evidence (Split)

[Nelly_M 6]

12 minutes ago, HarryWL said:

 

I filed my 2018 tax return a month ago, a few days prior to applying for citizenship. I guess the old saying better late than never applies. It's actually pretty easy to file within past 3 years, usually past that it gets annoying.

Did you have any income for that year? Did not filing for that year affect your I-751 in any way? We have a letter from tax specialist saying that we are not required to file if there is no income. Not really sure how to go about this one. 

[HarryWL 262]

On 11/7/2023 at 1:56 AM, Nelly_M said:

Did you have any income for that year? Did not filing for that year affect your I-751 in any way? We have a letter from tax specialist saying that we are not required to file if there is no income. Not really sure how to go about this one. 

 

I got my PR on December 18th 2018, so I was technically a resident for 13 days. You still have to file a tax return even if you're a resident for 1 day (as I found out a few days prior to applying for citizenship). I had zero US income, but I had to declare my Canadian income and convert it into USD. I then attached a foreign income exclusion document and mailed it to the IRS. That was about 6 weeks ago, I'm going to call them in like 2 weeks to find out the status of my return. Tax returns don't really have any effect on I-751, but you need 5 years of tax returns for N-400 when you go for citizenship. I've also been waiting for my I-751 waiver since September 2020, at this point a combo interview is more likely than not. 

[Nelly_M 6]

2 hours ago, HarryWL said:

 

I got my PR on December 18th 2018, so I was technically a resident for 13 days. You still have to file a tax return even if you're a resident for 1 day (as I found out a few days prior to applying for citizenship). I had zero US income, but I had to declare my Canadian income and convert it into USD. I then attached a foreign income exclusion document and mailed it to the IRS. That was about 6 weeks ago, I'm going to call them in like 2 weeks to find out the status of my return. Tax returns don't really have any effect on I-751, but you need 5 years of tax returns for N-400 when you go for citizenship. I've also been waiting for my I-751 waiver since September 2020, at this point a combo interview is more likely than not. 

My understanding is that any income earned prior to becoming a conditional PR is not counted as taxable income here in the US. You were already paying taxes in the country where you were living and working prior to becoming a PR. At least that’s how it was explained to me. Any income earned from the moment you become a PR whether it was earned here or worldwide is taxable and should be reported on your income tax return if above certain amount as set by IRS rules. We have a letter from a tax specialist saying that we were not required to file tax for a year in which we had no income that I was planning to submit with I-751. I was also told that IRS might reject a tax return with zero income. Not really sure how this can affect a naturalization process. 

[Crazy Cat 39,750]

43 minutes ago, Nelly_M said:

My understanding is that any income earned prior to becoming a conditional PR is not counted as taxable income here in the US.

It Depends.  If you and spouse filed a joint return, world-wide income from both spouses for the entire year would have to be reported.  Otherwise, you are correct.

 

Married Filing Joint - Spouse of Nonresident Alien or Dual-Status Alien Treated as Resident (taxact.com)

 

"Generally, a married couple can't file a joint return if either one is a nonresident alien at any time during the tax year. However, if one spouse was a nonresident alien or dual-status alien who was married to a U.S. citizen or resident alien at the end of the year, the spouses can choose to file a joint return. If you do file a joint return, you and your spouse are both treated as U.S. residents for the entire tax year. See chapter 1 of Pub. 519."

Edited November 9, 2023 by Crazy Cat

[Nelly_M 6]

1 minute ago, Crazy Cat said:

Depends.  If you filed a joint return, your income for the entire year would have to be reported. 

Are you sure? Even if that is the case, what my husband earned overseas in that year is still bellow the minimum amount required to file taxes. Hopefully, I will have this figured out before naturalization lol. Right now, I am focused on I-751 and for the year in question we would submit the letter with explanation that we didn’t file since no income. Not sure what else to do. 

[Crazy Cat 39,750]

16 minutes ago, Nelly_M said:

Are you sure? Even if that is the case, what my husband earned overseas in that year is still bellow the minimum amount required to file taxes. Hopefully, I will have this figured out before naturalization lol. Right now, I am focused on I-751 and for the year in question we would submit the letter with explanation that we didn’t file since no income. Not sure what else to do. 

Taxes the first year can be very complicated. Income of foreign spouse, tax treaties, etc. all come into play.  I always advise first year residents to consult a competent tax professional.  I'm glad you did.  I was just qualifying what you said.  But yes, all income for entire year must be properly reported if filing a joint return. Good luck. 

 

Note:  I have a very, very good CPA.  In 2017 (wife's 1st year), my wife and I filed Married-Filing Separately., thus the "entire year" wasn't applicable.

Edited November 9, 2023 by Crazy Cat

[Nelly_M 6]

13 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

Taxes the first year can be very complicated. Income of foreign spouse, tax treaties, etc. all come into play.  I always advise first year residents to consult a competent tax professional.  I was just qualifying what you said.  But yes, all income for entire year must be properly reported if filing a joint return. Good luck. 

 

Note:  I have a very, very good CPA.  In 2017 (wife's 1st year), my wife and I filed Married-Filing Separately., thus the "entire year" wasn't applicable.

Thank you for sharing this as you seem very knowledgeable about this topic. It is greatly appreciated. I have two questions in regards to this:

1) Did married filing separately for that year affect your I-751 in any way?

2) Is it possible to file as married filing separately retroactively for the first year now considering that we already filed jointly the following year (in case we still need to file)? 

[Crazy Cat 39,750]

4 minutes ago, Nelly_M said:

Thank you for sharing this as you seem very knowledgeable about this topic. It is greatly appreciated. I have two questions in regards to this:

1) Did married filing separately for that year affect your I-751 in any way?

2) Is it possible to file as married filing separately retroactively for the first year now considering that we already filed jointly the following year (in case we still need to file)? 

1.  No.  Not at all.  

2.  I assume you didn't file the first year because you weren't required to file.  If you were not required to file, I don't see an issue that you didn't file.  Just explain it with that letter.  

Note:  Wife and I have filed jointly every year after 1st year.

[Nelly_M 6]

1 hour ago, Crazy Cat said:

1.  No.  Not at all.  

2.  I assume you didn't file the first year because you weren't required to file.  If you were not required to file, I don't see an issue that you didn't file.  Just explain it with that letter.  

Note:  Wife and I have filed jointly every year after 1st year.

Thanks a lot for your help.

Yes, we didn’t file because we were not required to file given the circumstances.

We have filed jointly the following year and we are planning to continue filing jointly in the future. 

[HarryWL 262]

1 hour ago, Crazy Cat said:

Taxes the first year can be very complicated. Income of foreign spouse, tax treaties, etc. all come into play.  I always advise first year residents to consult a competent tax professional.  I'm glad you did.  I was just qualifying what you said.  But yes, all income for entire year must be properly reported if filing a joint return. Good luck. 

 

Note:  I have a very, very good CPA.  In 2017 (wife's 1st year), my wife and I filed Married-Filing Separately., thus the "entire year" wasn't applicable.

 

I agree, the whole situation around partial tax years is very confusing (even when you have zero income in the USA). I personally went off information on the IRS website and individuals on this forum that said it was required even if you're a PR for 1 calendar day of that tax year. I filed a 1040 with a 2555 (Foreign Earned Income), as married filing separately. I filed a tax exception based on physical presence test, as I lived in Canada from January 1st to December 17th of 2018.

 

The whole thing is still confusing to me and one big headache. I'm just hoping my N-400 interview doesn't happen till around March so that I'll have my 5th tax transcript from this upcoming tax season, so I can use that instead of 2018. I'm also hoping the tax return I filed comes back saying I owe $0, otherwise that'll be another headache. 

Edited November 9, 2023 by HarryWL

[Nelly_M 6]

1 hour ago, HarryWL said:

 

I agree, the whole situation around partial tax years is very confusing (even when you have zero income in the USA). I personally went off information on the IRS website and individuals on this forum that said it was required even if you're a PR for 1 calendar day of that tax year. I filed a 1040 with a 2555 (Foreign Earned Income), as married filing separately. I filed a tax exception based on physical presence test, as I lived in Canada from January 1st to December 17th of 2018.

 

The whole thing is still confusing to me and one big headache. I'm just hoping my N-400 interview doesn't happen till around March so that I'll have my 5th tax transcript from this upcoming tax season, so I can use that instead of 2018. I'm also hoping the tax return I filed comes back saying I owe $0, otherwise that'll be another headache. 

Definitely a big headache for all of us in this situation. Thank you for sharing your experience. I hope your interview will go smoothly and that all your taxes will be finalized by then. 

[Nelly_M 6]

Do we have to sign a cover letter including with I-751? 

[Nelly_M 6]

Does cover letter for I-751 need to signed? If yes, by whom: petitioner, US citizen spouse, or both? 
I am the one putting it together for my husband. 

[OldUser 5,141]

9 minutes ago, Nelly_M said:

Does cover letter for I-751 need to signed? If yes, by whom: petitioner, US citizen spouse, or both? 
I am the one putting it together for my husband. 

There's no requirement for a cover letter.

A petitioner can write one in their name. No need to sign anything.

 

In my case, a lawyer wrote a cover letter in their name and never signed it.

[Nelly_M 6]

4 hours ago, OldUser said:

There's no requirement for a cover letter.

A petitioner can write one in their name. No need to sign anything.

 

In my case, a lawyer wrote a cover letter in their name and never signed it.

Great, thanks. I saw some samples with signature line, but it wasn’t specified for who. I am glad that it’s not a requirement. One less thing to worry about.