simonschus

Thank you so much Wuozopo and Pitaya for your thoughts; I think I’ll keep the documents virtually for now!

Hi all,

I have a lot of marriage documentation from my N400 submission that covers the time between submitting my I751 and the N400. Is there any downside to reprinting that documentation and sending it proactively to the I751 address (for me, VSC) asking for it to be appended to my I751? Would it delay processing of my I751?

My I751 hasn’t been transferred to my Local Office with the N400 despite a few months passing since N400 submission (June 2019).

My intention would be to just avoid requests for additional documentation due to time having passed since submission of the I751 in August 2018.

As far as I am aware, I don’t have any missing documentation from my original I-751 submission. However, I included photocopies of our statements from friends attesting to our relationship rather than the originals.

Thoughts?

16 minutes ago, masakomaya said:

OMG I'm in the same boat and wondering the exact same thing!

 

VSC from late August 2018, and my case number only shows the same as yours on their website. My USCIS account shows fingerprint reviewed 9/28/2018. I agree that everyone nearby my case is showing either approved or RFE. No updates on my case. I called USCiS yesterday and they said they would file a request to see if they can make the website work for my case, but no guarantee.  I have been checking impatiently everyday hoping for an update ughhh

I guess we should be grateful that it isn’t just one of us! Thank you for providing your experiences that we are in the same boat (USS Ambiguity) - I hope it changes soon!

Hi all,

VSC filer here from early August 2018 (EAC1821*).

Are there any other August 2018 filers still being shown the following on the USCIS Case Status webpage? (particularly VSC filers but I’m sure other Service Centres will see it too!):

Quote

CASE STATUS: At this time USCIS cannot provide you with information for your case. Please contact the USCIS Contact Center at 1-800-375-5283 for additional information

FYI: I am being shown “Case was Received” on the USCIS My Account webpage from the day by application was received. I had my fingerprints taken in September 2018 (and again for N400 more recently).

Based on a (biased) visual check, most of the I751 cases around my EAC182* case number are on RFEs or “Card is being produced” in the past 30 days (and especially in the past few days). 

Hope everybody is extra well!

Went for biometrics today. Case Status website updated within minutes to “Case is being actively reviewed by USCIS”. (Less than 15 minutes after fingerprints and signature and photograph were taken). No such update on my USCIS account which still reads that my Biometrics has been scheduled. In the USCIS account, the case completion date has updated by moving a month earlier though. 

Others have similar experiences or different?

20 minutes ago, Rosegrove said:

Hey, I'm in the same boat but I have a stupid question...I can't seem to find the documents tab in my account...where is it? 🤪My estimated time says August 2020 by the way so I hope it's not too accurate 😁

It is on my case on MyUSCIS, to the right

of Case History tab for my case. It only appeared after Biometrics appeared; it was not there initially.

Lovely to meeeeet everybody!

 Having e-filed N400 yesterday afternoon (June 28th 2019), I got an email overnight telling me that the "We scheduled your biometrics appointment". That was unexpectedly quick! I don't have the letter yet - and it isn't showing up in my 'Documents' tab yet on myUSCIS. I'll update when I have the details. My I-751 Removal of Conditions from marriage is still pending.

Showing as 'Estimated case completion time' as 'April 2020 (10 months). I don't know the exact office yet - this will presumably be on one of the letter. However, I live in the Washington DC/Northern VA area. I'll add to the spreadsheet when I have all that information confirmed.

I guess a question for the group who have kept better apprised fo this all recently: are these 'Estimated case completion time' dates accurate? I get that they're a prediction. In reality though... do we expect the date to get delayed to slip, or to speed up? I'm trying to set my expectations.

Just applied via IOW (online application) this past hour! Looking forward to hanging out with you all virtually as we go through this!

4 hours ago, flst said:

 

I already did =/ This is what it always said when I checked the link you sent:

 

"At this time USCIS cannot provide you with information for your case. Please contact the USCIS Contact Center at 1-800-375-5283 for additional information."

I am in the same situation :( Case Status shows cannot find message likes your; MyUSCIS Account says Case Received; biometrics were taken way back in late August less than a month after filing. 

Filed early this month at VSC, I received NOA1 about 2 weeks ago extending my Green card for 18 months. As expected, the EAC number does not work on the USCIS case tracker website.

I received the biometrics notice today (the biometrics appointment is in two weeks time, early September). However: unexpectedly, my biometrics appointment notice didn’t have a second receipt/case number, only the same EAC number as was on my NOA. I’m not sure what the really means as I was sure others had received a second receipt number that they could use on the USCIS website.

Hi all,

I filed for ROC earlier this month at the VSC. I received my NOA1 a couple of weeks ago which had an EAC number. This EAC number didn’t work on the USCIS Case Tracker as expected so I have been waiting for my biometrics appointment letter hoping that would have another number on it to plug in online.

The biometrics ASC appointment notice arrived today’s it has Form I797C at the top - but the letter only has the same EAC number on it. There are no other numbers apart from the Alien number. The same EAC number is at the top of the form under “Applicstion/Petition/Request number” as it is at the bottom next to a bar code.

Has this lack of a second number happened to others? Is that normal? 

P.S. I filed the I751 before the green card expired - and the EAC number still doesn’t work online.

8 minutes ago, emylady said:

Thank you so much for this information. I wasn't going to bother opening one before entering the US but with the exchange rate being the best it's been for a while I was thinking to open one and transfer my savings in to get the best rate.

 

I'll have to think about this a little more, really appreciate all the advice! 

Sure, I get that

As an aside - if transferring is important then I think you might benefit from looking into the option of transferring money to your partner's US bank account through a service like Transferwise. They generally provide the better conversion rates anyway compared to the international transfer services of high street banks. The HSBC transfer rate - even from HSBC UK to HSBC UK - is much worse than a service like Transferwise. I transfer money between my HSBC UK and USA bank accounts using Transferwise as it is cheaper to do so (and I think takes an equivalent time as the HSBC standard international transfer service). There are more than enough posts on Visajourney about Transferwise.

The only block you might find with Transferwise is that you'll be transferring money to somebody who isn't yourself. I've not ever tried doing this so you'd have to look at their webpages to ensure that they permit this to be done, or not (and at the values you're sending too - sometimes there is a transaction limit). There might not be a limit at all, I'm just musing with intuition and expectation, but without any direct knowledge of using Transferwise to send money between UK and USA accounts.

Good luck

I forgot to mention in my last post: If you do try the route with HSBC UK's International Bank Account Opening team and you don't get what you were looking for, ask to speak to a supervisor/manager - and highlight that this can be done but that it is a less common route that the managers will (hopefully) be more familiar with. I had to do this a few times, and it worked out fine. An experienced employee took over the handling of my bank account opening, and it was dealt with so much more quickly from then on (like, a couple of days - after experiencing a few days of getting nowhere - it only took a little while longer after this experienced employee took over because I had to arrange to get into a HSBC UK branch to show my ID, I think a c copy of my unused VISA in my passport, and the paperwork).

Yes, I managed to open a bank account before moving to the USA. Details below, with perhaps excruciating detail and grammar (and spelling mistakes; sorry!).

I managed to open a US bank account with HSBC USA whilst still in the UK. HSBC UK handled this all for me, though I had to phone up their International Bank Account Opening team then go into the branch to fill in a lot of paperwork. The telephone team were good, and guided the branch through everything - but they're (the telephone team) much more used to opening up individuals who already have their Green Card or who are moving over for employment purposes. It took quite a while to convince them to open the account on the phone, after I explained the situation (a couple of phone calls over a few days). I hit a lot of roadblocks on the way but my bank card was waiting for me in the USA when I landed! (HSBC UK did offer to have HSBC USA send the bank card to the UK so I could have them before I took off but I only finished opening the account a few days before flying out so I asked them to send the card to our house within the USA instead rather than risk them to the UK arriving after I had left). In order to use International Bank Account Opening service though, I had to open a HSBC UK bank account. I did this around 3 months prior to moving out to the USA. Depending on the account that you open, this process can be free or can be at a cost.

The main problem with HSBC USA though is that they don't have lots of branches everywhere - I have seen one in San Francisco and a few in the Washington DC/tri-state area. I haven't found this too problematic really as I don't deposit much physical cash into the account anyway (though they might offer an alternative service for depositing physical cash, e.g. like some UK bank accounts do with the post office - I don't know though as I've never had a reason to find out if there is such a feature). All the services I have ever needed on the account (e.g. check deposit) can be completed electronically using the mobile app. I'm sure this is quite problematic though for people who prefer face-to-face encounters. For many of the HSBC accounts, there is also a fee if you don't maintain a minimum balance or if you don't have a 'direct deposit' (basically any payment in: I've found Transferwise is considered to be a direct deposit - something like $200 works each month). There are also fewer HSBC ATM/cash machines around meaning that, depending on your account type, you might have to pay to get cash out of another bank's ATM (on some of the HSBC USA account, you can get these fees refunded each month without hassle) although getting cashback is at no cost (e.g. at a supermarket with your groceries).  All-in-all, I'd perhaps not advise others to spend their time with getting HSBC UK to set up a HSBC USA bank account because you can get an account set up after landing in the USA (my wife and I set up a joint account a few days after entering the USA on my K1 visa, for instance).

Saying that, the major benefit of the HSBC USA bank account - sometimes referred to as a checking account rather than a 'current account' terminology I was more familiar with - was that it allowed me to open a HSBC MasterCard credit card in the USA straight away, under my open name, and without having to pay a deposit/guarantee (admittedly, the card had a tiny limit though, $500, which makes sense given that they had limited credit history on me from my HSBC UK account as it had only been open for three months - I don't think they pull your wider UK credit history, but instead based it on your internal HSBC UK credit history). I also got AMEX UK to open up an AMEX USA credit card for me too - though they wouldn't do this until I landed in the USA and I had gotten my Social Security Number. I believe that AMEX USA used my AMEX UK credit history which took a couple of days for them to confirm - as I had an AMEX for years in the UK, my credit limit was higher than the $500 that HSBC USA gave me (not huge though, but they let you increase the limit by 2x or 3x your initial limit it after 6 months of the account being open - and then increase the limit by 2x or 3x every 6 months from therein I believe). As an aside, HSBC USA didn't require a Social Security Number from me to open a bank/credit card account but they did send me a form in the post within a few weeks asking for that number (which I had received by the time that I received it).

I'm sure that there are alternatives to my approach but it worked for me - and I wouldn't change much in how I approached this all.

I hope that helps - perhaps a little too much detail. Nonetheless, it might be useful for you! I think I've covered my entire experience so I don't know if I would have much else to add!

1 minute ago, Wuozopo said:

 

 Yeah! Spend Gran's money. 

22 minutes ago, Wuozopo said:

 

You can register the child's birth in the UK, but it's not free. There is a fee of £150 plus additional £50 if you want a certificate. And you pay £25 postage if you want the documentation you submitted returned. Application form https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/application-to-register-an-overseas-birth

 

From the gov.uk website:

 

You don’t need to register with the UK authorities but it means:

• the birth will be recorded with the General Register Offices or at the National Records Office of Scotland
• you can order a consular birth registration certificate

You can still apply for a UK passport for your child even if you don’t register the birth in the UK.

 

This is good advice to know! I had assumed there was a process for registering. Like your post suggests, it is non-essential  I'd probably do it but I love official documents like that even if it serves zero practical purpose! I think it'd make a nice first birthday present from a UK grandparent though! (given the non-essential nature of the registration, it is almost like a souvenir certificate!). Others might disagree though and have slightly better taste in presents than me!

18 minutes ago, Trellick said:

It's worth getting and you have time before February - but if you get a US one at the same time you don't have to worry if the UK one doesn't make it in time. 

 

We didn't bother registering her birth - I couldn't see the point once we had the passport. 

I agree with both of these points

18 minutes ago, Trellick said:

You don't have to use a UK passport to enter the UK. I travelled with my US-born daughter using my UK passport and her US passport for several years before we finally got her UK one sorted out. 

 

It's worth getting and you have time before February - but if you get a US one at the same time you don't have to worry if the UK one doesn't make it in time. 

 

We didn't bother registering her birth - I couldn't see the point once we had the passport. 

 

One thing to bear in mind - we applied for the UK passport when we were on an extended trip to the UK and the form required us to send in her American passport with the other supporting documents - which was a little stressful as it meant we would not have been able to fly home if they had taken too long to send it back. But I am not sure if that is required when you do the application from abroad. 

 

 

Very good point here. I hadn't considered this! I checked this out just now. It seems you only need a full (i.e. every page) colour photocopy of the non-British passport when applying from overseas - you don't have to provide the US passport. If this is correct, I presume that this was an active (somewhat smart) choice of policy to mitigate against issues preventing emergency travel back to the UK. I get this guidance from here.(https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/564959/OS_Guidance_G3_10.16.pdf). Saying that, there is some ambiguity across various documentation here so you might need some advice by calling up HM Passport Office if you already have the US passport for your child in your possession and if you're worried about not having the passport back by February or having to make emergency trips in the interim (note, it is unlikely that it'd take that long to get the passport).

Congratulations!

Full disclosure: We don't have a child but I can read a website, and have been looking into renewing my UK passport from the USA anyway so thought I'd help out as I'm sure you're extra busy introducing your child to the world!

I thought I'd give answer based on the process, irrespective of whether he needs to enter on a UK passport or not (I can't advise on that, but I do see other benefits to applying for a UK passport for a child). 

Here is a link on how to apply for a UK passport for a child.

https://www.gov.uk/get-a-child-passport

There is a link early on within the page for children born overseas - for ease, that link leads to here: https://www.gov.uk/overseas-passports (you'd fill in the scenario-based questionnaire which will eventually give you advice for your particular circumstances. I believe you fill in the questionnaire from the perspective of your child rather than as yourself.

As an aside, only certain people are eligible to apply for a passport on behalf of their child (details here, https://www.gov.uk/get-a-child-passport/who-can-apply). As a parent, you'd be eligible though  You may want to be aware of the advice on who is best to be a countersignatory on your child's passport when you're applying from outside the UK (https://www.gov.uk/countersigning-passport-applications).

You might also find this webpage useful if you want to speak to somebody as HM Passport Office for advice on the process https://www.gov.uk/passport-advice-line.

If you apply soon, I think you'd likely get the UK passport before February. I think it is quite a simple process all-in-all. I'd certainly apply if I had a kid, even though the benefits of having a UK passport for your child right now aren't really that tangible (your child has British Citizenships irrespective of whether they have a British passport or not). I think the main benefit in the medium-term is that your child's UK passport will be easier to renew in the future (and in the longer-term future, your child will be able to use the UK queue at airports when travelling by themselves*, and will be able to very easily prove their UK citizenship should they ever need to do so such as when accepting a UK job application or if wanting to move back to the UK. In the short-term, not huge benefits but I think you're doing your child a favour!). Equally, you could phone the UK Embassy to the UK I suppose but I think the Passport Advice Line link I gave you is probably the best option (perhaps, you could call your nearest UK Consulate too though I don't think they deal much with passport queries).

* I mention this in the context of them travelling by themselves because you're generally allowed to bring US Citizen spouse and family through the UK/EU passport queue at a UK airport. I do that with my US Citizen wife and I lands at LHR. You just have to avoid the e-passport machines (she tends to always travel to the UK with me so we've not bothered with the UK Registered Traveller Scheme for her).

Quote

 But you shouldn't pay tax twice, nor should you claim a credit for foreign taxes which I believe you said you are seeking to get back. 

For clarity, I didn't put in for a tax credit (i.e. Form 1116). I did file Form 2555 to exclude my income prior to moving out to the USA though. As for after that date, I'll claim back my taxes paid on anything after that date because I'll have paid them in the USA through the income and self-employment taxes. None of the UK taxes I claim back using my P85 will will relate to anything I included on Form 2555 (this was a huge concern of mine so I made absolutely sure to avoid doing anything that would cross-taxes).

I've been so worried by this (that is what I generally do for major issues). However, I'm glad I've had a space to vent here. I've answered most of the questions myself through advice external to VJ, but there is something lovely about being around people who can offer additional advice, guidance or just support. I'm a huge fan of the website.

I'm crossing my fingers that everything is deemed correct as I just want to my wife and I to pay our way, not have anybody else foot the bill, and pay all of our obligations (and then some just to be sure).

[my above post got curtailed because I pressed the wrong button, continuing it here]

... Perhaps I paid more than required, and I'm aware that there is an issue re: employer vs contractor too. However, I wanted to ensure that I was paying what was required and that I could honestly tick the relevant tick boxes in the future on N400 and other applications. Plus, there is an honour thing involved. I'm a little worried to see what comes back, but I'm crossing my fingers that it is deemed appropriate.

The reason why I don't think I can use the foreign tax credit is because I wasn't a UK resident anymore when I earned the income (I wasn't on secondment, but had legally moved out to the US and in possession of a Green card). I'm a US resident but not a US resident: I was not legally required to pay income tax in the UK but instead was required to pay it in the place I earned the money (i.e. the USA). The credit can't be used for taxes I wasn't legally required to pay and so the taxes would be considered 'voluntary'. I took this interpretation from the Form 1116 instructions:

Quote

 

Foreign Taxes Not Eligible for a Credit
You can't take a credit for the following foreign taxes. 

1. Taxes paid to a foreign country that you don't legally owe, including amounts eligible for refund by the foreign country. If you don't exercise your available remedies to reduce the amount of foreign tax to what you legally owe, a credit for the excess amount isn't allowed. The amount of tax actually withheld by a foreign country isn't necessarily 100% creditable. See Regulations section 1.901-2(e)(2)(i). 

 

My original approach was exactly as you described... either to use just i) Form 1116 for the whole year given I was electing to be treated as a US resident for the full year or ii) use both Form 1116 and Form 2555 for the relevant parts of the year: Form 2555 for the time living and working in the UK and Form 1116 for the time after that I became resident in the USA. I had prepared two returns to that effect, and I got a nice little refund from each  However, I felt that I could not justify claiming the Foreign Tax Credit (through Form 1116) because of the issue I mentioned above: the credit can't be used for taxes I wasn't legally required to pay. After I received my EAD and Green card, I would no longer (legally) be deemed a UK resident but instead would be a US resident. Per the UK-US tax treaties, I am required to pay tax to the country where I am resident. I felt that I was not legally required to pay income tax in the UK but was required to pay the tax in the USA. Any payment I make to the UK would therefore be voluntary and ineligible for tax credit. Given the above issues, I felt that using Form 1116 implicitly misrepresented my US residency which would have implications for N400 application whereby I will be asked a question about whether I had ever indicated I was a non-US resident for US federal or state taxes. I didn't feel that filing Form 1116 would allow me to tick anything other than "yes", and I didn't want to jeopardise any future applications in the USA. 

As such, I went with the approach of Form 2555 prior to moving out to the USA, and then treating myself as self-employed for US taxes (i.e. paying my own income tax and self-employment tax from the income tax I'll claim back from the UK through my P85. On the US side of things, this involved filling in in IRS Forms 1040, Schedule C and Schedule SE but I didn't have a 1099-MISC to attach unfortunately). It is possible to claim back UK National Insurance contributions by writing to either your employer or the HMRC but that isn't through the P85 process, and I don't know the likelihood of success). I am aware that my approach was tax-inefficient but I think I have paid everything that I am required to pay and likely much more.

You've been so helpful! I'm going to give the IRS a call as well for some clarity Thank you so much Such a wonderful resource for sounding things out.

Thanks Wuozopo - that is the situation as I had interpreted it myself today. I had originally, incorrectly thought that I could pay taxes in the UK for the 2 years, include that income on my IRS Form 1040, file IRS Form 1116 to get a tax credit of my UK taxes, and then never file Form P85. However, I didn't realise that Form 1116 has a question about residency and then that led me down the rabbit hole that I found myself in today whereby I realised I'd made a mistake.

Hi all.

I'm in a bit of a confused pickle.

I moved over to the USA last year as LPR on a K1, However, I am still getting paid by my UK employer and will continue to do so for a few more months. I pay US income tax on my UK income (i.e. my IRS Form 1040).

I intend to submit P85 to avoid double taxation. However, and here is my question:

Will submitting this P85 return only my income tax? Or will it return any of the following made during the tax year after I left:

- National Insurance contributions?

- UK pension contributions?

- Student loan contributions?

I'm panicking right now because I need to ensure that I pay either national insurance in the UK or social security in the USA. I feel like it is a bit of a grey area as to which I should be paying given that I'm working for a UK company for less than 5 years.

Thanks for both of your responses.

It should be noted that I couldn't find too much when I did a search online on the CBP webpages confirming that this would be the case.

I had assumed that the age limit would be the case. I'm familiar with the scientific research literature underlying both fingerprinting and photography, and it is broadly posited that neither are the most accurate methods of uniquely identifying people at any age, but even more at a particular age. It suffices because the devices are cheap, fairly well-known by the public, "do the job fairly well", and the demographics of those for whom it doesn't work are generally considered low (but not entirely devout of) risk. I am also familiar with the research literature about the social acceptability of asking for these from children though wasn't sure if that would be applied to policies of CBP involving children who weren't LPRs or USCs.

I'll advise my friend that "nah, you won't have to bother with baby biometrics" and hope it is an accurate statement without major nuances.

P.S. Responding to one the comments earlier: I don't think the baby signs the passport in any way I think that would be unrealistic and difficult to justify as having any meaningful use. One of the parents presumably signed the passport application, and a friend/family members countersigned the photograph as outlined on the UK passport application website for children under five years.