JRoo

Moving to California (CR1 visa) and working remotely for a UK company

Hi there. I'm moving to Los Angeles in January with my wife who is an American and British Citizen. I have a CR1 visa. I am seeking advice on tax processes and what my legal requirements are as a US resident.

My company want to keep me as a full time employee and are happy with me working remotely. They told me that I can remain on the UK payroll and continue getting my salary (£90k) into my UK account, while I am living in the US. It is then up to me to transfer money to my US account as I need. They said that because of the US/UK tax treaty I won't be liable for income taxes in the US, however after reading posts on here it seems that this could be incorrect. I want to make sure that I'm not breaking any laws and that this is a sensible way to continue working with them. For more context I have a permanent address in the UK but will be living full time in the US.

My questions are:
1. Is it legal to be paid into my UK account while living in the US?
2. Will I need to pay UK and US taxes at the same time? 
3. Would it be advisable to be paid into a US account instead?

If anyone has been in this situation and can offer advice, or recommend a tax expert to contact, that would be greatly appreciated!

23 minutes ago, Dashinka said:

A little off topic, but since the thread was titled CR1, I am just curious, how long away is your second wedding anniversary date?  If close, I suggest planning to enter the US after that date to avoid the I751 process.

 

Good Luck!

 

What's the I751 process? we just got married in August

22 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

No.  When he enters the US, CBP will stamp (endorse) his immigrant visa.  That will act as a full-fledged Green Card for a year or until the plastic one arrives.  He can actually enter, then immediately exit the US.

Thanks so much!

Hello everyone, my husband's CR1 visa was just approved. We are moving from the UK to the US and applied through direct consular filing. He is a British citizen. We are both still in the UK (I did not move over before him)

After he enters the US and validates the CR1 visa, does he need to stay in the country until he receives his green card? We want to move in two trips which would look like this:

1. We enter the US on 6th Dec, he validates the visa and we apply for the green card to be sent

2. We leave the US 14 Dec to come back to the UK and finish organising our stuff to move (green card not yet received)

3. We return to the US on 17th Jan 

Thank you!

20 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

USCIS - Immigrant Fee - USCIS Immigrant Fee

You will need the registration number and the DOS case number.  Both numbers are on the visa itself.

Thank you!

16 minutes ago, Crazy Cat said:

1.  There is no applying for the Green card.  Once you pay the online  $220 fee to USCIS (usually paid before arriving in the US), the GC will be sent to your US address.

2.  No, you can enter the US at any POE.

Thank you! Is there a chance you have a link to the website where the fee is paid for? (I'm guessing this is different from the fee we paid at the beneficiary's interview?)

Thanks

Hi everyone, 

My spouse's CR1 visa has just been approved, we applied through direct consular filing (moving from the UK)

The instructions provided with the visa said that we need to apply for the green card when we first arrive in the US.

On the visa documents, our first residence will be in New York. However we would like to fly to California first to visit family. 

My question is - do we need to fly directly to New York in order for the visa to be valid? Or can we fly into another state first? 

Thank you

17 minutes ago, elmcitymaven said:

Like you, I went through the DCF process in London. At the interview, I submitted the copy of my decree absolute that I obtained from my solicitor. This bore an official seal from the High Court, but the seal was a very simple ink stamp of endorsement. No problems whatsoever. If you used a solicitor for your divorce, perhaps you can contact them for such a copy. Alternatively, you'll need to get it through the Principal Registry, as outlined above. 

 

Good luck -- this is the very last hurdle and you're nearly past the finish line!

Thanks for your reply! Unfortunately I didn’t use a lawyer for my divorce, so the only version of the decree I received was online - it has the courts seal on the document but it’s digital so nothing in ink. I applied for an apostille to certify it. Will also try the principal registry. 

Hi everyone,

i am applying for a CR1 visa directly to the US embassy in London. I was previously married and divorced before marrying my partner.
 

We had our interview today, and the US embassy told us that my UK divorce certificate was not an original document. (This is the Final Order I received from the UK courts, but I can only print it on normal paper and didn’t receive anything on official letterhead)

Has anyone provided a UK divorce certificate for a US visa? If so, how did you obtain the ‘original’ divorce certificate?

thank you!

7 hours ago, Inflatableboots said:

If he’s DCF he shouldn’t be able to book a date or time for the interview until after he’s had the medical exam.

 

I had my medical exam last week and booked the visa interview afterwards.

Thanks for sharing this! For some reason the system did allow him to book his interview. It’s scheduled for one week after his medical exam. Do you think it’s enough time after the medical or should I reschedule it? Also were you applying via London embassy?

Hi everyone, 

My partner has now scheduled his medical exam and has his interview on 24th Oct. Can anyone tell me, typically how long after the interview do you find out if the visa was approved? Do they approve it that day or do you receive a letter in the mail? 

Also, what types of questions do they ask at the interview? My partner is a bit nervous so we are hoping to be as prepared as possible. Thanks!

On 6/20/2022 at 7:40 PM, EwaAndRico said:

I feel the same as you!!! I don't understand what did go wrong and I cant book it! I will try to call embassy tomorrow again. It just doesn't understand how we both were ready on CEAC on 27th of May and we both cant book an interview. When did you book your medical for?  

hi there, I am having the same issue with booking an interview. Was there a solution to this? Did you have to call the embassy? Thank you!

8 hours ago, powerpuff said:

It’s either the full tax returns with W2s or the tax return transcript. Consulates prefer the latter but the former is acceptable as well.

@powerpuff Thanks for your response! I don't have W2s as I have been working in the UK the last 10 years. But I do have copies of my state and federal tax returns showing my income is more than 125% above the federal poverty line. Do you think this is sufficient or the tax transcripts are a must-have?

Hi everyone, 

Can someone clarify what tax documents are required for the sponsor to submit with I-864? Unfortunately I can't access my full IRS transcript through this link because I don't have my SSN card and can't verify my account. 

However I do have my federal and state tax returns for the last 3 years. Will this be enough, or do I also need to include my tax transcript? 

Thank you!

On 9/15/2023 at 12:22 PM, Inflatableboots said:

Ours took a week. Wife filed in person in London on 17 Aug and was approved then. Received approval letter on 24 Aug.

Hi again, I just had another question on this - in addition to receiving the approval letter, does the embassy also email to let you know the NVC/details for booking medical? 

On 9/15/2023 at 2:16 PM, Inflatableboots said:

The letter gives you the LND (case) number which is what you need to book the medical. The letter also tells you to follow this link, which you may have seen before, https://uk.usembassy.gov/visas/family-immigration/how-to-apply-2/

 

I haven't booked the medical yet as I'm waiting on my police certificate, so can't confirm how easy it is to book.

 

Good luck though!

Thanks this is so helpful! Didn't realise we needed vaccine record for the medical exam so now we can be prepared

13 hours ago, primrose_bambi said:

Maybe you already know this, but just want to flag that if the beneficiary has lived anywhere outside of the UK for over six months they will need also see a police certificate for that country.

 

I know it doesn't say that on anything, but we also ran into this issue even though beneficiary (husband) has not lived in his home country since he was 3 years old, we still had to get an additional police certificate for his birth country.

Thank you, yes we got our police certificates. For me being the US citizen, do I also need to show a police certificate from the US? 

1 hour ago, Inflatableboots said:

Ours took a week. Wife filed in person in London on 17 Aug and was approved then. Received approval letter on 24 Aug.

Wow that's a lot faster than I was expecting! When you receive the approval letter is that when you book the medical? Was it hard to get an appointment?

Hi everyone, today I submitted my I-130 at the US embassy in London and the petition was accepted (DCF based on short notice job relocation)
 

The immigration officer mentioned they may be able to approve the application in 2-4 weeks, as opposed to the normal 12 weeks. Has anyone had this experience? or is it still typically taking 12 weeks to hear back? 

thank you 

4 minutes ago, Ontarkie said:

~~One hijack post in another member's thread has been removed. Please do not post questions about your own case in other member's threads.~~

Hi sorry I am still getting the hang of this site. If I want to seek advice from someone because they have had similar questions shall I just DM that person rather than comment? Thanks

2 hours ago, JRoo said:

 

Thank you for this information! Another I-864 question -

 

Can you clarify for me exactly what the requirement is - do I need to prove that my income equals at least 125% the poverty guideline? So for a household of two, showing that the annual income is over $24,650? 

 

Thanks!

 

AAND two more questions -

• can I use my current foreign income on my I-864? My company will continue to employ me after I move to the US, and I have a job offer stating this. When converted from GBP to USD my current annual salary is 84,000
• Should I include a letter explaining that I have only been working abroad and therefore have no W2 or 1099? (I have been filing FBAR and also have my federal tax returns for last 3 years.)

Thanks

On 7/26/2023 at 3:37 AM, primrose_bambi said:

I-864 will be submitted once the embassy approves your initial I-130.

 

They will mail you a letter with this link: https://uk.usembassy.gov/visas/family-immigration/how-to-apply-2/ and ask you to complete all the steps and ignoring the NVC part. Your foreign spouse will be bringing the I-864 with them to their appointment.

Thank you for this information! Another I-864 question -

Can you clarify for me exactly what the requirement is - do I need to prove that my income equals at least 125% the poverty guideline? So for a household of two, showing that the annual income is over $24,650? 

Thanks!

Hi everyone, another question from me regarding the London DCF process - at what stage is the I-864 submitted? Is it when the beneficiary gets their final interview, or when you submit the I-30 form? 

Thank you

On 6/23/2023 at 10:28 AM, primrose_bambi said:

 

Hi @SalishSea — Yes, sorry if it was unclear. I meant 3-5 days to hear back on whether the embassy will accept the case after requesting DCF. We understand after this initial stage it will still take up to 12 weeks after acceptance. And I agree on cutting it close, but the job offer came fast after we wanted to get married so we've had to scramble a bit!

Hi @primrose_bambi - I was curious to hear if you've received a response to your DCF request yet?

8 hours ago, SalishSea said:

I may be wrong, but I believe you wouldn't be eligible if you move back before the visa processing/interview etc.  The expectation is that you're still living abroad with your spouse.

@SalishSea I think it is ok to have moved back before the beneficiary, as this shows intent to domicile. (as long as the sponsor doesn't give up their foreign residency)

You can provide a range of documents to prove domicile including voting records in the United States, maintaining property/real estate, a lease or rental agreement, bank accounts showing activity in the United States, proof you paid U.S. taxes