Serious tax assistance needed, only 72 hours to prepare

[AaronTMartin]

Dear Friends,

 

My wife Xuemei has her interview on Wednesday at 7.15. Her documents and materials are pretty much ready. From my end, I still have a long way to go, and time is running short.

 

In a nutshell, I haven't filed taxes in quite some time. Based on shenzhen's excellent post (found here), I'm assuming that I need to fill out a 1040, a 2555-EZ and a 1116 for this past tax year, plus 1040s for the previous two years (based on Dan and Randy's advice found here I won't be actually filing them until later; I'll simply complete them, photocopy them, and then put these into Xuemei's folder). Since my mother (Xuemei's co-sponsor) only included last year's tax information for her I-864, I am going to do likewise. I just need to finish 2007's and 2008's so that I can complete item 25 on my own I-864.

 

I have pay stubs for the past two years from my most recent employer (an international school here in Guangzhou), and I can most likely get them from my previous employer, though it might be a bit tricky. A big question that I have is: do expats get W-2's? Can the 1040 be completed without one? There's no way that I'd be able to get one at this point, but I just need to finish the job, and I don't know how to do that without a W-2.

 

I'm feeling completely overwhelmed, stressed and exhausted and barely know where to begin---I feel like the proverbial headless chicken. The instructions and worksheets (especially for the 1116) may as well be in Greek. For example, on the 1040, I don't even know what my filing status would be! I'll not beat around the bush and say that this mess is no one's fault but my own. Having said that, I feel really nervous about completing this.

 

Thus, my questions are:

1. Does anyone know of a helpful, plain-English website for tax help? Sites that offer assistance via Skype might also work. The IRS site is confusing to me and I feel like I'm going around in circles.
   
2. Alternatively, does anyone know of a service that can help me out given my time frame? I'm obviously willing to pay for this.
   
3. Finally (a probably a long shot), does anyone know of a place in Guangzhou that might have an office that offers tax services for US citizens? There's nothing like face-to-face help for this sort of thing, in my opinion.
   

Any help would be greatly appreciated, folks! I really feel like I'm in a bind here.

 

All the best,

Aaron

[Randy W]

American companies issue W-2's - foreign companies won't. Provide whatever evidence you have to support what you're claiming as income (you tell THEM what your income is - they probably won't have any way to verify). If you don't have evidence, make estimates. Even pay stubs or financial records should be adequate - an estimate won't get you in trouble.

 

If worst comes to worst, list your estimated income on the I-864, and provide a note stating WHY you didn't file for those years

[AaronTMartin]

Thanks for your reply, Randy! Your advice puts me at ease (a little).

 

Since I know exactly how much I made in 2007 and 2008, putting those figures into the I-864 won't be a problem. I still feel I need to finish 2009's 1040, 2555-EZ (which is more do-able) and 1116 (which looks immensely complex) since I will include photocopies in Xuemei's folders. Or can I safely omit at least the 1116, do you think?

 

Regarding writing a note or letter as to why I didn't file, I don't think the IRS (or the US Consulate, for that matter) is going to accept "uh, I was under the impression that I didn't need to file" or "a relative told me that I needn't file" as valid reasons.

 

Thanks again for your input!

 

Aaron

 

American companies issue W-2's - foreign companies won't. Provide whatever evidence you have to support what you're claiming as income (you tell THEM what your income is - they probably won't have any way to verify). If you don't have evidence, make estimates. Even pay stubs or financial records should be adequate - an estimate won't get you in trouble.

 

If worst comes to worst, list your estimated income on the I-864, and provide a note stating WHY you didn't file for those years

[Randy W]

Thanks for your reply, Randy! Your advice puts me at ease (a little).

 

Since I know exactly how much I made in 2007 and 2008, putting those figures into the I-864 won't be a problem. I still feel I need to finish 2009's 1040, 2555-EZ (which is more do-able) and 1116 (which looks immensely complex) since I will include photocopies in Xuemei's folders. Or can I safely omit at least the 1116, do you think?

 

Regarding writing a note or letter as to why I didn't file, I don't think the IRS (or the US Consulate, for that matter) is going to accept "uh, I was under the impression that I didn't need to file" or "a relative told me that I needn't file" as valid reasons.

 

Thanks again for your input!

 

Aaron

 

American companies issue W-2's - foreign companies won't. Provide whatever evidence you have to support what you're claiming as income (you tell THEM what your income is - they probably won't have any way to verify). If you don't have evidence, make estimates. Even pay stubs or financial records should be adequate - an estimate won't get you in trouble.

 

If worst comes to worst, list your estimated income on the I-864, and provide a note stating WHY you didn't file for those years

 

 

I'm just suggesting a shortcut there that may work in case you don't feel like you can get the returns together in time

 

It would be up to you to explain why you didn't file - hopefully, something like the fact that you didn't owe any taxes.

 

Of course, it IS much better to cover your bases. The Form 1116 doesn't seem very complicated - just take the information you have (income, taxes paid, you probably won't have any deductions) and figure out where to put them on the form. The form covers a number of situations that won't apply in your case - don't spend any time on them.

Edited July 4, 2010 by Randy W (see edit history)

[AaronTMartin]

Thanks again, Randy.

 

On another note, what do you think I should do in terms of the dates on these forms? I'm already way past the June 15th deadline, and I did not file the needed extension form. Should I be 100% transparent and simply write today's date?

 

Best regards,

Aaron

 

Thanks for your reply, Randy! Your advice puts me at ease (a little).

 

Since I know exactly how much I made in 2007 and 2008, putting those figures into the I-864 won't be a problem. I still feel I need to finish 2009's 1040, 2555-EZ (which is more do-able) and 1116 (which looks immensely complex) since I will include photocopies in Xuemei's folders. Or can I safely omit at least the 1116, do you think?

 

Regarding writing a note or letter as to why I didn't file, I don't think the IRS (or the US Consulate, for that matter) is going to accept "uh, I was under the impression that I didn't need to file" or "a relative told me that I needn't file" as valid reasons.

 

Thanks again for your input!

 

Aaron

 

American companies issue W-2's - foreign companies won't. Provide whatever evidence you have to support what you're claiming as income (you tell THEM what your income is - they probably won't have any way to verify). If you don't have evidence, make estimates. Even pay stubs or financial records should be adequate - an estimate won't get you in trouble.

 

If worst comes to worst, list your estimated income on the I-864, and provide a note stating WHY you didn't file for those years

 

 

I'm just suggesting a shortcut there that may work in case you don't feel like you can get the returns together in time

 

It would be up to you to explain why you didn't file - hopefully, something like the fact that you didn't owe any taxes.

 

Of course, it IS much better to cover your bases. The Form 1116 doesn't seem very complicated - just take the information you have (income, taxes paid, you probably won't have any deductions) and figure out where to put them on the form. The form covers a number of situations that won't apply in your case - don't spend any time on them.

[Randy W]

Yes - any tax problems are with the IRS, not the USCIS.

 

As long as you don't owe any tax, there won't be a penalty. With $0 tax, you are not required to file, except to report the foreign income - I doubt that there's any problem here.

[AaronTMartin]

Thanks very much for the help, Randy. I opted to skip the 1116 altogether, and with some assistance from my father, I was able to finish everything else.

 

Now I can focus on making sure Xuemei's notebooks are in order and can help her better prepare for the big day. Cheers once more; looking forward to pink!

 

Best regards,

Aaron

 

Yes - any tax problems are with the IRS, not the USCIS.

 

As long as you don't owe any tax, there won't be a penalty. With $0 tax, you are not required to file, except to report the foreign income - I doubt that there's any problem here.