Need Help Filing One Year Back Taxes

[samcmac]

Hey guys,

 

So as I've posted before, I'm preparing for my wife's CR-1 interview just weeks from now (Nov. 20th). I have just about everything ready, and I'm using a joint sponsor (my grandparents) for the financial support requirement. But I've recently learned that, despite using the joint sponsor, I need to fill out form i-864 myself, as the petitioner.

 

So my problem becomes that I didn't file taxes for the last two years. For 2012, it's no big deal -- I was still in the U.S. for that entire year, unemployed, so I just filled out a standard 1040 and will attach that to my i-864 with a note explaining that I was in school that year. For 2013, I was in China -- i arrived in China and started work in February (on a tourist visa, eep). I worked for the entire year (I stopped working in June 2014), and my income, as calculated, was roughly 68,000RMB. I know I need to fill out another 1040 for 2013, and I know I need to attach to that either a 1116 or a 2555-EZ. I think it's the 2555-EZ that I need. I finally found the 2013 2555-EZ (thanks, Daniel), and am now struggling to fill it out.

 

Line 11a of 2555-EZ in particular, at the moment, is confusing me: "List your tax home(s) during 2013 and date(s) established." I don't know if i fill out with like the countries listed and the dates I was there in parenthesis after or what, and of course the instruction PDF for 2555-EZ doesn't list anything about line 11a.

 

I arrived in China on Feb. 17th of 2013. I was on a tourist visa until I returned to the U.S. from June 1st—June 11th to get my work/Z visa. I returned to China on June 11th of 2013 and from then on to this day I have remained in China.

 

If Randy is out there, I could really use your help with this damn form!

 

- Sam

[Randy W]

Hey guys,

 

So as I've posted before, I'm preparing for my wife's CR-1 interview just weeks from now (Nov. 20th). I have just about everything ready, and I'm using a joint sponsor (my grandparents) for the financial support requirement. But I've recently learned that, despite using the joint sponsor, I need to fill out form i-864 myself, as the petitioner.

 

So my problem becomes that I didn't file taxes for the last two years. For 2012, it's no big deal -- I was still in the U.S. for that entire year, unemployed, so I just filled out a standard 1040 and will attach that to my i-864 with a note explaining that I was in school that year. For 2013, I was in China -- i arrived in China and started work in February (on a tourist visa, eep). I worked for the entire year (I stopped working in June 2014), and my income, as calculated, was roughly 68,000RMB. I know I need to fill out another 1040 for 2013, and I know I need to attach to that either a 1116 or a 2555-EZ. I think it's the 2555-EZ that I need. I finally found the 2013 2555-EZ (thanks, Daniel), and am now struggling to fill it out.

 

Line 11a of 2555-EZ in particular, at the moment, is confusing me: "List your tax home(s) during 2013 and date(s) established." I don't know if i fill out with like the countries listed and the dates I was there in parenthesis after or what, and of course the instruction PDF for 2555-EZ doesn't list anything about line 11a.

 

I arrived in China on Feb. 17th of 2013. I was on a tourist visa until I returned to the U.S. from June 1st—June 11th to get my work/Z visa. I returned to China on June 11th of 2013 and from then on to this day I have remained in China.

 

If Randy is out there, I could really use your help with this damn form!

 

- Sam

 

 

Your tax home is China from Feb 17, 2013 to the present - don't worry about the trip to the U.S. Question 14 asks for the specific number of days - this is where that information is used.

 

The purpose of this question is to determine what foreign country that you might owe taxes to on your earnings, and what dates were covered.

 

The 'tax home' is covered in the section of the instructions (i2225ez.pdf) labeled Line 3 - Tax Home Test

[samcmac]

I'm instead calculating the physical residency from June 11th, 2013 to June 11th, 2014, because I was in China during that entire time. The issue with calculating it starting in Feb. 17th is that I don't then pass the Bonafide Resident test.

Edited November 7, 2014 by samcmac (see edit history)

[Randy W]

I'm instead calculating the physical residency from June 11th, 2013 to June 11th, 2014, because I was in China during that entire time. The issue with calculating it starting in Feb. 17th is that I don't then pass the Bonafide Resident test.

 

 

You fail the bona fide residence test anyway because it must cover an entire TAX year - Jan 1 through Dec. 31. But you DO pass the Physical Presence test and Tax Home test, so you ARE eligible to use the Form 2555-EZ. Only ONE of the two tests is necessary

 

You can PASS the Bona Fide residence test for 2013 if your residency in China extends through Dec. 2014 - that way it INCLUDES the entire tax year of 2014, and PART of the year 2013. But this only works AFTER Dec. In other words, if you file NOW, you FAIL this test - no problem, since you PASS the Physical Presence test.

 

Your Physical Presence in China BEGAN on Feb. 17, 2013 to the present, regardless of any interruptions. If you show it as beginning on June 11, then you MAY not be able to exclude the money earned from Feb. 17 to June 11.

[samcmac]

"The physical presence test is based on the 12-month period from:"

 

Ok, so obviously the first date will be "February 17, 2013" but what about the second date? It says in the instructions not to put "continued" so I can't put "present," it needs to be a date. Since it specifically designates a "12-month period," I'm wondering if it should be "February 17, 2014," or should it be, say, today's date, or a date just before my wife's interview?

[samcmac]

also, would I fill out Part III of the 2555 with the 10 days I was in the US, or no? I ask mainly because section © indicates "days in U.S. for business," and I was not there for business, unless changing my visa category qualifies as "business." Needless to say, I made no money during those 10 days either -- though I did lose a whole lot of it.

[Randy W]

"The physical presence test is based on the 12-month period from:"

 

Ok, so obviously the first date will be "February 17, 2013" but what about the second date? It says in the instructions not to put "continued" so I can't put "present," it needs to be a date. Since it specifically designates a "12-month period," I'm wondering if it should be "February 17, 2014," or should it be, say, today's date, or a date just before my wife's interview?

 

 

It looks like it MUST be a 12 month period, since they are considering whether you were "physically present" for more than 330 days out of the 365 days in the year - so Feb 17. But I doubt that it'll make a difference.

 

Your "qualifying period" for Line 14 is only those days in the 2013 tax year.

 

They ask "days in the U.S. for business" in order to subtract out any earnings due to your presence in the U.S. - put 0.

 

Yes - for line 14, you are supposed to compute the exact number of days you were "physically present" in China for the tax year 2013

Edited November 7, 2014 by Randy W (see edit history)

[samcmac]

OK, I just have one last question for this form, I think:

 

How do I fill out line 11a.

[Randy W]

OK, I just have one last question for this form, I think:

 

How do I fill out line 11a.

 

No need to over-think. I would just put "China, Feb. 17 - Dec. 31"

 

Then include the trip to the U.S. on Line 12, and subtract those 11 days to fill in Line 14 - that should come to 306 days, if I did it correctly -

 

365 days, minus 31 days in Jan. and 17 days in Feb. NOT present in China, minus another 11 days for the trip back to the U.S. comes to 306 days. Any day where you were NOT present for the entire 24 hours should be subtracted out.

 

By the way, I don't see any of this as at all critical - your tax bill seems to be $0 no matter how you fill in the blanks.

[samcmac]

OK, think that covers it. Thanks!

Edited November 7, 2014 by samcmac (see edit history)