Lenoir, NC asked in Immigration Law for North Carolina

Q: My husband lives in Germany , and I’m trying to figure out if the sponsor requirements need 3 years of taxes ?

I’m a us citizen and live in North Carolina. I have 2 years worth of taxes and after this up coming taxes I’ll have 3 years but I wanted to start it faster since we just got married in April 2018. I’ve heard most recent year is fine but I’ve heard also 3 year too so I just want to see if there’s a faster way

Related Topics:
1 Lawyer Answer

A: Although you do have options in the case of supplying financial documentation, you're right that some options may be more convincing than others.

Regarding your first question, as you noted, USCIS gives you the choice of submitting only one year's tax information, or submitting up to three years' worth. You'll want to make a strategic decision here, based on your income history over the last three years.

If, for example, you've been promoted at your job for the last three years, so that your current year's income is higher than the previous two years', there's no reason to submit anything more than last year's tax returns.

If, by contrast, you had a difficult year last year -- perhaps were out of work due to an injury -- but the previous two years' tax returns show a more "normal" (and higher) income stream for you, it would be wise to submit those as well.

As to the form of submitting this information, copies of your own tax returns are acceptable, but the immigration officials know that it wouldn't take much for someone to forge these.

Therefore, they prefer to receive tax transcripts, which are generated by the IRS and show detailed information of your tax filings. In the past, requesting these from the IRS could add weeks to the process of preparing your I-864 submission, leading many people to use their own tax returns instead.

Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.

The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.

Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.