US Citizenship through Marriage (3 year rule)

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BritishGuy

Registered Users (C)
Ok, so here it is......

My wife is intending to file her N-400 (Application for US Citizenship) in November 15th 2014 (yes, 2014 - just planning ahead!). She'll be eligible for her US Citizenship on Feb 13th 2015. November 15th is 90 days prior to her 3 years anniversary so she intends to apply then. She'll be applying under the marriage rule of 3 years. She got her Green Card in Feb 2012.

The application 'checklist' states that she needs to send 3 years worth of Tax Returns/Transcripts SINCE she became a Legal Permanent Resident (got her Green Card) with the application. We've filed 2012 tax returns (last week), we intend to file 2013 taxes as soon as January 2014 comes around.

Now, if she files her N-400 application in November 2014 (90 days prior to eligibility), she WON'T have 3 years worth of Tax Returns/Transcripts - She'll only have 2 years worth (2012 and 2013). Is she or will she still be eligible to file the N-400 in November 2014? She doesn't work and doesn't have any W-2's, pay stubs etc.

Any and all help/advice on this matter is greatly appreciated.
 
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Jackolantern said:
She can file the 2014 return in early 2015 and bring it to the interview.
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Oh, ok, so they won't halt her application or straightaway reject it on the basis of not supplying her 2014 tax return will they?

I'm just a little worried that if we don't supply what is asked for when it's asked for (when we initially apply) then we'll forever be stuck in letters going back and forth instead of REAL application work being done.

Thanks (Again) Jack.
 
BritishGuy said:
Ok, so here it is......

My wife is intending to file her N-400 (Application for US Citizenship) in November 15th 2014 (yes, 2014 - just planning ahead!). She'll be eligible for her US Citizenship on Feb 13th 2015. November 15th is 90 days prior to her 3 years anniversary so she intends to apply then. She'll be applying under the marriage rule of 3 years. She got her Green Card in Feb 2012.
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Make sure by the time of Novenber 15, 2014, she will have been married for 3 years already. Since 90 day only apply to residence not to marriage
 
WBH said:
Make sure by the time of Novenber 15, 2014, she will have been married for 3 years already. Since 90 day only apply to residence not to marriage
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Thanks for the heads up. We've been married 4 years already so I think we're good there.
 
BritishGuy said:
Oh, ok, so they won't halt her application or straightaway reject it on the basis of not supplying her 2014 tax return will they?
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No. Filing before the April deadline is not required. And having 3 years of tax returns is not an absolute requirement, so they won't automatically reject it on that basis. There are legitimate reasons for not having 3 returns, such as insufficient income, or in your case the timing of the 3 year anniversary and tax filing deadlines. Simply bring the 2014 return to the interview, and don't worry about it.
 
I am just curious why does uscis want to see tax returns? do they care if you made just little or nothing?
 
labrea said:
I am just curious why does uscis want to see tax returns? do they care if you made just little or nothing?
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For the 3 year marriage-based rule they want to see joint tax returns or transcripts as part of the evidence of living as a genuine married couple. Fake couples or legally separated couples usually don't file joint returns.

But as I said above, it's not an absolute requirement; some won't the 3 returns due to various reasons, while others will file taxes separately for other reasons. Not having 3 years of returns won't cause an automatic rejection, but it will require an explanation and the other evidence will need to be stronger.
 
Jackolantern said:
For the 3 year marriage-based rule they want to see joint tax returns or transcripts as part of the evidence of living as a genuine married couple. Fake couples or legally separated couples usually don't file joint returns.

But as I said above, it's not an absolute requirement; some won't the 3 returns due to various reasons, while others will file taxes separately for other reasons. Not having 3 years of returns won't cause an automatic rejection, but it will require an explanation and the other evidence will need to be stronger.
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What about for 5 year based applicants? do they care how much you made and how much tax you've paid?
 
labrea said:
What about for 5 year based applicants? do they care how much you made and how much tax you've paid?
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They generally won't check on tax returns for 5-year applicants unless they have taken long trips abroad or have known tax issues in their past or present like overdue unpaid taxes.
 
Jackolantern said:
They generally won't check on tax returns for 5-year applicants unless they have taken long trips abroad or have known tax issues in their past or present like overdue unpaid taxes.
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In my case, I am a dv winner and got my GC in 2005 while I was studying abroad, I never applied for re-entry permit but never been out of US more than 11.5 months, (11 months in 2006, 11.5 months in 2007).
I am a bit worried about trips I made 6-7 years ago even though I never been out of US since feb 2008
 
labrea said:
In my case, I am a dv winner and got my GC in 2005 while I was studying abroad, I never applied for re-entry permit but never been out of US more than 11.5 months, (11 months in 2006, 11.5 months in 2007).
I am a bit worried about trips I made 6-7 years ago even though I never been out of US since feb 2008
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For naturalization they rarely care about trips that ended more than 5 years ago, so they probably won't ask for your 2005-2007 returns. But if you filed taxes for those years, get the tax transcripts for them just in case. If you didn't file taxes for those years because you had insufficient income to be required to file, simply state that fact in the interview if the issue arises.
 
Jackolantern said:
For naturalization they rarely care about trips that ended more than 5 years ago, so they probably won't ask for your 2005-2007 returns. But if you filed taxes for those years, get the tax transcripts for them just in case. If you didn't file taxes for those years because you had insufficient income to be required to file, simply state that fact in the interview if the issue arises.
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I didnt file return for years 2005-2007 since I didnt have any income but I also had insufficient income for years of 2008-2012 but I never failed to file tax returns, could it be a problem to have insufficient income in past 5 years and go deep ask about paying bills, rent and etc?
 
By the way.... Me and my wife do NOT file 'Joint'. We file Married Filing Separate. It suits our tax situation better. She doesn't work and doesn't have any income. I file separate. Why? Well, ask my tax accountant. Other than that we have a joint property, joint bank account, joint bills, 2 kids (from each other)..... Will the Married Filing Separate tax status be scrutinized that much?
 
Also, would there be a chance that they'd ask for my tax returns?? Or is the interview NOT about me (as it isn't - is it?)
 
BritishGuy said:
By the way.... Me and my wife do NOT file 'Joint'. We file Married Filing Separate. It suits our tax situation better. She doesn't work and doesn't have any income. I file separate. Why? Well, ask my tax accountant.
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Ask him for us and get back to us. I can't think of any situation where MFS is advantageous over MFJ with a non-working spouse. Have you run the numbers yourself to check? Remember that with MFS you get half the deductions, and with a non-working spouse there's no additional income to declare if you file MFJ.
 
BritishGuy said:
By the way.... Me and my wife do NOT file 'Joint'. We file Married Filing Separate. It suits our tax situation better. She doesn't work and doesn't have any income. I file separate. Why? Well, ask my tax accountant. Other than that we have a joint property, joint bank account, joint bills, 2 kids (from each other)..... Will the Married Filing Separate tax status be scrutinized that much?
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Did your accountant run the calculations both ways and show you the difference? Or are you just blindly taking the accountant's advice?

If only one spouse has income, married-separately almost always results in a higher tax bill than married-jointly (or at best equal, if income is low and/or deductions are high). If the interviewer is familiar with the advantages of married-jointly for a one-income couple, your decision to file separately is likely to attract suspicion and extra questioning, and you'll need a better answer than "ask my accountant".

Filing separately for the 2011 tax year and earlier years may have made sense due to the rules and complexities involved when one spouse is a resident and the other is nonresident. But now that your wife is a permanent resident since 2012, if you're going to continue filing as married-separately for 2012 and later you need to know how much money you're losing or gaining by doing so, and if you're losing money you need to understand the specific nonfinancial benefits of filing separately in your specific situation, so you can decide whether it's worth it to lose money for those reasons.

Have you filed the 2012 return yet?
 
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labrea said:
I didnt file return for years 2005-2007 since I didnt have any income but I also had insufficient income for years of 2008-2012 but I never failed to file tax returns, could it be a problem to have insufficient income in past 5 years and go deep ask about paying bills, rent and etc?
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There is no reason for you to worry.
 
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