DV 2015 Oceania winners

[Deb7a]

what a horrible start!! Ugh. Glad you've had a good vacation at least and maintain your positive outlook!
Any ideas on where you might head next?

Funnily enough I had a ghoulish fascination with the dead 'un. And my sweet boss turned out to be not so sweet and very self-serving and I'm glad to be free of the whole thing. I am not sure where to go next. There are two of us now, (me and my American toy boy) so we are just debating where we want to live. Possibly still in Colorado, but we are both hankering for a coastal home. Not sure whether that be east or west. We are just applying for jobs and seeing who gets one first and that is where we will go. Luckily my landlord ( an Aussie who lives in Denver) is absolutely fantastic, has let me out of my lease and allowing a fortnightly payment so I can pretty much leave as soon as I find something. All in all, plenty more adventures to be had. It's kind of exciting I must say.

 

[SusieQQQ]

Funnily enough I had a ghoulish fascination with the dead 'un. And my sweet boss turned out to be not so sweet and very self-serving and I'm glad to be free of the whole thing. I am not sure where to go next. There are two of us now, (me and my American toy boy) so we are just debating where we want to live. Possibly still in Colorado, but we are both hankering for a coastal home. Not sure whether that be east or west. We are just applying for jobs and seeing who gets one first and that is where we will go. Luckily my landlord ( an Aussie who lives in Denver) is absolutely fantastic, has let me out of my lease and allowing a fortnightly payment so I can pretty much leave as soon as I find something. All in all, plenty more adventures to be had. It's kind of exciting I must say.

Ooh American toy boy helps explain the good mood I guess!
Well, if you come west look some of us up!
And again - what a fantastic attitude, if more people rolled with the punches like this I think the world would be a happier place!!

 

[Deb7a]

Ooh American toy boy helps explain the good mood I guess!
Well, if you come west look some of us up!
And again - what a fantastic attitude, if more people rolled with the punches like this I think the world would be a happier place!!

Well thanks Susie, I try to be positive, but I don't always pull it off. Pueblo has left a bitter taste, but yes, thanks to my love interest, I have had some truly magical trips away and explored the place in ways I never would have had I been on my own. If I had have imagined my American experience, this is exactly what I hoped for but didn't ever think it would actually happen. So yes kids, dreams do come true. I constantly have to keep pinching myself to see if I'm awake. I worry occasionally that my bubble will burst, but I'm old enough to as you said, roll with the punches and know that everything happens for a reason and you just look at life as one big adventure. God I'm glad I did this!

 

[Britsimon]

Well thanks Susie, I try to be positive, but I don't always pull it off. Pueblo has left a bitter taste, but yes, thanks to my love interest, I have had some truly magical trips away and explored the place in ways I never would have had I been on my own. If I had have imagined my American experience, this is exactly what I hoped for but didn't ever think it would actually happen. So yes kids, dreams do come true. I constantly have to keep pinching myself to see if I'm awake. I worry occasionally that my bubble will burst, but I'm old enough to as you said, roll with the punches and know that everything happens for a reason and you just look at life as one big adventure. God I'm glad I did this!

Holy moly - you have packed some excitement into that short period. Toy boy, dead bodies, getting fired. Wow.

Stop applying for credit. Sounds like you have been doing things wrong - and that is just going to take you backards. Get a secured credit card if you haven't already. Build up your credit and register on creditkarma to see how you are doing.

 

[guestgulkan]

This topic was barely touched already and I am not trying to get a free advice, rather to calm myself that I stay on the safe side... we activate our visas in Nov and planning to move during March'16. For Nov and Dec I would have an income in Australia with no taxes on it. I see that in the US-AU tax agreement that generally this income would be taxed in AU, hence I would declare it in my AU tax return after mid-2016. In the US IRS tax return that I need to file until April-15 2016, would this income be treated as tax exempt? (I will of course see tax professional in US when time comes)

I don't really understand what you mean by "For Nov and Dec I would have an income in Australia with no taxes on it". imho the IRS will tax you for the entire of 2015.

My knowledge of international tax is limited to this:

• You fill out your US tax using all your Australian financial information for 2015
• You get a foreign tax credit for Australian tax paid
• You owe the IRS any outstanding amount

However since you won't be a resident of a US state it's unlikely you'll owe anything.

 

[guestgulkan]

A word of advice for those looking for a credit rating. When I went to buy a car, the dealer applied to a dozen or more lenders to try to secure me a loan. I didn't have any idea of how many he contacted, and none of them were successful. I managed to secure a loan independently. The problem with that is these are called hard inquiries and reflect badly on your credit score, makes you look desperate, and they stay on your credit record for 2 years. After 4 months here and steady payments I still rate very poorly. They suggest no more than one or two per year. I had been applying for store credit in all the stores as well just trying to get the opportunity to raise my rating. So just watch that. Its a difficult thing to do quickly that's for sure.

@Britsimon 's advice is good. Your credit rating is something that needs to be nurtured carefully in the USA.

Firstbank of Colorado gave me a $500 unsecured credit card when I had no credit history. You can try them. They eventually raised it to $2,500.

Capital One is a good supplier of credit cards (including secured) to people with limited credit history.

 

[Deb7a]

Holy moly - you have packed some excitement into that short period. Toy boy, dead bodies, getting fired. Wow.

Stop applying for credit. Sounds like you have been doing things wrong - and that is just going to take you backards. Get a secured credit card if you haven't already. Build up your credit and register on creditkarma to see how you are doing.

Well I know that now lol. I just wish that useless car dealer hadn't contacted every effing bank in the country. I have already registered with creditkarma, that's how I found out my sadly low score. Thanks for the advice simon. Maybe others can learn from me and my errors.
It sure has been a very full 4 months though, a very exciting ride.

 

[Deb7a]

@Britsimon 's advice is good. Your credit rating is something that needs to be nurtured carefully in the USA.

Firstbank of Colorado gave me a $500 unsecured credit card when I had no credit history. You can try them. They eventually raised it to $2,500.

Capital One is a good supplier of credit cards (including secured) to people with limited credit history.

Thanks @guestgulkan , I will look into that when I have a job, not going to run the risk of being turned down again.

 

[Britsimon]

I don't really understand what you mean by "For Nov and Dec I would have an income in Australia with no taxes on it". imho the IRS will tax you for the entire of 2015.

My knowledge of international tax is limited to this:

• You fill out your US tax using all your Australian financial information for 2015
• You get a foreign tax credit for Australian tax paid
• You owe the IRS any outstanding amount

However since you won't be a resident of a US state it's unlikely you'll owe anything.

Your understanding is correct. Simplistic example. If you pay tax at 10% in Australia, and USA charges 15% on that type of income, then you will report 100% of the income, and offset the 10% tax against the 15% tax liability.

Couple of notes to that.
Prior to your LPR activation you are not liable for the USA tax/reporting. So - what I did was clean up some things immediately prior to coming to the USA. One notable one was my "ISA"s in the UK. They are a tax free investment in the UK (you can save a certain amount each year and the profits from that in future years is tax free). Those would not have the tax free protection in the USA, so I cashed them in (all the years I had), prior to moving to the USA. The tax point was before my entry to the USA, so attracted no UK tax and no USA tax. If I had realized that profit after LPR status (or in my case H1 entry), I would have paid tax on the profit, and I would have had a complicated PITA process working out the exchange rates on all the amounts I had paid in to those plans. Yuck.

 

[AcidPops]

Hi all,

My number has just become current in the DV 2016 lottery for Oceania and I received an email saying I had a required update and to check the Entrant Status page. Only problem is, I keep getting an error message when I try to log in and I've been trying consistently for about 18 hours on multiple browsers.

The error message reads: The system is unable to process your request. Please try again later. ORA-12514: TNS:listener does not currently know of service requested in connect descriptor.

Should I wait or would the KCC be the one to contact about this? If it's about the interview, I want to make sure I start prepping. Would it be fair to assume the interview has been scheduled for October if my number is now current?

Any advice anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated.

 

[AcidPops]

Hi all,

My number has just become current in the DV 2016 lottery for Oceania and I received an email saying I had a required update and to check the Entrant Status page. Only problem is, I keep getting an error message when I try to log in and I've been trying consistently for about 18 hours on multiple browsers.

The error message reads: The system is unable to process your request. Please try again later. ORA-12514: TNS:listener does not currently know of service requested in connect descriptor.

Should I wait or would the KCC be the one to contact about this? If it's about the interview, I want to make sure I start prepping. Would it be fair to assume the interview has been scheduled for October if my number is now current?

Any advice anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry just realised I'm in the wrong thread!

 

[Permutation]

Your understanding is correct. Simplistic example. If you pay tax at 10% in Australia, and USA charges 15% on that type of income, then you will report 100% of the income, and offset the 10% tax against the 15% tax liability.

Couple of notes to that.
Prior to your LPR activation you are not liable for the USA tax/reporting. So - what I did was clean up some things immediately prior to coming to the USA. One notable one was my "ISA"s in the UK. They are a tax free investment in the UK (you can save a certain amount each year and the profits from that in future years is tax free). Those would not have the tax free protection in the USA, so I cashed them in (all the years I had), prior to moving to the USA. The tax point was before my entry to the USA, so attracted no UK tax and no USA tax. If I had realized that profit after LPR status (or in my case H1 entry), I would have paid tax on the profit, and I would have had a complicated PITA process working out the exchange rates on all the amounts I had paid in to those plans. Yuck.

Thanks for your opinions, @Britsimon and @guestgulkan. My situation is a bit more complicated, but I guess I am not the only one here - expected more people to share similar concerns.
FY ends on June-30 in Oz and on Dec-31 for USA. After my POE and GC activation in Nov 15 I would receive in Oz, for the remaining ~40 days of the year, untaxed income that I must report before April-15 in USA and only after that in Australia. For this period I would still be an Aus resident and it is here I must pay the prime tax. This is what makes me a bit perplexed

 

[SusieQQQ]

Thanks for your opinions, @Britsimon and @guestgulkan. My situation is a bit more complicated, but I guess I am not the only one here - expected more people to share similar concerns.
FY ends on June-30 in Oz and on Dec-31 for USA. After my POE and GC activation in Nov 15 I would receive in Oz, for the remaining ~40 days of the year, untaxed income that I must report before April-15 in USA and only after that in Australia. For this period I would still be an Aus resident and it is here I must pay the prime tax. This is what makes me a bit perplexed

It's complicated. Get a tax consultant. They will probably do what they did for me, where I had a similar issue, and apply for an extension till October for the IRS form to sort out the home country tax first.

 

[guestgulkan]

Thanks @guestgulkan , I will look into that when I have a job, not going to run the risk of being turned down again.

I'm not sure you can get turned down for a secured card?

It might also be useful if you check the creditboards forums (like here but for credit). They often discuss credit card companies that do a "soft" rather than "hard" credit check.

 

[Britsimon]

I'm not sure you can get turned down for a secured card?

It might also be useful if you check the creditboards forums (like here but for credit). They often discuss credit card companies that do a "soft" rather than "hard" credit check.

You generally need to be able to say you have a job.

 

[kellie_jane]

Hello hello,

I've a couple of quick questions if anyone can help! My interview is next Wednesday in London! Super excited and nervous
My questions are about proof of funds, does anyone know how much we need?
Also my husband (who is the derivative) has a decent inheritance in a separate bank account which is in his name only. Will this suffice, even if it's not in my name?

Thanks!!

Ps. If anyone has been interviewed in London please share anything I might need to know! Thanks again, this forum has been so so helpful

 

[Britsimon]

Hello hello,

I've a couple of quick questions if anyone can help! My interview is next Wednesday in London! Super excited and nervous
My questions are about proof of funds, does anyone know how much we need?
Also my husband (who is the derivative) has a decent inheritance in a separate bank account which is in his name only. Will this suffice, even if it's not in my name?

Thanks!!

Ps. If anyone has been interviewed in London please share anything I might need to know! Thanks again, this forum has been so so helpful

The "recommended" amount is around $10k per adult and a bit less for kids. So the 2plus 2 family should show a minimum of around $25k (16k GBP). More is better of course and having a good profession will also help. It doesn't matter if being in your husbands account.

Search the forum for London embassy interview experiences - there are some.

 

[kellie_jane]

The "recommended" amount is around $10k per adult and a bit less for kids. So the 2plus 2 family should show a minimum of around $25k (16k GBP). More is better of course and having a good profession will also help. It doesn't matter if being in your husbands account.

Search the forum for London embassy interview experiences - there are some.

Legend, thank you!

 

[SophiaP]

Howdy fellow OCers. Been a long time between posts, but here we are. Hubby and I entered via LA (with a 4 hour stopover before heading to NYC) and cleared POE stuff without a hitch on 08/22/15. Have spent the last few days gorging on US colonial/revolutionary/civil war history and civics in DC and Philadelphia. I'm tapping this out from a funky converted church loft in North Philly, my feet aching from having covered most of Philly's CBD on foot.

We wandered down to the SSA office in Penn Centre JFK Bvd at 8:45 am today to discover (pleasantly) that my SSN card was in the system and has been dispatched to our address (c/- friends in rural PA) but my husband's wasn't (not so pleasantly discovered) because it looks like USCIS or Homeland has buggered up his name spelling or added his middle name to the first name field (or something. Desk jockey couldn't work it out) so he had to resubmit a fresh application. A nuisance, and also means he may get issued two SSN cards if the other card is sorted out/issued . I'm more concerned about any possible delays to his greencard, but I am unable to check our status because the USCIS website appears to be down/offline for maintenance. Like I say, a nuisance, and I hope not a serious hiccup. So far, things have gone smoothly so I'd hate to think that something like this could cause hassles. Q: Are these the sort of things best settled in person at an immigration/homeland office?

I was lucky that the man at the SSA office let me scribble down my number for banking purposes, so we crossed the road and wandered into a BoA branch and opened a basic no-fee checking account with both our passports, my husband's SSA "receipt" and my number. All sorted. Feeling marginally better but won't be 100% calm until we get to the bottom of the name issue the young man alluded to at the SSA office. Hmmmm...

Heading back to Oz in fourteen days, and plan to move over by the middle of next year. Exciting times ahead! Looks like the same for everyone else too!

 

[EmilyW]

BoA will open accounts without an SSN. I know we opened ours without it. They just wanted our ID.