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The "been there done that" thread: life in the US after DV

I'm planning my permanent move to the US some time early next year. I would like to hear your thoughts on how moving as a new immigrant should go about.

1. Should I find a permanent home first before I send my personal items over?
2. Is there any exemption of tax on the import of personal items of new immigrants (the equivalency of the "Transfer of Residency" in the UK)?

Would love to hear your personal experience. TIA.
 
Uncle33 said:
I'm planning my permanent move to the US some time early next year. I would like to hear your thoughts on how moving as a new immigrant should go about.

1. Should I find a permanent home first before I send my personal items over?
2. Is there any exemption of tax on the import of personal items of new immigrants (the equivalency of the "Transfer of Residency" in the UK)?

Would love to hear your personal experience. TIA.
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1. Personal choice
2. There is no tax on bringing your own items in, other than I believe alcohol - we were advised by the mover not to put any in our container.
 
EmilyW said:
If nothing else, if you're an Australian, our superannuation funds do not meet the definition of a pension fund in the US and are considered investments like any other, which are subsequently treated differently to pension funds from a taxation perspective.
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This may be of interest. There's at least one accountant/law firm in the US that thinks Australian superannuation should not be subject to US taxation: https://www.castroandco.com/service...s-tax-treatment-of-australian-superannuation/. I haven't used them, but I might in future. I spoke to them over the phone and, for a fee, they offer an indemnity, meaning that if the IRS challenges the treatment of your superannuation in your US tax return, the firm will litigate the issue and, if they lose, compensate you for any back taxes/penalties imposed by the IRS.
 
Hello!

Quick question and sorry if it's a seemingly stupid one.
I became an LPR on January 9th 2022. My understanding is that you file taxes for the preceding calendar year.
Does anyone know how new LPRs should go about tax filing for a preceding year that they were not residents or lived in the US during?

Or should they not do that.
 
adam_95 said:
Hello!

Quick question and sorry if it's a seemingly stupid one.
I became an LPR on January 9th 2022. My understanding is that you file taxes for the preceding calendar year.
Does anyone know how new LPRs should go about tax filing for a preceding year that they were not residents or lived in the US during?

Or should they not do that.
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If you only became an LPR on 9 January 2022, your first tax return will need to be filed by 15 April 2023 for the 2022 tax year. There's no need to file anything in 2022 unless you were subject to US tax obligations in 2021 that are unrelated to your LPR status.
 
My son turned 14 a few months ago, so I'm required to replace his GC as it now needs biometrics. The wait for this is immense, pushing a year by the looks of it. Will this cause issues? As far as I can tell, his current GC is still active until it is replaced?
 
Bob22 said:
My son turned 14 a few months ago, so I'm required to replace his GC as it now needs biometrics. The wait for this is immense, pushing a year by the looks of it. Will this cause issues? As far as I can tell, his current GC is still active until it is replaced?
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Yes it is.
 
Hello,
I have a question for those who moved to the US with school-aged kids.
My daughter will be 6 in August and, if our interview goes well and we get our visas, we will probably move in July. She will have to start school almost as soon as we move. But how can we enroll her into school without permanent residence address (and we probably won't have one because it will take some time to get ssn and find jobs so we can rent an apartment).
Has anyone been in similar situation?
 
starlite.walker said:
Hello,
I have a question for those who moved to the US with school-aged kids.
My daughter will be 6 in August and, if our interview goes well and we get our visas, we will probably move in July. She will have to start school almost as soon as we move. But how can we enroll her into school without permanent residence address (and we probably won't have one because it will take some time to get ssn and find jobs so we can rent an apartment).
Has anyone been in similar situation?
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Schools will be out on summer vacation in July. You attendance eligibility will be based on the home address. If the both temporary and eventual permanent home address will be within the same school district, it wouldn't matter if your kid eventually gets registered with the temporary home address. Otherwise you will need to wait until you've determined and moved to your permanent home address before engaging in school registration.
 
Sm1smom said:
Schools will be out on summer vacation in July. You attendance eligibility will be based on the home address. If the both temporary and eventual permanent home address will be within the same school district, it wouldn't matter if your kid eventually gets registered with the temporary home address. Otherwise you will need to wait until you've determined and moved to your permanent home address before engaging in school registration.
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So it wouldn't be a problem if she doesn't start school in September?
 
Hello everyone,
I am a documentary photographer who won the DV lottery in 2014 and successfully relocated to NYC. I am now beginning a project to photograph other DV lottery winners. This is a long-term project that will culminate into a book. For this summer I am focused on those in NYC (but willing to travel at some point as the work grows). If you are interested to participate in my project or know someone who is, please email me. I shoot in film (analogue) and there will be no cost to you. My address: photoprojectarchive@gmail.com

Many thanks!
 
I have a question regarding travelling to Canada - from what I understand the lpr status allows you to travel to Canada without a visa, just with the greencard and an eta - can this be done before the greencard arrives, just with the visa on the passport?
Thanks!
 
ralu_de said:
I have a question regarding travelling to Canada - from what I understand the lpr status allows you to travel to Canada without a visa, just with the greencard and an eta - can this be done before the greencard arrives, just with the visa on the passport?
Thanks!
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That is dicey. Canadian border patrol personnel may not recognize the endorsed immigrant visa serves as a temporary GC.
 
2014hopeful said:
This may be of interest. There's at least one accountant/law firm in the US that thinks Australian superannuation should not be subject to US taxation: https://www.castroandco.com/service...s-tax-treatment-of-australian-superannuation/. I haven't used them, but I might in future. I spoke to them over the phone and, for a fee, they offer an indemnity, meaning that if the IRS challenges the treatment of your superannuation in your US tax return, the firm will litigate the issue and, if they lose, compensate you for any back taxes/penalties imposed by the IRS.
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I did see these guys too. My Aussie friends who moved to US just mention it in their tax return but it's not taxed. Castro does say you can do the DIY option, which is free :)
 
Hi there!
I've been looking for flights going to USA and I have 2 options, passing through Dublin or through Montreal - from what I see, both airports have US preclearance - does that mean I will go through the immigration process in Dublin / Montreal as opposed to the actual POE in the states? Do I have to hand in the papers there, or do I still have to go through the process in the US regardless of the preclearance?
Thank you!
 
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ralu_de said:
Hi there!
I've been looking for flights going to USA and I have 2 options, passing through Dublin or through Montreal - from what I see, both airports have US preclearance - does that mean I will go through the immigration process in Dublin / Montreal as opposed to the actual POE in the states? Do I have to hand in the papers there, or do I still have to go through the process in the US regardless of the preclearance?
Thank you!
Click to expand...

Precleared flights arrive in the US as domestic flights. Just get your luggage and go ;)
 
ralu_de said:
Hi there!
I've been looking for flights going to USA and I have 2 options, passing through Dublin or through Montreal - from what I see, both airports have US preclearance - does that mean I will go through the immigration process in Dublin / Montreal as opposed to the actual POE in the states? Do I have to hand in the papers there, or do I still have to go through the process in the US regardless of the preclearance?
Thank you!
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Yes, with pre-clearance all CBP procedures are done in Dublin or Montreal. So make sure you have enough time on your layover to complete these too - you may want to allow for more time than you would for a routine international transit stop.
 
SusieQQQ said:
Yes, with pre-clearance all CBP procedures are done in Dublin or Montreal. So make sure you have enough time on your layover to complete these too - you may want to allow for more time than you would for a routine international transit stop.
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Thank you Susie! (glad to have you back on the forum!)
 
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