Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
Canada	Thread on VJ and IRS website didn't help...	Good morning, Sorry to bother everyone with yet ANOTHER tax question, but I'm on the verge of moving back home because this is too complicated for me. We had our first marital fight, and it wasn't a good one. So if anyone feel like helping, this is the time! Sorry again for those of you who will think I should have 'read the guides', done my research and what not. But I have. I've called the IRS, browsed the IRS website with no happy ending, and looked through the tax thread on VJ, and I'm STILL confused. I'll try to make this as simple as possible, this way if you can only answer one question you can do so, and if there's a tax genius out there, please HELP! This is our situation. Our income put together, including my canadian income, is in the 35,000 - 45,000$ range. 1- Is it more profitable to file married seperately or jointly? From experience? 2- If we do file JOINTLY, do I have to wait for my T4s? 3- Is there a form we need to attach/send apart from the normal forms we fill online? (my husband files his taxes online, without using TurboTax or another program like that) 4- Will it take longer for the IRS to process the return? 5- (Last one) If we do go the joint way, is it relatively easy or should I go get a refill of my anxiety medication? (joking) 6- What is form 2555, tax exemption? Do I need to fill that in? Will it make us save money? What's its purpose??? When I called the IRS, the man (who was not having a good day apparently), was telling me that if we decide to fill JOINTLY I will be considered a resident for the tax year, but that I need to type and sign a letter stating that I "take the election to be treated as a resident"... #######? Sorry again for bothering everyone, I've had my share of stupid questions that could have been answered by reading the guides, but I swear I can't find what I'm looking for and am about to go insane! I appreciate the helps, thanks again!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-24 07:23:00
Canada	Packet 4	Packet 4 is usually snail mail. Its only been 4 days and takes 1-2 weeks to get mail from Montreal. IF it was actually mailed on that date, it may have been put in the mail room to be mailed on that date and not actually sent out. Agreed. With Montreal, if something is said to have been mailed, it doesn't mean it's out yet. I would give them until February 5th or something like that... Plus, you're in Nova Scotia, right? Then maybe the 10th even... But enh, you're almost done!!! Congrats!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-27 14:10:00
Canada	Taxes...	Hi mitch.snyder, I had the same questions earlier this week and posted a thread "Thread on VJ and IRS website didn't help"... Look it up it might be on the next page or something, and I got GREAT advise, and most of my questions were answered.... Just for your info though, if you're thinking of using turbotax, it wasn't as simple as I thought and it wasn't free either... If we had the chance to go back and do it again, I would have gone the good old pen and paper way, believe me!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-27 14:14:00
Canada	Should I send them a letter?	Don't think it will be a problem. When we filed the first year together I was considered a resident in the US for tax purposes and it did not come up in the GC process....you could certainly explain it easily. Thanks for the reassurance!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-28 16:29:00
Canada	Should I send them a letter?	You did want to be treated as a resident for tax purposes, right? Saying you were is probably fine - they'll be sure to let you know if you're not As my husband just noted, you would pay less tax if they DON'T treat you as resident so you've erred on the side of more tax, ratehr then less....I doubt they'll find much fault there Alright, thanks... I guess I just started freaking out thinking that we'd have a green card interview, and they would crack down on us saying like "Oh, so you think you're a resident now enh?" But that's probably me watching too much TV...	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-28 12:17:00
Canada	Should I send them a letter?	Ok, so I've gone and done it again... When we filed our federal return using Turbotax, there is a part where it asks you if you're a resident. It states that if your not, most people ask to be treated as one. I was reviewing our file today, and noticed that we made a mistake, and we put down that I was a resident I was thinking of writng a letter explaining our mistake and asking them to 'treat' me as a resident for tax purposes. Am I wasting my time, or do you suggest I do that since we made a mistake on the form? Thanks again, and I promise I won't bother anyone with tax questions AGAIN	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-27 17:26:00
Canada	My own tax question!	Someone might correct me if I'm wrong but someone told me that in Canada, even if you file married (to let them know your status has changed) you still file seperately. I don't think there is a way to file married. So I guess you're in the clear! You don't have to file taxes in the US and neither does he! Did you check on the IRS website? There is a section of questions, and one is "Do I have to file US taxes?" and it walks you through a questionnaire. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea just to make sure you're doing everything right...	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-30 09:45:00
Canada	My own tax question!	Well, it boils down to two things: -filing married seperately, and then HE does not need to file US taxes or -filing married jointly, and then he takes the 'election to be treated as a resident' (IRS wording!), even though he is a nonresident alien right now. This is only what I think, but since there's not much income to 'file' and might not get much back in return, maybe you guys should just file married seperately. You still would have to notify the IRS that your situation has changed (you're married) but it also doesn't require him to file US taxes. His income wouldn't be taxed twice if you did file married jointly though... So if you go the seperate way, you file your US taxes, and he files in CA taxes, and that's that. Note that if you file jointly, he still has to file CA taxes. Hope this helps, and if you decided to file jointly and have question, feel free to ask me. I posted a thread last week because I had so many questions too, and I got great advise. I also called the IRS to make sure I was on the right track. So if you need anything, let me know! Good luck!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-01-29 09:49:00
Canada	Avoiding RFE - Proof of meeting	This is kind of what I was asking. I am going to try and do that! Thanks everyone for your comments. We both drive. We see each other about twice a month on average, not as much since we filed though. We didn't get any receipts from the bridge. No passport stamps. He pays for my expenses when I am there and I for his when he is(was) here! Had i known what I know now we would have done things differently. I am going to try and get a record of my travels otherwise if we aren't lucky enough we could be in trouble. I think the idea of Barbara J could be good for your case; how about affidavits from people that know you?	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-15 14:20:00
Canada	Not much feedback on AOS forum	My interview experience was pretty similar. It really isn't anything to stress over! It's pretty similar to the K-1 interview, minus the suspense of traveling all the way to Montreal and having to wait outside at 7am I wrote a pretty detailed review in my profile if you want to check it out. Just make sure you have all your paperwork in oder some recent relationship evidence and everything should go just fine. Thank you! I'll make sure I read your review!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-16 07:12:00
Canada	Not much feedback on AOS forum	Thank you ladies, it helps to see that I am most likely stressing myself out for nothing. But you're right Gypsyangel, I sure don't want to go there thinking it's all peachy and we'll be approved on the spot.	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-15 14:16:00
Canada	Not much feedback on AOS forum	Well, I didn't want to post my question on here, but I didn't get very much feedback on the AOS forum, and truth be told, I'd rather have the opinion of fellow canucks before anyone else's! So I copy/pasted my question below, comments welcome! Good morning everyone, I received an e-mail from USCIS last week notifying me that Chris and I have a green card interview! We are adjusting from a K-1 visa. On one hand I am very excited about going though the process quickly, and at the same time very nervous at the prospect of another interview. I was a nervous mess for my K-1 interview! Anyways, we are going through the office in Norfolk, Virginia, and I was wondering if anyone has had their interview there recently. I was looking it up in the review section on VJ, but the most recent review seems to be from 2009! And finally, if you guys want to share with me how it all went during your interview, I would appreciate it. Just looking for some stress relief! Thanks guys and happy lover's day!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-15 10:11:00
Canada	Address question	You mean you have a P.O box? Is it stated anywhere in the forms that P.O boxes are not acceptable? If not, I don't see a problem, but somebody probably wants to chip in on this...	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-16 09:28:00
Canada	CEGEP/Canadian community college degrees	I'm actually going through this right now to get my Virginia Teaching License. I have to get ALL my reports cards, my license, my diplomas (from CEGEP and univeristy) translated. Not fun and quite expensive. And then, I have to go through a company that will check my credentials and transfer what can be transfered. Again, not fun and quite expensive. If you have the time right now, get your stuff translated if it's not in English, and you can also contact a company that does this credentials transfer thing for your line of work BEFORE you move. I wish I had!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-16 09:36:00
Canada	AOS'rs...	Alright, I've been browsing this thread, and I got down to page 130, but my eyes are hurting now! Do you guys know of anyone on here that has had their interview for their green card in Norfolk, VA?	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-17 10:16:00
Canada	AOS'rs...	I went for my Biometrics yesterday. 118 days since NOA1... Can't believe they forgot to put me into the system, but lots of other people in Dallas had the same exact problem. I had to go directly to the Dallas ASC 1 month ago to have them print me an appointment letter. So this morning, i had my EAD approved!! Finally, i can stop being a couch potato and start earning money to pay off my loans! I feel more like home now, instead of just a visitor. Now in the wait for my GC, but i don't expect anything to happen for a long time, since i'm at CSC and people wait a long time there!! Congratulations! You deserve it after having waited so long! Good luck with your work and I hope the rest of your AOS goes smooth and fast!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2010-11-18 11:48:00
Canada	AOS'rs...	Hi everyone! Just wondering if an ASC office is the same as a CIS office? I looked up the closest office to me, and I'm just wondering if there's a way to be sure that that's where the biometrics appointment would be. Trying to think ahead since it looks like I might have to take a drive there to request a letter... Ok, nevermind, found it! Edited by Vero and Chris, 29 October 2010 - 08:27 AM.	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2010-10-29 08:23:00
Canada	AOS/EAD	Thanks everyone - was seriously having a heart attack here...would that void my medical? lol So I definitely don't have it, the DS, so I'm going to address it in the cover sheet as you suggested Vero and as you suggested J will send my vaccination card from my Dr and receipt from Dr. Seiden/TO and hope that that'll be just fine. Okay, off to work on another form, jees...would it be wrong to have a glass of wine while doing it??? Hell no! I believe it's a sip every question answered!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-16 16:50:00
Canada	AOS/EAD	Hey Brenda2010, Where did you do your medical again? When you picked it up from the office or received it, there should have been a page for your record. It's a copy of the immuzination sheet that the doctor put in the sealed enveloppe. That's the DS-3025. Also, you can put in the cover page of your AOS package that you had a medical done within the last year and are therefore not including the I-693. This is what most of us August crew people did, and so far nobody received an RFE because of it... If you need an exmaple of a cover page, text me and I'll send you the one I used...	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-16 15:11:00
Canada	Just Starting.	Welcome YYZ2USA! Well, I guess I will go against everyone so far and suggest you go the K-1 route The reason it worked for us (even though everyone is right it is pricier) is that it was shorter. Whether you take the CR1 Visa route or the K1 Visa, since you're from Toronto you'll be dealing with the Montreal Consulate. Since you're new here, you should know that the consulate in Montreal is VERY slow. I remember when I was waiting for my interview date, there were people who had file way before me, and they were still waiting for an interview date in Montreal. After I moved here, got married and started the Green card process, some of those people were JUST going for their interview in Montreal. BUT, after their interview, people that go the CR1 route are granted a 2 year green card, can start working right away after they move, and can visit right away as well (correct me if I'm wrong!). I waited maybe 2.5 months to receive my advance parole (which authorises you to travel, TWICE) and my work authorisation... It's a personnal choice, I'm glad we decided to go for the K-1 because I would have waited much longer before coming here if not. However, I wish we would have gone through the CR1, because I would have a green card right now, and not have to go for yet another interview to GET the green card ... But that's just me ranting! Whatever you guys decide, make sure you do everything right and good luck!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-24 11:40:00
Canada	Proof of meeting	Do you guys send e-mails? Print those out. What about cell-phone bills or home phone? Highlight his number on the statement you receive. What about mail? Ever receive a card from him? Those can work too. Don't worry about it, you haven't receive an RFE, so you're probably stressing yourself over nothing. But you might want to start gathering evidence for your interview though. Good luck!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-24 11:30:00
Canada	Approved	Congratulations on the approval!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-23 11:41:00
Canada	Preparing Proof of Relationship and Interview docs	Excellent, thanks a ton! Do you know anything about the I-129f packet? I have been told to bring a copy of it to the interview, but I am not sure if this is necessary. It is like 50 pages worth of proof, etc. so I would rather not if at all possible. Any suggestions on this welcome. I don't recall them asking to see it, no... But then again, you might fall on someone who wants to see it, and you won't have it... It might be worth the 5$ at Staples for peace of mind (but that's coming from someone who worries about everything all the time, so your call! lol!) Edited by Vero and Chris, 26 February 2011 - 09:13 PM.	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-26 21:12:00
Canada	Preparing Proof of Relationship and Interview docs	Hi hithalynn, What you have seems plenty to me. I had all my documents organized in an accordeon folder thingy. Make sure you make copies of everything. They might ask for documents, give them the copy and if they want to see the originals, you'll have them with you (especially with the tax stuff). You seem to have plenty of evidence as well, as a matter of fact, when I had my interview they didn't ask to see any of it! Make sure you have the print-out of the P3 that you send back to the consulate, I know in Montreal I had to give them the confirmation page. It might not hurt to have copies of the USC's ID, such as the bio info page of his passport, his driver's license and birth certificate. I don't remember if I was asked for them, but I know some people have (again, in Montreal). Hope your interview goes well, you'll see you'll wonder why you stressed so much about it when it's done!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-26 07:35:00
Canada	Am I in trouble?	Thanks everyone for your input!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-28 14:30:00
Canada	Am I in trouble?	Gosh.... You guys have no idea how GOOD it feels to know I overreacted!!! Thank you guys for being patient with my state of psychosis! I will definitely be calmer now (well, that's until I find something else to freak out about!) Thanks again though	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-26 21:10:00
Canada	Am I in trouble?	Ok, well needless to say that I'm VERY agitated right now and need your assistance VJ members! I've never immigrated before (obviously) and this process did not come with a hand book of what to do once you move to the US. I just read a post, and I was to call CRA to let them know I moved? I contacted the Qc government in late December or early January in regards to my driver's license. I had to write them a letter telling them my new adress, blah blah blah. I was also going to put a letter in my tax return (I do it the old fashion paper way), but you're supposed to call? How bad is it that I haven't yet? Is this going to get me denied at my AOS interview in two weeks??? Gosh, this process is so stressful, I'm so tired of finding new things to stress out about! I'm terrified now that I've made a terrible mistake and don't know what to do!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-02-26 14:49:00
Canada	POE in Montreal or LA?	Yeah, your POE will be in Montreal... I remember getting to the airport real early because I didn't know how long it would take at secondary, and the thing is that customs only open at like 6am-6:30am... Gosh I was so nervous thinking I wouldn't have enough time. I think I was an hour in secondary... Get there early!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-04 13:16:00
Canada	Question about going back/forth after visa issued	Alright, so someone might want to correct me on this, since I went the K-1 route, but he basically has a green card since you guys filled the I-130 CR-1, right? After he POEs? If that's the case, it would seem logical to me that he can go back to visit/work after... I mean, isn't that the beauty of a green card? I don't know, maybe I don't know jack s**t, but it would make sense to me... Can he get a leave of absence from work, and maybe go back after a month or so? A week seems a little short... I don't know, like I said I'm probably not the right person to help you here... Good luck either way!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-04 13:03:00
Canada	K1 Interview on Tuesday	I have the same sickness as you: I can't help worrying, and I was a COMPLETE mess before my K-1 interview! Looks like you have everything, and like previously posted, don't be mad if they don't ask any evidence. I had so much gathered and they didn't ask for anything. But it's better to be safe than sorry! Try to relax until tomorrow, go for walks, try to exteriorize, and before you know it, you'll be done and happy to be! I remember leaving the consulate thinking, 'man, everyone was right, I stressed out for NOTHING!' Good luck, keep calm and everything will be ok!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-07 07:01:00
Canada	List of all visits to the US on DS-160 form	I was faced with something similar as well when I was filling out the form... I know I had been two Michigan twice, by car, but could not even remember the year, even less the month those trips took place! So what I did is I wrote down the visits I took while dating Chris, and tried as hard as I could to at least remember one trip to the US prior to meeting him... Someone pointed out to me when I was running into that problem that they want to know the visits you have been doing since getting engaged... I don't think they really cared about knowing exactly when I went to Wild Wood with my family when I was 4... Hope this helps!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-08 15:08:00
Canada	Need info from other Canadians....please comment	I have to agree with everyone on here, you are fully aware of the consequences of doing such a thing, so don't be surprised if nobody suggests you go through with it. Especially since *most* of us have gone the right way and waited a while to be processed, especially with Montreal. Have I ever thought of finding a quicker way through this immigration process? Of course, who hasn't?!? But at the same time, we were really serious about spending our life together, and doing it the right way so we don't run into any problems in the long run. The AOS process is not a piece of cake and it should be taken seriously too.... Maybe you guys should reconsider your living situation... If you are not able to sacrifice several months to get a valid visa and do it the right way, then maybe it's not meant to be. Not trying to be rude or anything, but I doubt you'll get different answers on here than the ones you got in the other forum. Good luck with everything, no matter what you guys decide to do.	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-21 08:00:00
Canada	Fee payment...	I'm not sure that the consulate accepts credit cards... They might. I paid cash (US currency) when I had my interview. I would bring the cash, just in case, and worse comes to worse, you'll have that cash for when you move to the US... Good luck next week!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-21 08:02:00
Canada	POE Montreal Trudeau Airport	I had shipped boxes before, with books, DVDs and what not, and I had 3 suitcases with me, one of which was oversized. I had to pay an extra 150$, but it would have been a lot worse to have them shipped... Overall the POE is super easy compared to everything else involved with getting the visa. When you get to the booth, you just tell the agent 'I'd like to activate my K-1 visa'... They ask you a couple questions, do a couple things on their computer and then send you to secondary. When you get to secondary, you can either go on the right or left, and I was told to go wait in the left waiting room. I waited 30 minutes or so to be called in. And then that process takes maybe 20-30 minutes... Make sure that when the agent gives you your passport back the right A# is written as well as the right date. It'll be important later. Hope this helps!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-27 09:49:00
Canada	POE Montreal Trudeau Airport	Hi, My POE was through Trudeau as well, and I got there quite early. The only thing is that customs open at around 6am... And the process of the K-1 visa took maybe 45 min.-1 hour... I think my flight was at like 11 am or something... This is just my opinion, but I would try to find a flight for a little later... But again, if you get there early and start waiting in line as early as possible, you should be ok... I know that I got there at around 5am, and there was already a line at customs... It was hassle-free though, so it's just the time issue you have to figure out... Good luck!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-26 09:49:00
Canada	Which one?	Mumm... Must have changed then, because I was asked for it at my interview in Montreal (the translation)	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-29 14:30:00
Canada	Which one?	Odd in Quebec, we don't have the same long version as it doesn't list parent's place of birth. It's either a pocket size laminated one or a slightly bigger one. True, and if anyone is reading this, please note that the small one is completely useless with the consulate, and that if your birth was registered in French, you will not be able to have one issued to you in English. You'll need to have it translated.	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-29 10:27:00
Canada	Which one?	I'm not from Alberta, but it seems to me you answered your own question I would get the original long form sent to you because the consulate will ask for the original, not a photocopy of the registration... Just a thought!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-29 05:46:00
Canada	Montreal Interview - 05/18/11	There are two certainties about our situation. The wedding and interview date must go on as scheduled. I have some advice for people as well. If you are a Canadian marrying an American. You both should GET NEXUS! We both travelled freely without ANY issues and we did it multiple times each month. Just tell them the truth. The whole immigration process went very smoothly and FASSSSSTT because of it. I bet the passport will be fast as well. Just can't take a chance. :-) Well you sound like you have it under control, good luck with everything!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-31 13:54:00
Canada	Montreal Interview - 05/18/11	Hi Va-Bound! Welcome! I'm in VA too, so if you have any questions VA -specific, feel free to ask! As to your question, well, this is just my opinion and feel free to disregard it! Since you seem new on the site, let me tell you one thing us canadian dealing with the consulate in Montreal have learned the hard way: the consulate is VERY slow handling pretty much anything... If this was me, I would try to reschedule the wedding before rescheduling the interview, because you might have to wait a couple months (if not more) before getting another interview date. I don't know if much has changed since last year with Montreal, but most of us had a wonderful 4-6 months wait before their interview... Do what you think is right, but expect delays if you decide to reschedule your interview... Good luck either way!	Vero and Chris	Female	Canada	2011-03-31 10:37:00