Planning ahead for DCF...

DH and I have an agreement that we will move back to the US in 2011. We have even selected Orlando, FL as the new location. So now I am trying to plan ahead in terms of the finances side of thing, which has always been difficult because we are such a large family. I could use some input from those of you who have recently or are going through it now.

Since arriving in the UK in June 2006 (tax years 2006 & 2007), I have filed using the Head of Household status made allowable for spouses of non-resident aliens without ITIN. This worked out well so far for us. But because we are planning to move back to the US in 2011, I am thinking about changing to married filing jointly. 1) Right now only DH is working, so we want to make sure that we maintain 3 years of tax records above that 125% of the poverty line necessary for the US visa process. 2) Likewise, I know that one measure of 'how married' you are for the visa is having tax returns filed jointly. I think that to change all I need to do is go to the US Embassy and file for his ITIN. Then we could change to married filing jointly in 2008. Does anyone else have experience with this process? Do you think it is important?

I am in the process of beginning my own doula/childbirth education business. My plan is to have it in both London and Orlando. Since we will be making annual or bi-annual trips to the area between now and 2011, I was thinking of teaching some classes while there on holiday and building a network with OBs in the area. Since I am a USC, there isn't any problem with that is there? I would just need to report it as US income on my taxes, right?

Once it gets closer to the time...or if we find the right place and have the money at the time, we plan to rent or purchase a home before applying so that should make the domicile thing easy. But is there any way we/I could get a FL bank account with a London address?

Any thing else you have found useful or we should plan ahead for? I realise of course that nothing is certain and knowing my luck with immigration they will probably completely do away with DCF before 2011. But we can plan our move for now.

1) Right now only DH is working, so we want to make sure that we maintain 3 years of tax records above that 125% of the poverty line necessary for the US visa process.

Just to let you know that the 125% over the poverty level is to do with your income not your taxes at the time of filing.

As it stands at the moment you are only required to submit the past year's tax return.

Further information on the affadavit of support, (the I-864) can be found here.

We have also been looking sick of the weather ect.

For 6 of us its $35,500 x 3 so $107000 or there abouts at todays guidelines.
I have never had employment and so never had an income so have never had to file tax returns, we just have to put a letter in and I think possibly fill something in to confirm I am disabled.

We are thinking of showing the house as an assest and saving to take money with us for the first year to settle in ie savings and in that time we hope my wife will find work. We are thinking 2010/11 also as the oldest wants to finish school here and he just found a gf errrrrrrrr and wife wants to finish her course.

We do not wish to sell the house at this point as the housing market is so bad so we might lose out, so we might rent it out for a few years.

We are going to try and save as much as possible to support us as I said for the first year and rent for a couple of years as we have found some amazing rental properties and Sonya is sold on renting and then purchasing some places down in Florida for holidays and to rent out to give us an income, but that is a good few years away yet.

How many of you are there? you might want to think ahead to a joint sponser also loads of people seem to do that, if you have someone who will do it, Sonya will be self supporting sort of. The other thing I would say is do it before your kids settle in schools find gf or start exams, we are having these issues now with the oldest and we do not want to disrupt him.

I forgot to say we are collecting paperwork , bills proof of relationship, we will be asking for letters off 3 friends confirming they know of our relationship and marriage, Sonya is getting all of her injections done and certificates off her doctors to show she and the boys have had all of the ones on the list, we are getting the house valued and sorting out the paper work for the police check Sonya has to have but this we will leave till a few weeks before we apply for her interview in London, but I will be watching to make sure there are no changes to this between now and then.

Indy good luck

Actually we will be leaving kids behind...so it will be just the 3 of us: Paul, me and Emily. My older kids have made the choice to remain in the UK, even my 17 yo will be in uni by then.

In 2011, Emily would be ready for American kindergarten. So that is another reason for the timing. DH still wants to enrol her here at 3 1/2, but I am resisting. I feel that is just WAY too young for formal education.

I don't have close family or anyone for co-sponsor, which is one of the reasons that I am looking to establish my business in both places almost simultanously. The income guidelines for 3 people aren't that high. And if we have the rental house already, I think/hope we will be alright.

I could totally be wrong here but I don't believe you can file jointly if your husband isn't a USC or doesn't have a visa to live in the US.

Also, they only check your last 3 years (and really only require the previous year) of tax returns.

Indy is right, keep proof of your relationship - trust me, having children isn't always proof enough, as we discovered. But they never once looked at any of our bills, etc.

Check out diveintoamerica, it is very helpful!

Sorry - modified to see what you were asking about changing status, I don't know how this works but Indy is right, the poverty level isn't based on your tax returns but rather on your assets.

My husband and I don't file jointly, as he is a UKC, and they did ask for more evidence and all that was required was 3 notarized affadavits from people who knew us and could vouch for our marriage.

Do all of your 3 older children have US Citizenship? our oldest may want to stay in the UK but we want to apply for him also because he might change his mind once we have moved and he has finished his 6th form or UNI so this is the other reason we want to apply for all of us even if it is just 5 of us moving over I know the other 2 kids want to move over and Oliver doesn't really understand yet.

Indy and Sonya

These are links to poverty guidelines 2008 and injections you might need or proof you have had them.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_1327.html

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_1331.html

Hope this site helps someone we have found it really helpful


Indy

Hi all.  I am confused if you are planning to use assests, do you still need only 125% of the poverty level?

I swear somewhere I saw that you needed 5 times the amount if you were planning on using assests, but am I wrong? 

So for the two of us we only need $17,500? 

I am confused now. Two years ago when we were planning on bringing Paul to the US, there were 3 options:

1) Income greater than 125% of the poverty line...as documented by payslips, bank records & 3 years tax records

2) Savings of 3 or 5 times that amount (I forget which)

3) Co-sponsor, whose income and/or savigs made him/her qualified.

Is that no longer correct? Or does #1 not work for DCF? If I have a business in both the US & UK and its US income exceeds the 125% level, is that not acceptable?

If your continue the work and can show its established and you have proof of the income it generates ie tax/US, bank statements I would assume and what ever else you require state side and it covers the 125% then that will be ok but it MUST continue in the US you can not use anything work or income wise that will NOT continue when you move back to the USA.

Hope this helps you.

By the way how long have you been doing your job?, how does one get trained to become a doula? it is not well known in the UK but Sonya wanted do midwifery but I think something like this would be fantastic for her especially if or when we decided to move back, where would you go to gain qualifications in this either here or in the US? Did you work as one in the US prior to moving to the UK?.

Regards

Indy

Any income that will not continue when you move to the US cannot be used on the I-864 to meet the requirement. If you will do it based on your assets or your spouse's assets and no income (if your income won't continue in the US) then you will need three times the required amount of income, which for  two of you, is around $53,000.

I don't know how you can prove your income will continue in the US if it is your own business.

If you have a house that is worth more than the $53,000 you can get a house appraisal or valuation (is that what it is called here?) done and if it shows that it is worth more then you can use that as your assets

I am just starting my doula/childbirth education business. My plan was to establish it here in the UK this year and next. Then since we have been and will be traveling to the US regularly, I can network with OBs there...and teach classes every time I am there. I specialise in caesarean births...and there is practically no one teaching those classes in either the UK or US.

So right now I go to the US, twice per year. I get about $200/couple. So if I taught two or three weekend classes with 15 couples each, then even after expenses I would make about $4,000 to $5,000. If I begin to show this separately on my taxes as income earned in the US. Then once I have my citizenship, I would make more frequent trips...probably every two or three months. I could not do doula clients except in the country where I am residing of course...unless/until I hire someone. My plan would be to do just that...have a back-up in the US and another in the UK. Then it would be like I had business offices in both countries. Of course it will be an absolute tax nightmare...but I would have an accountant do that anyway. So do you think that in those circumstances the income earned in the US would count? If so then I just have to balance my time so that in the last year, I was certain to earn enough US income.

As for the question of training for doula and/or childbirth educator, neither the UK or to date any US state actually regulates the training of them. There are several US and one UK voluntary professional organisation, most of whom recognise only their specific training programmes. I have actually looked at it quite closely before selecting the course that I am taking. I will be happy to forward the spreadsheet that I made with those...it includes web addy's, cost (from about a year ago), and my individual pros/cons.

The thing is that doulas are neither well-known nor very respected in the UK system. Midwives feel that they are competition...even though their roles are completely different. DH tried to get me to go the midwife route, but I just don't like the business end of birth (...sometimes having to make life and death decisions in seconds). I more enjoy supporting the emotional side and working with new parents to bond with their babies. So I actually realise that marketing of my doula and childbirth education services will be much easier in the US. I am already identifying OBs in the Orlando area and will start networking with them sometime next year. By 2011, after I have my UK citizenship my plan is to be almost 50/50 so I think that we won't have much trouble with the 125% thing for 3 people.

Any big holes with the plan...other than a tanking economy in both countries?

This plan sounds great, I agree with you about this being about supporting the parent through labour and after its great midwives do a hard job but they do not have enough time to stay with the person, Sonya had a fantastic midwife the last time with Oliver and she managed to get through almost the whole thing (until emergency kicked in and she had to be rushed to theatre) with out pain relief she was amazed, I think having confidence in someone to help you through is a great big part of the birth more important than anything really, Sonya said its sounds great, she would be really interested in this as although she is studying with a plan to go into law this sort of work is much more her, and she is on about doing a massage course and all that type of stuff to.

I think your plan could work and if you can put money to one side and save it this will show you have more than enough I would think by the time you apply.

Crazy isn't it really.

Indy

If you PM me, then I will email her the spreadsheet with the training options if you like. Eventually I will be doing training myself, but only continuing education specialising in caesarean births.