Lawyer Huang Huili’s legal mailbox (14)

Lawyer Huang Huili’s legal mailbox (14) 1. I have been divorced in New York and pay several thousand dollars in alimony every year. Can I use my children to reduce taxes? Answer: Each...

> Lawyer Huang Huili’s legal mailbox (14) 1. I have been divorced in New York and pay several thousand dollars in alimony every year. Can I use my children to reduce taxes? Answer: The laws regarding child custody vary from state to state, but the differences are not huge. Some Chinese parents simply speculate that by paying thousands of dollars in child support every year, they can use their children to reduce taxes. This is not the case. It is hard to believe the fact that the parent who pays all child support is not tax deductible, while the parent who receives child support is not taxed. This matter should be brought up when discussing a child custody agreement, including how the custody agreement is structured and who will receive the child tax benefits. At the same time, whether to raise children will also directly affect your tax filing status. Filing as head of household, married but filing separately, or single filing will all have an important impact on the overall tax. If your child custody agreement is for joint custody, the agreement must state who has 50% custody at the time. For example, if you have two children, you can write them as one child, and both parties can become heads of households. Divorced couples can also share custody. One of them lives in the original house, but they can still put it in writing so that the other party can also use the owner status to deduct taxes. Many tax benefits depend on the income level of the guardian and whether the tax benefits can be claimed for custodial children. Therefore, both parties should fully negotiate and consider everything to maximize tax benefits. Child custody agreements can have implications for your tax return and your tax affairs as a whole. Therefore, before discussing child custody and divorce agreements, you should carefully consider or consult with a lawyer or accountant, and do not wait until the final agreement is signed before going to court to ask the judge to modify it. 2. I heard that there have been some changes recently and it has become more difficult to apply for a work visa. What are the changes? Answer: Current immigration laws stipulate that employers need an LCA approved by the Department of Labor before they can submit an H1B application. The following important changes are proposed by the Ministry of Labor on July 9. The final version may take effect after September 7, 2012. Currently, LCA does not require employers to provide employees’ identifying information. The new form will ask for employee names and other identifying information, and will also require employers to provide the number of PERM labor certification applications that are pending at the time. The Department of Labor will assign employees a unique identification number. The LCA can declare up to ten employees, but each person must provide identifying information. The new form has more detailed information requirements for work location. The new form requires indicating the type of workplace. The same item on the form will also ask if this is a real job opportunity. The new form provides more detailed information on the source of the prevailing wage in H1B applications. Employers must indicate the source of the wage rate and provide more detailed information. The current LCA requires employers classified as H1B dependent based on the number of H1B employees among their total employees to provide additional certification. Such employers must demonstrate actual efforts to recruit U.S. employees; one exception is when the LCA is for employees whose salary is $60,000 or more or who have a job-related master's degree or above. This is not required. If the employer is H1B dependent but requests a waiver from certain hiring requirements when filing, the new form requires an indication of whether the waiver is based on the salary offered or the employee’s academic qualifications or both. If an H1B-dependent employer applies for employees who neither meet the annual salary of $60,000 nor have a relevant master's degree or above, there will be more problems in recruiting American employees. Employers that rely heavily on H-1B workers must demonstrate the methods used to recruit U.S. workers and provide further evidence that such recruitment was unsuccessful.