Advice needed: Amex Plat app hit with 4506T but no tax files

[Anonymous]

It was all going so well...  I just hit 6-months of credit history, got 3CCs over this period (Discovery IT/$1000, Amex Gold, BoA Cash rewards/$6600) and, armed with my brand new FICO8 scores of 720 - 726 across CRAs got overconfident and applied for the Amex Platinum yesterday.

Then, bam, no auto-approval and a subsequent request for 4506T to proceed with the application. My problem is, as I am new to the US, I have never filed taxes and so obviously filing a 4506T would not help. My stated income of $120k is legit (in fact, low, as I have not included P2) but it's global income, not US-sourced as I am here on an international placement at a major US university for my overseas employer (exchange visa). Still, it is income "available to me" and when US tax filing season comes it is worldwide income that counts. However, that also means I would not have W2 pay stubs to show in the meantime. Our US checking account would show turnover of $10k+ per month, with international transfers as income.

Is there anything I can do to keep out of trouble with Amex? My priorities are:

1. Avoid shutdown of the Amex Gold that I already have

2. Being able to apply for future Amex cards without hitting the same snag.

3. Getting the Amex Plat in the end, though not ruining my current/future Amex relationship is more important.

My options would seem to be:

1. Filing the 4506T even though it will be returned "empty"

2. Ignoring the request and letting the application lapse

3. Withdrawing the pending application

4 Trying to talk to some human at Amex, but I really do not want to raise any further red flags given my unusual circumstances.

I feel really stupid to have applied now...  Any kind advice out there?

[CreditInspired]

Just ignore the request. IMHO, nothing bad will happen. However, when you apply again or even for a CLI, 9 times out of 10, there will be another 4506T request.

[CreditCuriosity]

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@CreditInspired wrote:
Just ignore the request. IMHO, nothing bad will happen. However, when you apply again or even for a CLI, 9 times out of 10, there will be another 4506T request.

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+1 should be fine on your current card, but any future cards or CLI's will be hit with the same request most likely.  Hopefully once you file this next years (assume you will) you can then provide them with this information around june/july next year when available to them

[Anonymous]

Thanks. Should I mention that I am unable to fulfill the request because of short history in the US though? There's a small chance they'd let it pass? Or is it better not to open a can of worms...

[CreditInspired]

IMHO, I would leave it alone. I wouldn’t poke the bear. But that’s me.

[Blodreina]

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@CreditInspired wrote:
Just ignore the request. IMHO, nothing bad will happen. However, when you apply again or even for a CLI, 9 times out of 10, there will be another 4506T request.

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I recently had a 4506t request on a cli.  I ignored it and started the cli request over again, lowering what I asked for.  I after 2 tries, I got a lower amount approved instantly.

[CreditInspired]

@Bloodreina

You’re correct. The same thing happened to me and I forgot about that. Thanks for the reminder.

[Anonymous]

Thanks. This is not the same s a CLI on an existing card though. It is for an initial application for a charge card, so there is nothing to reduce. I worry that any future Amex applications will be stopped in its tracks on the same basis until and unless I get the tax papers sorted irrespective of the strength of my credit history.

[AverageJoesCredit]

If you are getting this request at begining of an app, something isnt matching up for them on their end so i would expect you will see this on any future apps until they get what they want that satisfies their need.

[SBR249]

I'm not a tax lawyer but I'm curious, are you a US citizen? Only US citizens and permanent residents are generally required to report and file taxes for worldwide income. If you are here on an exchange as a student, it's unlikely that you would fall into the category where you would be taxed on non-US sources of income. 

In this case, you can either ignore the 4506T request and let things blow over or you can call up AmEx, explain your situation, and ask if there's any other way you can provide acceptable proof of income or ability to repay. The former is certainly easier but there's nothing wrong with the latter approach either.