Married foreign spouse in 2022. She does not live in the US.

Forum|Forum|3 years ago
January 20, 2023
5 replies
7 views

Hi,

I am a US citizen with a full-time job. My spouse has a low-income job in Iran. In early 2022, we got married and she hasn’t been to the US yet. After our marriage, we applied for a spouse visa so she can immigrate to the United States and live here with me. Her case is currently at the National Visa Center awaiting for the final interview.

Which filing status should I file in order to lower my taxes and to increase my refund? My spouse does not have an SSN. Does she need to apply for an ITIN? Is she required to send any documents to the IRS? There is no postal service nor diplomatic relationship between the US and Iran.

thank you

Not A Product Question

Anonymous_

Level 15

Check back later. I will page Champ @pk12_2.

ThomasM125

Level 15

Your choice of filing status is limited since you are married. Thus, you cannot file as single, you will either be married filing jointly, married filed separately or potentially head of household, depending on your income and dependents you support.

You would have to prepare your tax return using each of the allowable filing statuses to see which is best. Your spouse would need an ITIN if you want to file your tax return electronically.

If you file married joint, you would have to include your spouse's income on your tax return. You will also need to attach an election to your tax return that your spouse is agreeing to be taxed on their worldwide income. Here is an excerpt from the IRS on how to do that:

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bgolshaniAuthor

Level 2

Thank you. In order to process an ITIN, she needs to either send her original passport to the IRS or a certified copy.
The original document is too risky to send between countries which have no postal service. How can she get a certified copy in a country which does not speak English as a primary language?

DavidD66

Level 15

Since you were married on December 31 you have to file as MFJ or MFS. As a US Citizen or a Resident Alien, you have two choices in filing your taxes.

Option 1

Treat your spouse as resident alien for tax purposes. If you do this, you will need to include your spouse's worldwide income in your US tax return and it will be subject to US taxes. To do this follow these steps.

Attach a statement to your tax return, signed by both spouses, that states that one spouse is a nonresident alien and the other is a U.S. citizen or resident alien, and you are choosing to both be treated as US residents for the tax year.
List the name, address and Social Security number (or Individual Taxpayer Identification number) of each spouse. If your spouse has a social security number you will use it. If not, you will need to apply for a number using Form SS-5. If your spouse is not eligible to apply for a Social Security number, complete a Form W-7, Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) (http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw7.pdf). This form will be attached to your tax return. Turbo Tax does not support the Form W-7. You can complete it outside of Turbo Tax. You will have to print, sign and mail your return in if you are using Form W-7.
For the first year you make the choice, you have to file a joint return. In later years you can file joint or separate returns. Married Filing Jointly will give you a higher standard deduction and has other benefits that are not available using a married filing separately status, but you do have to include your spouse’s worldwide income in joint income.

Option 2

Treat your spouse as a nonresident alien for tax purposes. You will not have to include your spouse’s non-US income on your U.S. tax return. You will have to use the filing status of Married Filing Separately.

https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Nonresident-Spouse-Treated-as-a-Resident

If everyone on the tax return has a social security number or ITIN, you should mail your return to the address listed in the 1040 instructions. Tax returns with a Form W-7 should be mailed to the Austin TX address.

A tax return accompanied by one or more W-7 forms cannot be submitted electronically. You can submit it in person at any IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center that performs in-person document reviews; most major cities have such assistance centers, and there is at least one center in every state.

You can also submit tax returns with W-7 forms by mail to:

Internal Revenue Service
ITIN Operation
P.O. Box 149342
Austin, TX 78714-9342

According to the IRS, it takes 6 to 10 weeks to obtain an ITIN. An ITIN will expire at the end of the year if it is not used on a federal tax return in the last 3 years.

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