Hello cmartinez86. Thanks for joining our event today.
If you are married you cannot file as single. You can file married jointly, married separately, or in some cases head of household. It is true that in order to use married filing jointly you have to elect to have your spouse treated as a resident for tax purposes. This means that all her income worldwide will be subject to US tax, but you should also be able to claim a credit for foreign tax paid. Depending on the tax rate where she lives that could significantly reduce, or even eliminate the taxes you owe here. And you would still be able to retain the benefits of a joint return.
You can also file married separately, and you are correct that you would not need to report any of her income. But be aware that many credits aren't available with this filing status, and you tax rate may be higher. You can find more info here.
If you have a qualifying child, you may be able to file head of household, regardless of whether that child is a us citizen.
You should be able to efile with your spouse's ssn.
Here is some further helpful information.
