topic should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad? in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad?

shafieomer — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 17:02:08 GMT

Re: should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad?

Bsch4477 — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 02:07:18 GMT

No. You have to file married jointly, married separately or if qualified, as Head of Household.

Re: should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad?

SabrinaD2 — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 02:14:41 GMT

In general, if you're a U.S. citizen or resident alien married to a nonresident alien, your default federal tax filing status is Married Filing Separately. However, you have other options if you qualify:

Married Filing Separately: This is the default option if your spouse is a nonresident alien.
Married Filing Jointly: You can choose to treat your nonresident spouse as a U.S. resident for tax purposes. This means both of you will report your worldwide income.
Head of Household: If you qualify, you might be able to use this status. You must pay more than half the cost of maintaining a household for certain dependents or relatives other than your nonresident spouse. Details can be found on the IRS page for Head of Household
Since you are married single is not generally an option

Choosing to file jointly doesn't change your spouse's U.S. immigration status. If you made this choice in a current or prior year and do not change it, it will continue. Filing jointly may entitle you to additional exemptions and higher deductions.

For more information, please see Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Alien

Re: should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad?

shafieomer — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 02:16:13 GMT

thank you for the quick reply,

here's the issue, she lives abroad, never came to US and doesn't have SS#.

That section need me to add her SS#, she won't have one until end of this year when she finally get her visa

Re: should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad?

DawnC — Mon, 03 Mar 2025 02:31:57 GMT

You will have to file by mail - you won't be able to e-file. You can ignore the error as you will be filing by mail. See full instructions in this TurboTax FAQ.

When you get to the “Let’s get ready to e-file” screen, select File by Mail.
TurboTax will continue to give you an error regarding the missing Social Security Number or ITIN for your spouse. Proceed to print with the error but write Nonresident Alien (or the abbreviation “NRA”) in the space for your spouse’s Social Security number before mailing your return.
Mail the return to the address on the instruction sheet that prints with your return.

Re: should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad?

Yalom15 — Sat, 04 Apr 2026 07:03:13 GMT

Hello!

I’ve seen mixed responses for situations similar to this. My husband doesn’t live here, and the ITIN process seems more complex than it should based on all the opinions I’ve asked. We are in the immigration process and my lawyer has recommended I amended my taxes as I filed as single since we never had an ITIN for my husband.
Do you recommend I submit an amendment via mail too?
I also read there is a possibility that he will be denied the ITIN because he may be considered elegible to obtain a SSN at any time in the process so asking for the ITIN may seem as an unnecessary task.

Can you please advise?

Re: should I file as single if I'm married to a non-US citizen who lives abroad?

ThomasM125 — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 19:10:58 GMT

Yes, you should amend your return to change your filing status to married-filing separately or Head of Household if you qualify for that. It may result in you owing taxes as there are different tax rules for different filing statuses. If you file as married-joint, you would need a tax identification number for your spouse. I can't advise you on the process of waiting on acquiring a tax ID number as opposed to a social security number, accept to say it would be best to amend your return before the IRS makes an inquiry regarding that.