Form W7

[resasa711]

My wife entered the USA twice with a J2 visa.

First trip: October 2018 to July 2020 (with the old passport)

Second trip: September 2023 until now (with the new passport)

She is going to file a W7 form for the 2020 tax year regarding her first trip to the USA. There are a few questions:

Question 1: Which visa information should she report? The first visa or the second visa for the following section:

6c Type of U.S. visa (if any), number, and expiration date

Question 2: which visa information should be reported for the following sections?

Issued by: No.: Exp. date: / / Date of entry into the United States (MM/DD/YYYY)

Question 3: Which passport should be mailed to the IRS? The old passport or the new passport?

Question 4: If the federal tax form is mailed to the first address along with the W7 form (based on the Instructions for Form W-7), is it necessary to mail it again to the second address suggested by Turbotex?

First Address:

Internal Revenue Service
ITIN Operation
P.O. Box 149342
Austin, TX [removed]

Sconde Address:

Department of the Treasury
| Internal Revenue Service
| Kansas City, MO [removed]

[SusanY1 · Accepted solution]

You should enter the visa information for the visa upon which she entered for her current stay in the US for all of the visa related questions.  

You will send her current, valid, unexpired passport.  

You will mail the return only to the Austin, TX address on the W7 instructions.  The ITIN office will then apply the ITIN to the tax return and forward it for processing. 

 

[resasa711]

Thank you for providing valuable information.

My wife plans to file a W-7 form for her 2020 taxes related to her first visa and her first trip.

Would her new visa (second visa) be misleading for the IRS?

[SusanY1 · Accepted solution]

No, it won't be misleading.  The form W-7 is interested in her current status and identity, so they want the most recent information to issue the ITIN, no matter which year's tax return is being filed.  

 

[resasa711]

Does my wife need to file form 8843 as well, while she plans to file her taxes with me as a joint and mail form w7 as well.
My wife has no income in 2020.

[SusanY1]

I can't think of any reason why she needs to file Form 8843 (but I don't know your full situation, of course, either).

To get an ITIN she just needs to show that she has a reason to have one, and a requirement to file a tax return is a reason to receive the number.  (or an election to file, as in the case of filing jointly with a resident spouse.)

Form 8843 is for instances when a taxpayer needs an exception for excluding days spent in the US for purposes of the substantial presence test.  This is generally done when trying to claim that you are not a resident for tax purposes, and it sounds like your wife is doing the opposite. 

She does not have to meet the substantial presence test at all when filing a joint return with you.   Form 8843 is not applicable to tax residents, resident aliens, or US citizens.  

[resasa711]

I am a J1 holder and my wife is a J2 holder. Based on the substantial presence test, I am considered a resident for tax purposes, so Sprintex has advised me to file my taxes with TurboTax.

I need to mention that I have a social security number, but my wife does not have a social security or ITIN  and is unemployed. That's why my wife wants to receive an ITIN.