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How do File my Taxes if I am Married to Non-resident Alien

 
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2 Replies

How do File my Taxes if I am Married to Non-resident Alien

If you are a US citizen or US resident and your spouse does not have a Social Security number or an ITIN and you are not applying for an ITIN with the tax return then you can only file your tax return as Married Filing Separately.  Where asked to enter the spouse's Social Security number enter 999-88-9999.  You can only print and mail your tax return, it cannot be e-filed.  When you print the tax return erase the Social Security number for your spouse and manually enter NRA for non-resident alien.

See this TurboTax support FAQ for the procedure to print and mail a tax return using the online editions - https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1944348-how-do-i-print-and-mail-my-return-in-turbotax-online

 

If you decide to file your tax return as Married Filing Jointly you must apply for an ITIN with the tax return and you would need to be providing a statement with your tax return that you want your Nonresident Alien Spouse Treated as a Resident.  See IRS Publication 54 Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad page 9 - https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p54.pdf

Go to this IRS website for ITIN information - https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/general-itin-information

KrisD15
Employee Tax Expert

How do File my Taxes if I am Married to Non-resident Alien

You can file Married Filing Separately, Married Filing Jointly, or in only certain situations, Head of Household. 

 

If you AND YOUR SPOUSE elect to both be treated as "Residents for tax filing purposes" you can elect that option. If you do elect that option, you must file Married Filing Jointly on Form 1040 the year you make the election

You will be taxed on the world-wide income of you both.

You may be allowed a Foreign Tax Credit or the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. 

Once the election is made, it is valid until the election is suspended or revoked.

If revoked, it is no longer available to that non-resident alien. 

 

In TurboTax, please follow these steps if you both decide to make the election and treat the non-resident spouse as a resident for tax filing purposes:

 

  1. Prepare the return in the software
  2. Select “Spouse is a nonresident alien or dual-status alien spouse” and then select to make the election
  3. Use the ITIN for the nonresident if applicable. If no ITIN, use 999-88-9999 and erase after printing
  4. Enter worldwide income for both spouses
  5. Select “Foreign Taxes” under “Deductions and Credits” “Estimates and Other Taxes Paid”
  6. Continue through the interview for the credit or deduction
  7. Select “File by Mail” and print the return
  8. Both sign statement provided by TurboTax software
  9. IF ITIN used, mail tax return and statement to address indicated on TurboTax instruction sheet
  10. IF NO ITIN, white-out the bogus SS#, include W-7 Mail package to the address indicated on W-7 instructions (Austin, TX)

 

@cheickdia96

 

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