Im married to a foreigner who does not have a SSN or ITIN, we are currently in the process of obtaining an Immigrant VISA. Is it absolutely necessary to have an SSN?

[lividchef]

Or an ITIN. Per the IRS, it needs to be mailed in or in person visit, which I am military overseas and cannot visit in person.

[Vanessa A]

Yes, if you are going to try to file a joint return, then your spouse will need to have an ITIN or SSN in order to e-file.  In this situation, your spouse is choosing to be treated as US Resident for tax purposes and will need to include income from all sources worldwide on your return.  To do this, you will need to you will need to print and mail your return along with the W-7 and any other required documents to

IRS

ITIN Operation

P.O. Box 149342

Austin, TX 78714-9342

If you are trying to file as Married Filing Jointly, this year, some people are able to e-file their return.  To do this you will need to type NRA in as your spouses last name.  Make sure you put a check mark in the box that says My spouse is a Non-Resident alien in the My info section. When you get to the end and try to transmit the return, ignore the e-file errors regarding your NRA spouse and select transmit your return.

Foreign Spouse