According to the
IRS, if you are a U.S. citizen or resident alien married to a nonresident
alien (NRA), you are considered “Married Filing
Separately” unless you qualify for a different filing status. (see US Tax Guide for Aliens for
additional information)
So you have three main options for filing:
Since your spouse has not been in the US, if you
file as married filing jointly and your NRA spouse lives outside the US and
meets the Bona
Fide Residence Test, your NRA spouse might be able to claim an IRS
- Foreign Earned Income Exclusion that would exclude a portion of your
NRA spouse's foreign source income (up to $100,800 for 2015). TurboTax will guide you on taking the foreign
earned income exclusion when you enter your NRA spouse's foreign source income
under Federal Taxes> Wages and Income>I'll choose what I work on (or jump
to full list)> Less Common Income (show more)> Foreign Earned Income and
Exclusion
- Option 1 -
Married Filing Separately (includes head of household (HoH), if you have a
"qualified relative"- see US citizens and Resident
Aliens Abroad - Head of Household) and you take no exemption for your NRA spouse
- leave NRA spouse's SSN blank
and print a paper copy of your tax return
- hand-write "NRA"
in all of the places on your tax return that require your NRA spouse's
SSN (IRS - Married Filing
Separately)
- mail in your return (you
will not be able to efile your tax return so choose "file by
mail" in TurboTax)
- mail to IRS address printed
with your return
- Option 2 -
Married Filing Separately (or HoH) and you claim an exemption for your NRA
spouse (You can
claim an exemption for your spouse only if your spouse had no US source
income, isn't filing a US tax return, and isn't the dependent of another
person other than yourself)
- leave NRA spouse's SSN blank
and print a paper copy of your tax return
- apply for NRA spouse’s
Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) using Form
W-7 (Click ITIN)
- mail in your return to the
address below with Form W-7 and supporting documents attached
Option 3 - Married Filing Jointly and you claim
an exemption for your NRA spouse. (your NRA spouse will be treated as a US
resident alien for US tax purposes and all of your spouse's worldwide
income in USD will be subject to taxable as a US citizen or resident
alien. Click here for more information about
Claiming Non-Citizen Spouse and Children On Your Taxes
- leave NRA spouse's SSN blank
and print a paper copy of your tax return
- attach a statement, signed by
both spouses, to your joint return for the first tax year for which the
choice applies (Nonresident
Spouse Treated as a Resident). It should contain the following information:
- A declaration that one
spouse was a non-resident alien and the other spouse a U.S. citizen or
resident alien on the last day of your tax year, and that you choose to
be treated as U.S. residents for the entire tax year.
- The name, address, and
identification number of each spouse.
apply
for NRA spouse’s Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) using Form
W-7 (Click ITIN)
- attach a copy of your Form
W-7 (along with the necessary supporting documents) to your tax return
(For the supporting documents, one option is for your spouse to get a
certified copy of his/her passport which will need to be
included with your tax return filing. Have your NRA spouse check with
his/her local embassy regarding this certified copy) Click here for
IRS website ITIN - Frequently Asked
Questions
- mail your tax return along
with your declaration statement (if filing as married filing jointly),
Form W-7 and supporting documents to the IRS. According to the IRS,
because you are filing your tax return as an attachment to your (ITIN) application, you should not
mail your return to the address listed in the Form 1040, 1040A or 1040EZ
instructions. Instead, send your return, Form W-7 and proof of identity
and foreign status documents to:
Internal Revenue Service
Austin Service Center
ITIN Operation
P.O. Box 149342
Austin, TX 78714-9342
You may also apply using the services of an IRS-authorized Acceptance Agent or visit some key IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center in lieu of mailing your
information to the IRS in Austin
