2009 AOS filers and tax returns with their spouses

[lovelyalex 99]

Apologies in advance guys but I cannot get the search function to work at all since they upgraded VJ. I need some help!

I am trying to file my husband (and mine I guess) taxes for 2009. According to the IRS, as we 'currently married' as at 31 December 2009, (we actually married in early Sept 09) they consider him married.

I didn't come to the US until the 3rd Sept, and didn't get my PR status until 1st March this year. Can we still file jointly?

I'm trying to do it via Turbo Tax and they want to know what date I became a resident of NH. Do I put 3rd Sept in? (I cannot put the 1st March in as its not the current year)

Should we consider paper filing rather than doing this online? Was I technically a resident alien for 2009 and thus we should be filing differently?

Should we throw in the towel and file his taxes as single or married filing separately (which then invalidates various tax deductibles, like his student loan interest)

What is the best way to proceed?

[DaniG 3]

Apologies in advance guys but I cannot get the search function to work at all since they upgraded VJ. I need some help!

I am trying to file my husband (and mine I guess) taxes for 2009. According to the IRS, as we 'currently married' as at 31 December 2009, (we actually married in early Sept 09) they consider him married.

I didn't come to the US until the 3rd Sept, and didn't get my PR status until 1st March this year. Can we still file jointly?

I'm trying to do it via Turbo Tax and they want to know what date I became a resident of NH. Do I put 3rd Sept in? (I cannot put the 1st March in as its not the current year)

Should we consider paper filing rather than doing this online? Was I technically a resident alien for 2009 and thus we should be filing differently?

Should we throw in the towel and file his taxes as single or married filing separately (which then invalidates various tax deductibles, like his student loan interest)

What is the best way to proceed?

The term "resident" has a different meaning in a state tax return than it does for immigration purposes. For the tax return it is defined in one of the first pages of the instructions for the state 1040 form. But in general, you become a resident of the state if and when you move your primary residence there, even though for immigration purposes you are still an alien. Read the instructions for your exact state to be 100% sure though.

[Laura & Kyle 16]

From what I read, the turbotax online cannot do the "first" year of being a resident online. The reason is because you have to sign a "declaration" saying that you want to treat the non-citizen as a US resident in our cases... You also will be filling out form 2555. I worked all last sunday on the taxes and had headaches from trying to do it online on turbo tax and hrblock until I found a thread on here that said the first year you cannot do it online as you have to send in the declaration. Next year shouldn't be a problem. If i can find that thread link i'll send it to you.

laura

link to tax info while doing aos

yay!

Edited March 21, 2010 by laura and kyle

[lovelyalex 99]

Well I went over Turbo Tax with a fine tooth comb and answered the questions honestly and it let us file married filing jointly, with all my information and such like, SSN etc, the date I arrived etc.... and I checked it this morning and our return has been approved. I didn't have any income in the UK because I was on maternity leave anyway. I did read up on the IRS website (in particular the Pub 519) that we can elect to have me treated as a USC for tax purposes, even if I was technically a resident alien or a non resident alien etc. And it isn't like we aren't going to be filing together next year and so on and so on. So, it looks alright.

*shrugs* I don't want to think about it to much anymore to be honest, it makes me nervous!

[Laura & Kyle 16]

Awesome, lovelyalex! I will definitely be pm'ing you with a couple of questions if you don't mind.

[lovelyalex 99]

sure not at all Laura. I am now waiting long enough so I can check the status of my return on the IRS refund status web page... eek!

https://sa1.www4.irs.gov/irfof/lang/en/irfofgetstatus.jsp