Spouse Still in a Foreign Country?

[billrussell 0]

I have a Thai Wife and am waiting for the interview in Bangkok.

As I was married in 2004, I filed my taxes listing her as a wife.

Received the usual denial saying I needed a notarized copy of her passport. She went to the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, had it notarized ($40U.S.$) and fed Ex'd it to me.

Filed the documents, and in September, rather than paying $200 in taxes, I received a refund of $750.

It works well...

Edited November 15, 2006 by billrussell

[lucyrich 20]

Another twist that comes up every time this subject is discussed: If you are legally married, you are no longer legally eligible for a filing status of "single" on your tax returns, regardless of where your spouse lives or what his/her immigration status is. Typically, your only choices are to file as "Married filing jointly", or "Married filing separately". A few may qualify as "head of household". Note that you'll probably eventually have to show your tax returns to the USCIS, so don't get yourself in a situation where you would have to explain a "single" tax return when you're trying to demonstrate to the USCIS that you are a bona fide married couple. It could get you into trouble with both the IRS and the USCIS.

Filing as "married filing separately" is quite a bit more expensive than filing as "single" in many situations. Welcome to the marriage penalty that politicians talk about. But if your spouse has little income subject to US taxation, either because he/she doesn't make much, or because it's foreign income that can be excluded, then filing a joint return is probably a significant saving over a separate return.

As always, run the numbers yourself and/or seek competent professional advice for your own personal situation.