Income tax joint/separately ı-130 form

[fitleo 15]

Hi again everyone.

I just saw income tax as a proof of marriage.

We married last year but since husband is not in the us, doesn't work for a us company, and hasn't been in the us for the past 6 years, etc I did not include him in my tax returns.

What makes matters worse is that I just found out that this year's income tax filed by my accountant had me as single!

I paid my bills though. What to do?

Can this be fixed? Do I include my taxes?

Thx

[arken 4,197]

You can easily fix it by amending your tax return from Single to Married Filing Separately. More specifically, don't use that accountant ever again.

[Russ&Caro 1,549]

You can easily fix it by amending your tax return from Single to Married Filing Separately. More specifically, don't use that accountant ever again.

I echo arken's evaluation about your accountant. Also, you will probably gain a further tax advantage by filing as Married Filing Jointly (MFJ) instead of MFS. To qualify for MFJ your husband needs to have either a Tax ID or an SSN, which he might not have depending on where you are in your immigration journey. The details of filing are contained here:

https://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Nonresident-Spouse-Treated-as-a-Resident

You have up to 3 years to amend the return and gain a refund for the more tax advantageous filing.

I filed both the original return and amended return myself. Others have too. On the other hand, some tax professionals who participate in this forum suggest you seek professional tax advice. Obviously, if or when you choose your next accountant, you'll want to make sure they are aware of the rules governing nonresident spouse treated as a resident. If they don't, then you'll want to move on to an accountant that does know these rules.

Good luck!

[fitleo 15]

Thank you so much guys.

Since I want to file asap, should I not submit my income tax return whole start on amending mine?

Furthermore, I read on irs site that my husband would be a non resident spouse and therfore married filing separately is the better choice.

As far as ssn, he did have one when he studied and lived in the us, is it still valid? Or I have to get him an ITIN? Will his old ssn be functioning again upon entry?

Thx again!

[arken 4,197]

Provided you have lots of other evidences of bonafide marriage, you may elect not to submit the tax return document for i-130 phase if you don't wanna wait for amendment processing. However you should definitely amend your tax return.

If he already has a SSN, you can amend for Married Filing Jointly then (ITIN is for those who can't get SSN) as suggested by Russ&Caro. You need to include your spouse's worldwide income if you go for joint filing.

[Ryan H 3,812]

Moved from Progress Reports to Process & Procedures.

[Ryan H 3,812]

~~~Hijack post removed; please start your own thread with your own questions.~~~