Income Taxes

[Kristi.Ohane 0]

I have been told different things by different people. Some say I can file my taxes as single and then amend when my Husband gets here. But some say to file Married and apply for ITIN. I've had bad luck with getting someone to do the ITIN for me. And if I file married separate then I owe money. So what are some of your experiences? Has anyone had any problems? Like did it raise a red flag for you? 

 

Let me tell you about me. I'm a US Citizen, my husband is Moroccan. I petitioned him on I-130 CR1 visa. So it would help if someone can give me a peace of mind. 

[jkstark 97]

You are married, and thus cannot file single (assuming you were married as of Dec 31 of the tax year.)  You can have an ITIN or write in Non-Resident Alien (NRA) for the SSN of your spouse.

 

You cannot file single if you were in fact not single at the end of the tax year, regardless of where your spouse is/was.

[Marzena & Stephen 544]

13 minutes ago, Kristi.Ohane said:

I have been told different things by different people. Some say I can file my taxes as single and then amend when my Husband gets here. But some say to file Married and apply for ITIN. I've had bad luck with getting someone to do the ITIN for me. And if I file married separate then I owe money. So what are some of your experiences? Has anyone had any problems? Like did it raise a red flag for you? 

 

Let me tell you about me. I'm a US Citizen, my husband is Moroccan. I petitioned him on I-130 CR1 visa. So it would help if someone can give me a peace of mind. 

Cant file as single if you are married...The tax rules and exemptions differ for a single person than a married person. 

 

File as either married joint or married seperate.

 

Filing married joint is the best

Filing married separate is the worst tax breaks ever even worse than filing single 

 

Sorry I cant answer your question but ya dont file single 

[Crazy Cat 41,850]

Things to note:

 

1.  If married on Dec 31st, you can not file as "single" for that tax year.

2.  If filing "Married Filing Separately, you can not claim spouse exemption if spouse has no SSN or ITIN.

 

[Going through 5,671]

If you're married every other day of the year no matter where you're located, you're married on tax day too.

[jskibo 588]

why not just file for the 6 month extension and work out the IITN / SSN issue?

[geowrian 22,337]

I'm not sure who is suggesting filing as single and fixing it later...knowingly filing wrong tax returns is never a good idea.

You can do MFS for now and then amend to MFJ later if there's a tax benefit in doing so.

 

1040 instructions for 2017: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040gi.pdf

Page 14, under the MFS section:

"Be sure to enter your spouse's SSN or ITIN on Form 1040. If your spouse doesn't have and isn't required to have an SSN or ITIN, enter “NRA.”"

Edited April 11, 2018 by geowrian

[O&O 330]

48 minutes ago, Kristi.Ohane said:

I have been told different things by different people. Some say I can file my taxes as single and then amend when my Husband gets here. But some say to file Married and apply for ITIN. I've had bad luck with getting someone to do the ITIN for me. And if I file married separate then I owe money. So what are some of your experiences? Has anyone had any problems? Like did it raise a red flag for you? 

 

Let me tell you about me. I'm a US Citizen, my husband is Moroccan. I petitioned him on I-130 CR1 visa. So it would help if someone can give me a peace of mind. 

I am having the same issues..I filed married filing jointly..for spouse ss accountant put "NRA" .IRS rejected it with instruction.a W7 form should be attached to it also they need identification and signature and those forms by my spouse and ITIN.

I was also assigned a temporary number for my spouse from Taxation and Finance. Being that they are two different agency the temporary number cannot used on the 1040

However I had to do amended tax return and change to filing single with explanation .. stating that my spouse is not a citizen or a green card holder .never been to USA still living in is country.. the worst part of it..I will have to pay back irs $1074.. that's my story on this tax issue.

[sarrobo 18]

I had a similar confusion 10 years ago (I was living in the US, husband is Canadian, we were still living apart). The worst part was I called the IRS and they told me to file Single - I remember the guy telling me, "If he's not living with you and your finances aren't combined, then you're single right?" This is WRONG. I only found out a few years later and filed for the ITIN, then I had to go back and amend those previous taxes *eyeroll.*  By filing an extension now and getting an ITIN for your husband, it will help you avoid any potential complications.

[JamesT 12]

I filed as Married filing jointly and had no problems at all.  I sent in the form W-7 along with my form 1040 and the supporting schedules.  I sent a certified copy of my wife's Costa Rican passport and a certified copy of our marriage license as support.   It was approved about 5 weeks later and the supporting documentation was returned by US mail.  About a week after that I received our refund by direct deposit. 

[Kristi.Ohane 0]

10 minutes ago, JamesT said:

I filed as Married filing jointly and had no problems at all.  I sent in the form W-7 along with my form 1040 and the supporting schedules.  I sent a certified copy of my wife's Costa Rican passport and a certified copy of our marriage license as support.   It was approved about 5 weeks later and the supporting documentation was returned by US mail.  About a week after that I received our refund by direct deposit. 

The problem I have is getting a tax person to do a certificate of accuracy for the W7 form. I would amend to married jointly but I’m having troubles with the tax preparers. I could file married separate but that will put me into owing IRS. 

[Kristi.Ohane 0]

44 minutes ago, O&O said:

I am having the same issues..I filed married filing jointly..for spouse ss accountant put "NRA" .IRS rejected it with instruction.a W7 form should be attached to it also they need identification and signature and those forms by my spouse and ITIN.

I was also assigned a temporary number for my spouse from Taxation and Finance. Being that they are two different agency the temporary number cannot used on the 1040

However I had to do amended tax return and change to filing single with explanation .. stating that my spouse is not a citizen or a green card holder .never been to USA still living in is country.. the worst part of it..I will have to pay back irs $1074.. that's my story on this tax issue.

I have filed single already. But wanting to Amend. It’s proving to be difficult. Maybe I should file married separate and when he comes Amend again and file jointly so I don’t have to owe irs 

[Crazy Cat 41,850]

1 minute ago, Kristi.Ohane said:

The problem I have is getting a tax person to do a certificate of accuracy for the W7 form. I would amend to married jointly but I’m having troubles with the tax preparers. I could file married separate but that will put me into owing IRS. 

One thing to remember is that if you file jointly, you MUST report your spouse's worldwide income as well as yours...........

Welcome to the "owe IRS" club.......I know how you feel..

[Kristi.Ohane 0]

2 minutes ago, missileman said:

One thing to remember is that if you file jointly, you MUST report your spouse's worldwide income as well as yours...........

Welcome to the "owe IRS" club.......I know how you feel..

Good thing my husband doesn’t work. But I have an idea on what to do. 

[JamesT 12]

3 minutes ago, Kristi.Ohane said:

I have filed single already. But wanting to Amend. It’s proving to be difficult. Maybe I should file married separate and when he comes Amend again and file jointly so I don’t have to owe irs 

Well if you've already filed single, then you really shouldn't do anything at this point.  Wait until your husband has his visa and is here in the USA, and then you can get a social security number for him.  Then file an amended return married filing jointly, and you won't even have to mess with the ITIN.