W9 for US bank - am I a “US person”?

[Mrsjackson 300]

Hello all,

 

Entered US on a K1 in June and married shortly after - now setting up a US bank account while I file for AOS. So US bank gave me a ‘W-9 Request for Taxpayer’ form. On it you need to certify that you are a US citizen or US “person” (as in a resident alien and such). So as someone who entered on a K1 but has not yet gone through the AOS process, am I able to check this box? Under definition it says citizen or resident alien but wouldn’t I still be a nonresident? I just want to be thorough and I don’t want to be checking boxes I have no business checking yet. Thanks! 

[geowrian 22,337]

It is referring to the federal tax return with regards to being a resident alien. As the spouse of a USC, you can typically claim to be a resident alien or non-resident alien on your federal tax return the first year upon arrival (dual status alien, which must elect 1 or the other status upon filing).

After the end of the first tax year, you should meet the physical presence test.

In both cases above, you can be considered a resident alien for tax purposes (which is different than a legal permanent resident / immigration status).

Edited September 12, 2018 by geowrian

[Mrsjackson 300]

51 minutes ago, geowrian said:

It is referring to the federal tax return with regards to being a resident alien. As the spouse of a USC, you can typically claim to be a resident alien or non-resident alien on your federal tax return the first year upon arrival (dual status alien, which must elect 1 or the other status upon filing).

After the end of the first tax year, you should meet the physical presence test.

In both cases above, you can be considered a resident alien for tax purposes (which is different than a legal permanent resident / immigration status).

Okay great, thank you!