Will be legally married late 2020. Can i file taxes jointly?

[baze92 33]

Hey all.

 

My Fiance and are I planning to get legally married late this year (we will have the wedding with guests probably 2021). For those of you who have been in this situation, can i file jointly for 2020 taxes next year? What are the laws regarding filing jointly when marrying a foreigner? Is it not possible until they get the green card?

 

Additionally, if I am able to file jointly before she gets her green card, do we have to be married for majority of the year (we wouldn't get married until sep/oct).

 

Thanks!

[Just Paul 4,595]

For 2020 you can file taxes and it can be jointly if she has a SSN.   Get the SSN as soon as she arrives.

 

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[Crazy Cat 41,844]

You can file jointly for tax year 2020 if your spouse has a Social Security number or an ITIN.......Marriage must take place on or before Dec 31, 2020......

[Just Paul 4,595]

Look at this thread:  

 

 

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[baze92 33]

Thank you all! 

Trump just added more bad news to the mix. If I file jointly I won't get my $1200 stimulus check credit (Didn't get it this year because I have not filed 2019 taxes yet and 2018 income was too high).

[Just Paul 4,595]

6 minutes ago, baze92 said:

Trump just added more bad news to the mix. If I file jointly I won't get my $1200 stimulus check credit (Didn't get it this year because I have not filed 2019 taxes yet and 2018 income was too high).

File 2019 and you can get it based on income.   Otherwise if you spouse has a ssn, and depending on income, you can take the credit X 2 on 2020.

[baze92 33]

Do you know if I can still get it if I file 2019 taxes? I was under the impression it's too late to do so. 

Also - according to this article  I can no longer get the $1200 tax credit for 2020 if I file jointly with my (immigrant) wife.

[Just Paul 4,595]

4 minutes ago, baze92 said:

Do you know if I can still get it if I file 2019 taxes? I was under the impression it's too late to do so. 

Probably.   My wife e-filed on 4/6 and got a $1200 deposit on last tuesday.  She hasn't gotten her $800 refund yet.  We file separately.

5 minutes ago, baze92 said:

Also - according to this article  I can no longer get the $1200 tax credit for 2020 if I file jointly with my (immigrant) wife.

She has to have a ssn for both of you to get a credit if you file jointly.   (It is in the last sentence of the first paragraph)  Also the author is an idiot as you can not file jointly without both having a SSN (or ITIN).

 

It is possible for you to get it based on 2019 and her on 2020 

[baze92 33]

Ahhh good find. So as long as she has a ssn (which she will once married), we should get the credit

[Just Paul 4,595]

8 minutes ago, baze92 said:

Ahhh good find. So as long as she has a ssn (which she will once married), we should get the credit

DO NOT WAIT until getting married before getting the ssn. Go to the SSA Office.  Get it in the first two weeks of being here.  Absolutely get it done. If will save tons of hassle later.

[baze92 33]

Ok thanks we will do that! I didn’t realize that was possible. 
 

So as long as my wife has a Ssn by end of 2020, she should get the  $1200 stimulus as well?

Edited April 23, 2020 by baze92

[baze92 33]

Actually she already has a ssn from when she worked at Disneyland for 3 months, 4 years ago. So I will have to do some research if we will need to do anything regarding that..

[Just Paul 4,595]

19 minutes ago, baze92 said:

she should get the  $1200 stimulus as well?

Yes, she just needs to file tax year 2020.  Technically it will be a credit on the return.  Cash is only based on the later of 2018 or 2019 returns filed.

[Wuozopo 4,293]

10 hours ago, baze92 said:

Additionally, if I am able to file jointly before she gets her green card, do we have to be married for majority of the year (we wouldn't get married until sep/oct).

 You can get married on New Years Eve and just be married a few hours in 2020 and file a joint return.  It’s your marital status on the last day of the year. 

[scudderb56 2]

14 hours ago, baze92 said:

Hey all.

 

My Fiance and are I planning to get legally married late this year (we will have the wedding with guests probably 2021). For those of you who have been in this situation, can i file jointly for 2020 taxes next year? What are the laws regarding filing jointly when marrying a foreigner? Is it not possible until they get the green card?

 

Additionally, if I am able to file jointly before she gets her green card, do we have to be married for majority of the year (we wouldn't get married until sep/oct).

 

Thanks!

I had the same question, only we were married February 2019. In order to file jointly I had fill out a form W-7(a form requesting a temporary tax identification number), submit a document stating why your spouse needs a temporary tax identification number, and send all of your tax papers to the IRS Austin Service Center as they are the office that handles temporary tax identification numbers. You can google IRS Austin Service Center to get the address. 
You can go to IRS.gov and find what you need.

Edited April 24, 2020 by scudderb56