Tax Return - What Income to claim

[~Hot Mama~ 3]

My husband entered the United States on December 4th and was issued a SSN in December. He worked overseas for the first half of the year.

Being that he was only here in the USA for about 3 weeks I am so confused about how we should file. Married seperatly, Married Joint, or do I still qualify for Head of Household since he was not here the majority of the year? I read that if they are a "US Citizen" you must claim them... Being that he entered only on a 1 year conditional visa does that make him not a us citizen??

Is there a certain amount of time that they need to be here before being required to claim them and their overseas income? (Obviously I dont want to claim his overseas income unless I have to)

Anyone have any info? Any links to sites that cover this topic? IRS website has too much stuff to find exactly what is related to my situation.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

My husband entered the United States on December 4th and was issued a SSN in December. He worked overseas for the first half of the year.

Being that he was only here in the USA for about 3 weeks I am so confused about how we should file. Married seperatly, Married Joint, or do I still qualify for Head of Household since he was not here the majority of the year? I read that if they are a "US Citizen" you must claim them... Being that he entered only on a 1 year conditional visa does that make him not a us citizen??

Is there a certain amount of time that they need to be here before being required to claim them and their overseas income? (Obviously I dont want to claim his overseas income unless I have to)

Anyone have any info? Any links to sites that cover this topic? IRS website has too much stuff to find exactly what is related to my situation.

You can elect to treat him as a US Resident for the entire year, and file jointly. You have to declare his worldwide income, or you can file Married, filing separately. He will need to do the residency tests to find out his filing status. You still may be able to file as head of household.

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/0,,id=96370,00.html

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

If you filed for a spousal visa like your timeline says, you husband is not here on a 1 year temporary visa. He is a permanent resident of the US. You will file to remove conditions in 2 years, not 1, but his status is still Permanent Resident. He doesn't have a visa anymore - he has a Greencard.

He is definitely NOT a US Citizen. Please understand this, because misunderstanding this can lead to trouble. If he, for instance, falsely claimed to be a US Citizen, he could be banned from the US for life. He is a permanent Resident.

All US people, even illegal aliens, must file tax returns. It is not just for US Citizens. A Permanent Resident must definitely file a tax return in order to keep their status. It will also serve you well for proof of a bona fide marriage for when you remove conditions in two years.

If I were you, I would work out a couple of scenarios and see what is better. I would file married filing jointly and choose to treat him as a resident for the whole of last year (that is an option). You would report his foreign income. You probably won't pay any additional tax, unless he made something like $90,000 for the year. I think there is another option to treat him as a resident for a part of a year. You will see instructions for this option too if I remember correctly). Figure out which is best. I think that treating him as a resident for the whole year should be the best, and you will probably see you refund increase or your tax owed decrease by about $3000, give or take. Good luck, and yes, file a tax return.

[jkelly07 120]

if your married then you file your taxes as married,your foriegn spouse don't have to be working,to file jointly,down load from the IRS.GOV forms w-7 that will give you a itin number for your wife to file the income return, let her down load the form sign it an date send it to you youfill it out sign it have it notorized, you need your marriage certificate, copy of your us passport,your I.D send the w-7 form to austin tx only thats the department that handles the w-7 call this number for more information, 1-800-908-9982 about filing your returns.also you should file amend irs form,4868 it gets you a 6 month extension until oct 15 to file your taxes buy that time you should have your itin number to put on the tax return, it's a better refund as married file jointly, good luck.

[~Hot Mama~ 3]

OK... We have a SS number for him that was issued in december of 2011. So I dont think I will need to file for an ITIN because we have a social right??

We do not have his green card yet as it has not been issued as of today. All we have is his visa and his entry stamp. This is where my confusion lies. Since we do not have an actual green card but we do have a social I am so confused. Also since he was not in the US for 30 days I do not know if we consider him as a resident or not.

Yes it is a spousal visa and we were married Feb 2011. Filed all paperwork immediately and were finally interviewed nov 28th 2011. Entry was Dec. 4th 2011. He never worked in the USA.

Any info will be greatly appreciated! Anyone know a tax professional in Columbus Ohio who is familiar with these situations???

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

OK... We have a SS number for him that was issued in december of 2011. So I dont think I will need to file for an ITIN because we have a social right??

We do not have his green card yet as it has not been issued as of today. All we have is his visa and his entry stamp. This is where my confusion lies. Since we do not have an actual green card but we do have a social I am so confused. Also since he was not in the US for 30 days I do not know if we consider him as a resident or not.

Yes it is a spousal visa and we were married Feb 2011. Filed all paperwork immediately and were finally interviewed nov 28th 2011. Entry was Dec. 4th 2011. He never worked in the USA.

Any info will be greatly appreciated! Anyone know a tax professional in Columbus Ohio who is familiar with these situations???

You can definitely file married filing jointly for 2011. That would be the easiest. While this is common place here, not all tax professionals will be familiar with how to do this. Make the election to treat him as a resident for the entire year. Report his worldwide income. File Form 2555 -- Exclusion of Foreign Income.

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/0,,id=96370,00.html

Edited January 28, 2012 by ☼

[~Hot Mama~ 3]

Thanks for your help! I will research some of these links too. I just do not want to make any mistakes when it comes to these types of things. The last thing I need is a tax auditor showing up at my door lol.