Can I claim my fiance for 2016 if he arrives in December

[svetaigor 0]

Hello,

My fiance (K1 visa) arrives on December 30. We are planning to marry in January 2017. Can I claim him for 2016?

Thank you.

[Merrytooth 5,748]

How do you planning to claim your fiance for taxes 2016 if you are not married by 2016?

Edited December 9, 2016 by Merrytooth

[svetaigor 0]

As a dependent. I myself came to the US 20 years ago on K1 visa and remember that my husband to be insisted on me coming before the end of the year. I called him yesterday to verify why did he insisted. He said that back in 1998 he was able to claim me as dependent even if I would arrive to the US 1 hour before the end of the year. I'm just wondering if the rules changed.

[Merrytooth 5,748]

Go read these:

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Family/Can-I-Claim-a-Boyfriend-Girlfriend-As-a-Dependent-on-Income-Taxes--/INF14242.html

IRS definition of qualifying relatives:

https://www.irs.gov/publications/p17/ch03.html#en_US_2015_publink1000170933

The IRS website offers an online "assistant" that can help you determine whether your boyfriend or girlfriend qualifies as a dependent.

https://www.irs.gov/uac/who-can-i-claim-as-a-dependent

[JimJesDuma 472]

You will need a social security number or ITIN to have someone on your taxes.

You have to be married by 12/31/2016 Midnight in order to file married filing joint.

If you don't have their SSN at that time you can file single and amend to joint return later in 2017.

Jim

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

If you have a civil wedding be married for the year. You must also consider their out of the US income in determining if you provided more than half their support for the year

[KayDeeCee 4,891]

They won't qualify as a dependent. You could file married jointly if you marry in 2016, but a spouse is never claimed as a dependent. Since you are not going to marry until 2017, then you will not claim them at all on your 2016 taxes, and will be filing married jointly next year.

~ Moved from K-1 Process to Tax & Finances During US Immigration- topic is filing taxes ~

[f f 725]

for a non resident child to be claimed as a dependent they must be present in the us for 180 days. slightly less if they were present for the years before. I would tend to think it would be easier to claim a child than a person you claim your going to marry.

best bet is to get a court wedding before the end of the year if you want to save money on taxes.

[Rc123rc 528]

A spouse cannot be a dependent on a tax return.

If you marry December 30th or Dec 31st then you can file Married Jointly or Singly. You will have to file a paper return. If your spouse files a return write "NRA" in the spaces that ask for an SSN. You would only be able to claim your spouse as a dependent if the had zero foreign income. Truly zero. No interest or anything. A standard qualification for a dependent is more than 50% support for the entire year. You do not qualify on those grounds alone.

Short answer... Forget the dependent question. Get married in 2016 and file as normal couple married jointly or singly or don't get married in 2016 and file single.

[belinda63 2,981]

Your marital status is determined at 11:59 pm on December 31 of the year (with exceptions for death). So you would be single (based upon your marriage in January 2017. A spouse cannot be a dependent and you did not provide more than half of his support. What you could do is have a civil marriage prior to the end of the year and your wedding later.

[aaron2020 11,651]

As a dependent. I myself came to the US 20 years ago on K1 visa and remember that my husband to be insisted on me coming before the end of the year. I called him yesterday to verify why did he insisted. He said that back in 1998 he was able to claim me as dependent even if I would arrive to the US 1 hour before the end of the year. I'm just wondering if the rules changed.

The laws have not changed in the last 20 years.

Your husband would have made a grave error in claiming you as a dependent 20 years ago. If he did that, he's lucky that he didn't get audited. There is no basis in the law to claim a foreign citizen who is unrelated as a dependent for being in the US for 1 hour.

If you were married by the end of 1998, then you could have filed a joint return.

[rsilva 18]

Agree with the previous posts-- you need to be married on 12/31/16 to file as a married person for 2016. To claim someone as a dependent, they must be 1. a qualifying child or 2. a qualifying relative, or 3, a qualifying member of the household.

Since your fiancee is probably not your child or related to you, you would have to pass the test for qualifying member of the household.

A qualifying member of your household must live with you all year with a few exceptions which you probably don't qualify for. Then you'd have to pass the support and gross income tests. In short, not very likely you could claim your fiancee as your dependent.

With that said-- get married by midnight 12/31/16-- and you are good. Assuming you do get married, you need to file as Married filing jointly or Married filing separately. If you'd like to file jointly, you need to file a declaration stating that your fiancee wishes to be taxed as a resident of the USA. This means you must include her worldwide income from the previous country. You can also deduct certain items like foreign mortgage interest on a 2nd home and may receive credits for foreign taxes paid. If your spouse earned a large income in the foreign country, this tax position may not be very advantageous and you'd probably be better off filing married separate. your fiancee would file married separate as a part year resident of the USA and apportion her income. Taxes are almost as fun as this immigration stuff!!!

[Charlie_AnaLynn 2]

If you get married by December 31 for tax purposes you are married for that year. Same thing the other way regarding divorce. If you are divorced by end of year you are divorced (single or head of household) for tax purposes. Nevertheless you cannot claim your spouse as a dependent. What you want is to get another exemption. Married filing jointly has its advantages as you get a higher standard deduction and therefore reduce your taxable income.

I know this because I'm a tax preparer and I had to do the same for the 2015 tax year as I got married on December 28, 2015 in the Philippines. I chose to file as married filed jointly, had my wife fill out a W-7 to get a ITIN (i.e., Individual Taxpayer Identification Number) and attached it to the front of the return. Follow the instructions on the W-7 (2 IDs or certified copy of passport for the one needing the ITIN). Left the TIN on the form blank for my wife and claimed my wife for an exemption. IRS will then process both and your spouse will get an ITIN. The ITIN is for tax purposes only and is not a SSN.

You do not need to do your taxes on paper but you do need to file it by mailing it in. No e-file.

[USC1961 251]

I'm reading through these posts and most of the information is accurate. I would encourage the OP to do some research on their own and decide what is best. If needs be hire a competent accountant that can help you decide if it is in your best interest to file jointly. It isn't that simple to just file jointly. One thing that hasn't been mentioned is that if you decide to file jointly, you will need to report any income you spouse earned, even if it was out of the USA. Even if it isn't a significant amount, the paperwork involved might be a major headache. Now if you decide to file separately, you wouldn't have to report spouses income, which is essentially the same as filing single from a benefits standpoint. But then your spouse would need to fill out her own tax return, seeing that she now lives in the USA.

Bottom line, you are potentially opening pandora's box. Personally, it would have to be a significant amount of money on the line to bother with it. Take your time, don't rush the ceremony and enjoy it. That is worth a lot more than a few dollars you may save. And worth a lot more than the IRS knocking at your door.