Tax return

[johnandkate 1]

Hi,

I'm going to file my tax return. I've been married for almost a year. Since coming here my wife's been unemployed.

My question is should we file jointly? What I'm not sure about is if we can do that even when she doesn't have any incomes. And will she need to sign the return too or just my signature will be enough?

Someone has told me that since my wife doesn't work I will just file as single & head of household.

Note: There are only my wife and me, we don't have any children.

Thank you very much.

[catknit 144]

What method are you using to file your taxes? Are you using a software program or going to a tax-store? Or, are you muddling through online on your own?

There are "wizards" in many of the software programs that will help you define how to file.

In general, and not knowing the exact specifics of your life - if you are happily married and living in the same household for more than 50% of the calendar year [2012] you would be filing joint married. There are a few ways to be legally married and head of household, but they usually deal with estrangement and you'd want to make sure via a tax professional that your assumptions to do this won't lead to a world of hurt down the road. You should NOT file single, because you aren't.

Married filing separate may be an option for you but keep in mind USCIS wants to see co-mingled finances. You can claim her as a dependent this way as long as she had no income.

http://www.irs.gov/uac/Six-Important-Facts-about-Dependents-and-Exemptions-1

[TimeTravel 78]

Someone has told me that since my wife doesn't work I will just file as single & head of household.

Note: There are only my wife and me, we don't have any children.

One can claim the Head of Household filing status on their tax return if one is unmarried, have cared for a dependent for over half the year, and paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home.

Please note, spouse is not considered as dependent.

[belinda63 2,993]

You have four choices, single, married joint, married separately, and head of household. There is no single and head of household option as one choice. So are you married? That leaves you two choices out of four....married separately or married joint.

[CarlosAndSveta 808]

Hi,

I'm going to file my tax return. I've been married for almost a year. Since coming here my wife's been unemployed.

My question is should we file jointly? What I'm not sure about is if we can do that even when she doesn't have any incomes. And will she need to sign the return too or just my signature will be enough?

Someone has told me that since my wife doesn't work I will just file as single & head of household.

Note: There are only my wife and me, we don't have any children.

Thank you very much.

Based on the information in your timeline, it appears that your wife was a Dual Status Alien for tax purposes in 2012. In this case the best thing to do would be to make the election to treat your spouse as a Resident Alien for tax purposes for all of 2012 and file a joint return. See the section labeled as "Choosing Resident Alien Status" in the center column of page 9 of publication 519.

[johnandkate 1]

Oh I see now! Thank you very much.

Yes, we are still married and living together.

I hired an accountant to do my taxes for me in the past years and I'm going hire him again. I just want to make sure that I can file jointly with my wife even though she has no income. She's planning to go back to her home country visit her folk. That's why I wanted to know if her signature is necessary.

[jac_chappin 24]

OP -

You should file jointly due to the tax benefit even if your wife doesn't work.

I filed jointly and my wife wasn't working. We received a significant tax return because income was for 2 folks not on1 any more.

As long as you are married 1 day or 365 days in given tax year you can file jointly.

I hope this helps!

[Chris & Trinh 15]

There is a questionaire on the IRS website that can help you determine your filing status.

Do you have any dependents such as children?

If you ARE married to a NRA (non resident alien) who has never worked in the US and you have a dependent then YES you can file head of house hold.

Also you can refer to this thread as well that talks in detail about this exact topic.

> Family & Marriage Based US Visa Immigration Discussion > IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures > US taxes while in I130/IR1/CR1 proceedings

Sorry I can not post any links yet as it says I am too new of a member to post links to these places.