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Jeanne Adil

file married jointly with foreign spouse

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Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Sweden
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I'm happy to see a new post about this topic! I have been doing research everywhere, including here on the forums, for helpful tips related to our particular situation, and have not come across one that answers the question I have.  My tax returns are so simple, always have been, as I have no children/dependents and do not own property yet (all I have are my employee W2s), so I always use TurboTax and I'd hate to pay someone just to answer what I'm hoping is a pretty basic question.

 

Do you (or anyone else coming to this thread) know the answer to this question? --

 

Background:

- My husband came here on the K1 in May, married later that same month. AOS filed in June and green card received in September. So he is officially a legal resident (Resident Alien, as IRS seems to refer to it as for tax purposes) for the 2018 tax year.

- He did not have a job in 2018 here in the states, and did not work any in Sweden prior to coming here on his K1. So he has no income for the entire tax year.

 

We are filing MFJ, but my question is - do I need to be claiming a dependent since he was here during the 2018 tax year, but did not work? I understand Head of Household is inapplicable since we are married, but didn't know if claiming dependent(s) comes into play in these scenarios or not. I suppose my primary concern is whether or not this will matter, considering we are filing jointly but only providing my income/W2s, and none for him. I feel like this is self explanatory, but want to make sure we make no errors with this. I'd hate to get audited on top of all the immigration stuff. :|

 

Håll ut, y'all.

 

               K1 Process                                                                                AOS Process

July 2015 - met online thanks to Zak Bagans                                                            May 25, 2018 - South Carolina marriage license issued

June 2016 - first in-person meeting                                                                             May 26, 2018 - legally married

August 2016 - stateside visit                                                                                        June 7, 2018 - applied for Social Security Number [manual verification required]

February-April 2017 - stateside visit                                                                           June 18, 2018 - SSN/card received in the mail

April 4, 2017 - got engaged                                                                                          June 30, 2018 - submitted I-485 (AOS)/I-765 (EAD)/I-131 (AP) together

June 5, 2017 - submitted I129F                                                                                   July 9, 2018 - AOS/EAD/AP electronic NOA1 received

June 12, 2017 - received NOA1                                                                                   July 13, 2018 - AOS/EAD/AP hard copy NOA1 received (dated July 6, 2018)

December 1, 2017 - received NOA2                                                                            July 25, 2018 - Biometrics appointment (Charlotte, NC)

January 17, 2018 - NVC received case                                                                      August 1, 2018 - case status updated to "Ready to be Scheduled for Interview"

January 18, 2018 - received NVC case number by phone                                      August 11, 2018 - case status updated to "I-485 Interview Scheduled"

January 24, 2018 - packet received via email                                                           August 16, 2018 - AOS Interview Scheduled letter received

February 15, 2018 - medical appointment                                                                 August 28, 2018 - visited civil surgeon (Winston-Salem, NC) to complete I-693

February-March 2018 - trip to Gothenburg                                                                                                [beneficiary had to get one remaining vaccination stateside]

February 22, 2018 - interview at the US Embassy in Stockholm                            September 18, 2018 - I-485/AOS Interview in Greer, SC

                                    [passed, pending receipt of medical papers]                           September 18, 2018 - case status updated to "Card Has Been Issued/Mailed"

February 27, 2018 - medical papers received by Embassy                                     September 25, 2018 - Green Card received in the mail

March 5, 2018 - visa received in the mail with passport                                          October 6, 2018 - traditional wedding with family & friends

May 16, 2018 - POE in Charlotte, NC

 

 

Up next.... Removal of Conditions!

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Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: Morocco
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he is not a dependent 

he is spouse 

you are filing married joint /better than head of household (i think but check both ways)

a spouse does not need to show an income if there is none

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Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: Morocco
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forgot to add one thing for moroccan interviewees

when a document is submitted to NVC thru CEAC,  the embassy wants to see exactly the same copy or original at the interview

 

one man submitted marriage certificate and translation / when his wife went she was asked to show them and her translation was slightly different than the one submitted on CEAC / she had a new translation made for the interview

another person took a new criminal report and the CO wanted to see original of the one submitted to CEAC

 

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Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Iraq
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I have a question.....it says the stand alone document is a passport. My husband is overseas with interview coming in a few weeks. All i have is a copy of his passport. I assumed this was not sufficient. Is that correct?

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3 minutes ago, Palala2018 said:

I have a question.....it says the stand alone document is a passport. My husband is overseas with interview coming in a few weeks. All i have is a copy of his passport. I assumed this was not sufficient. Is that correct?

Correct.  I asked the IRS about that before the shutdown.  They need the actual passport.  You are in better shape than me.  He may be in the states before you have to file.  I have my wife's passport and I have a trip planned in April.  If I don't get the passport back before the trip she may not have one for the interview unless I do a quick trip to drop it off.  I don't trust FedEx for that.  I may have to though.

PHILIPPINES ONLY!!!  CFO (Commission on Filipinos Overseas) INFO - Can't leave home without it!

 

PDOS (Pre-Departure Registration and Orientation Seminar) is for ages 20-59.  Peer Counseling is for 13-19 years of age.

It is required to have the visa in their passport for PDOS and Peer Counseling.

 

GCP (Guidance and Counseling Program) is for K-1 Fiancee and IR/CR-1 spouse ONLY. 

 

 

IMG_5168.jpeg

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~~moved to taxes and finances from IR1/CR1 Process and procedures ~~

You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.  - Dr. Seuss

 

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Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Philippines
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8 minutes ago, John & Rose said:

Correct.  I asked the IRS about that before the shutdown.  They need the actual passport.  You are in better shape than me.  He may be in the states before you have to file.  I have my wife's passport and I have a trip planned in April.  If I don't get the passport back before the trip she may not have one for the interview unless I do a quick trip to drop it off.  I don't trust FedEx for that.  I may have to though.

You could have just gone to an acceptance agent in Manila and avoided all that 

YMMV

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2 minutes ago, payxibka said:

You could have just gone to an acceptance agent in Manila and avoided all that 

Really?  I looked into those here just to get the ball rolling and they quoted $750 to $3000 just to certify that the passport is legit.  LOL  

 

My concern now is if the IRS will have anybody there to process the ITIN if I do send it as soon as I get my W2.

Edited by John & Rose

PHILIPPINES ONLY!!!  CFO (Commission on Filipinos Overseas) INFO - Can't leave home without it!

 

PDOS (Pre-Departure Registration and Orientation Seminar) is for ages 20-59.  Peer Counseling is for 13-19 years of age.

It is required to have the visa in their passport for PDOS and Peer Counseling.

 

GCP (Guidance and Counseling Program) is for K-1 Fiancee and IR/CR-1 spouse ONLY. 

 

 

IMG_5168.jpeg

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Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Philippines
Timeline
Just now, John & Rose said:

Really?  I looked into those here just to get the ball rolling and they quoted $750 to $3000 just to certify that the passport is legit.  LOL  

I'm sure there is a fee attached as well but Theoretically it would be less.  One is right near the embassy 

YMMV

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Ukraine
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1 hour ago, Paul & Mallory said:

I'm happy to see a new post about this topic! I have been doing research everywhere, including here on the forums, for helpful tips related to our particular situation, and have not come across one that answers the question I have.  My tax returns are so simple, always have been, as I have no children/dependents and do not own property yet (all I have are my employee W2s), so I always use TurboTax and I'd hate to pay someone just to answer what I'm hoping is a pretty basic question.

 

Do you (or anyone else coming to this thread) know the answer to this question? --

 

Background:

- My husband came here on the K1 in May, married later that same month. AOS filed in June and green card received in September. So he is officially a legal resident (Resident Alien, as IRS seems to refer to it as for tax purposes) for the 2018 tax year.

- He did not have a job in 2018 here in the states, and did not work any in Sweden prior to coming here on his K1. So he has no income for the entire tax year.

 

We are filing MFJ, but my question is - do I need to be claiming a dependent since he was here during the 2018 tax year, but did not work? I understand Head of Household is inapplicable since we are married, but didn't know if claiming dependent(s) comes into play in these scenarios or not. I suppose my primary concern is whether or not this will matter, considering we are filing jointly but only providing my income/W2s, and none for him. I feel like this is self explanatory, but want to make sure we make no errors with this. I'd hate to get audited on top of all the immigration stuff. 😐

 

You are right - HOH is not an option since you are married.

 

 

As for your spouse  - no,  you can not clime him as a dependent, whether  the residency  maintained with you or not .

 

But it doesn't matter if he had any income in 2018 or not - you are good to file Joint return regardless. 

 

 

 

Edited by Ksenia_O
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Just now, payxibka said:

I'm sure there is a fee attached as well but Theoretically it would be less.  One is right near the embassy 

Damn.  I have her passport with me.  She lives in Metro Manila and she could have done that.  Her passport is already in my name.

 

PHILIPPINES ONLY!!!  CFO (Commission on Filipinos Overseas) INFO - Can't leave home without it!

 

PDOS (Pre-Departure Registration and Orientation Seminar) is for ages 20-59.  Peer Counseling is for 13-19 years of age.

It is required to have the visa in their passport for PDOS and Peer Counseling.

 

GCP (Guidance and Counseling Program) is for K-1 Fiancee and IR/CR-1 spouse ONLY. 

 

 

IMG_5168.jpeg

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Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Philippines
Timeline
1 minute ago, Ksenia_O said:

You are right - HOH is not an option since you are married.

Please...  You know there are exceptions to everything

 

image.png.231ed3d566dc9d83fdc52142cd3eaad0.png

YMMV

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Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Philippines
Timeline

And for someone who is here in the US and doesn’t have SSN and waiting for EAD/AP I can apply for ITIN also right? I didn’t want to take a chance and wait for my EAD/AP last minute. And how long does it take from the time someone file for ITIN to getting one?

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Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Philippines
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3 minutes ago, Pengunista said:

And for someone who is here in the US and doesn’t have SSN and waiting for EAD/AP I can apply for ITIN also right? I didn’t want to take a chance and wait for my EAD/AP last minute. And how long does it take from the time someone file for ITIN to getting one?

 

 

First-time ITIN applications. If you’re applying for a new ITIN, complete and attach Form W-7 to your tax return when you file the tax return for which the ITIN is needed

YMMV

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