Filing taxes, W7 for ITIN?

[Aty92 0]

Curious, do most people file a W7 when filing taxes to show proof of married filing jointly? Seems like a lot of paperwork and wondering if most people do it or not?

[seekingthetruth 1,218]

52 minutes ago, Aty92 said:

Curious, do most people file a W7 when filing taxes to show proof of married filing jointly? Seems like a lot of paperwork and wondering if most people do it or not?

There is no choice.  You can't file as MFJ without putting the spouse's SSN or ITIN in the box.  If you file without it, your return will be rejected.

 

It depends on the tax situation of the two individuals, but for many couples, filing MFJ saves a lot of money. So it is very much worth the time to get an ITIN if that is needed.

[hunny&me 267]

If your spouse does not have SS# and you want to file tax jointly meaning report worldly income, then you need ITIN.  W-7 is the form to get ITIN, which you turn in with your Income Tax, file by paper.  I just submitted W-7, a copy certified passport/DL and actual city ID for my husband, election statement, along with our ITR this week.. So will see in few weeks for IRS feedback.  It benefits us more to elect to be both treated as US residents for tax purposes.

People may not want to file jointly if spouse abroad has business or is working. 
https://www.hrblock.com/expat-tax-preparation/resource-center/filing/status/married-to-non-resident-alien-status/
https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/nonresident-spouse

 

Also, you can amend return within 3 years.

[top_secret 2,062]

55 minutes ago, Aty92 said:

Curious, do most people file a W7 when filing taxes to show proof of married filing jointly? Seems like a lot of paperwork and wondering if most people do it or not?

 Really you should make the choice based on financial grounds.  Everyone's circumstances may be different but there can be HUGE differences in how much taxes are paid/returned based on the difference between Married filing separately and married filing jointly.  Also there is differences in how much effort it takes to to file a W7 depending on where the overseas spouse is from.  In some countries they can easily obtain a certified copy of their passport from the issuing agency and then it is just the one page W7.   Not difficult at all.  Other countries may be more difficult requiring the use of acceptance agents and such.

 

In our case my wife in the Philippines had to take 2 trips down to the local DFA office to get a certified copy of her passport.  I submitted that with the W7, letter, and 1040 and we got over $10,000 greater return than if I had filed separately.  Very much worth it for a trivial effort in our case..

[SteveInBostonI130 3,319]

1 hour ago, Aty92 said:

Curious, do most people file a W7 when filing taxes to show proof of married filing jointly? Seems like a lot of paperwork and wondering if most people do it or not?

Proof of filing MFJ is the tax return itself.

 

Actually being able to file as MFJ depends if the foreign spouse has an SSN or not.  If no SSN, then the W7 is required to file MFJ.

 

Other couples file MFS and then amend their taxes later to MFJ (if they want to).  Filing as MFS is also one of the evidences of a bona fide relationship.

[Chancy 6,233]

*** Moved from IR1/CR1 Process & Procedures to Tax & Finances During US Immigration ***

 

[Aty92 0]

5 hours ago, top_secret said:

 Really you should make the choice based on financial grounds.  Everyone's circumstances may be different but there can be HUGE differences in how much taxes are paid/returned based on the difference between Married filing separately and married filing jointly.  Also there is differences in how much effort it takes to to file a W7 depending on where the overseas spouse is from.  In some countries they can easily obtain a certified copy of their passport from the issuing agency and then it is just the one page W7.   Not difficult at all.  Other countries may be more difficult requiring the use of acceptance agents and such.

 

In our case my wife in the Philippines had to take 2 trips down to the local DFA office to get a certified copy of her passport.  I submitted that with the W7, letter, and 1040 and we got over $10,000 greater return than if I had filed separately.  Very much worth it for a trivial effort in our case..

Can the certified copy of passport be faxed or emailed and printed. Or does it have to be original and mailed over from overseas? And same with the W7 that requires a signature, can it be emailed or have to be original signature form?

[seekingthetruth 1,218]

1 hour ago, Aty92 said:

Can the certified copy of passport be faxed or emailed and printed. Or does it have to be original and mailed over from overseas? And same with the W7 that requires a signature, can it be emailed or have to be original signature form?

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/iw7.pdf

[carmel34 3,531]

5 hours ago, Aty92 said:

Can the certified copy of passport be faxed or emailed and printed. Or does it have to be original and mailed over from overseas? And same with the W7 that requires a signature, can it be emailed or have to be original signature form?

You can also use a certified agent in most foreign countries to verify the passport and sign the W-7 in person, this avoids the need to mail the original passport and wait weeks or months to get it back.  The certified agent will also submit the tax return to the IRS on your behalf, paper only.  We did this and it worked out fine.

[Wuozopo 4,285]

8 hours ago, Aty92 said:

Can the certified copy of passport be faxed or emailed and printed. Or does it have to be original and mailed over from overseas? And same with the W7 that requires a signature, can it be emailed or have to be original signature form?

The following original signatures must be received for processing in Austin Texas 

• Tax return- both spouses
• Statement electing for the foreign spouse to be treated as a resident alien- both spouses
• Form W-7- Foreign Spouse

Plus you need the original certified ID (passport) of the foreign spouse.

 

You can mail those yourself to Austin or the mailing can be done by a certifying agent abroad or an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center in the US.

[Aty92 0]

20 minutes ago, Wuozopo said:

The following original signatures must be received for processing in Austin Texas 

• Tax return- both spouses
• Statement electing for the foreign spouse to be treated as a resident alien- both spouses
• Form W-7- Foreign Spouse

Plus you need the original certified ID (passport) of the foreign spouse.

 

You can mail those yourself to Austin or the mailing can be done by a certifying agent abroad or an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center in the US.

tax return for both spouses even though it will be filed with the W7 as married filing jointly?

[Wuozopo 4,285]

2 hours ago, Aty92 said:

tax return for both spouses even though it will be filed with the W7 as married filing jointly?

A joint tax return filed on paper (not efile) requires signature by both persons filing. Once the ITIN is assigned, the tax return goes to processing like any other tax return and must be signed by both.

Edited February 24, 2022 by Wuozopo

[TBoneTX 43,060]

A hijack post has been split into its own thread in this forum from this now-closed thread.