CR-1 Awaiting NOA 2, Married Filing Jointly Technical Questions

[Jason and May 69]

Hi all, 

 

I've read through several posts on the topic of married filing jointly status while my spouse is still abroad, without a current SSN or ITIN. After reading through the IRS instructions for the W-7, I think I have this figured out, but I wanted to check with some of the members who are more experienced in this. 

 

I received my CAF from the IRS and was granted POA for signing documents for my wife. 

• The W-7 instructions indicate a spouse cannot sign for a spouse w/out POA, which I have now been assigned. 

 

So, I think I should be good to: 

• Print our tax documents
• Attach the 2848
• Attach the W-7 (signed by me as designee with my CAF number included)
• Attach the original document of my wife's certified true copy of her passport
• Attach a copy of our marriage certificate

 

Is this accurate, or am I missing something? (Or misunderstanding?) 

 

Thanks for the help! 

[Ryan & Rachaya 9]

200+ views but no advice? I wish I could help but (apparently like everyone else) I came here looking for answers too as I'm also working on filing jointly with a non-resident alien (with no individual taxpayer identification number yet).

And, after reading your post, now I ALSO want to know how one goes about getting power of attorney to sign docs like this. Because, otherwise, I need to send a bunch of stuff to the other side of the planet and back just for the signature - which is possible, but quite a hassle.

[Jason and May 69]

3 hours ago, Ryan & Rachaya said:

200+ views but no advice? I wish I could help but (apparently like everyone else) I came here looking for answers too as I'm also working on filing jointly with a non-resident alien (with no individual taxpayer identification number yet).

And, after reading your post, now I ALSO want to know how one goes about getting power of attorney to sign docs like this. Because, otherwise, I need to send a bunch of stuff to the other side of the planet and back just for the signature - which is possible, but quite a hassle.

I’m glad you replied! I meant to update this post but have just been super busy lately! 

 

I was a little disappointed I didn’t receive any responses, as well, but it worked out.

 

Through more research and a somewhat protracted conversation with a very patient and knowledgeable agent at the Internal Revenue Service, I got it all ironed out. 

 

I’ll try to outline the steps here:

 

Federal IRS

 

1. I completed and scanned an IRS form 2848 to my wife. She signed and faxed it to the IRS at the fax number indicated on the form. She then scanned a copy to me. (Adobe Scan for iPhone and Android is free and works awesome.)
2. Within a couple of weeks, the IRS sent me a letter with a CAF number, which allows me to sign tax documents for my wife through power of attorney. 
3. I then filled out the IRS form W-7 and signed it for my wife as POA with my CAF number. This will apply for her ITIN for tax purposes. Be sure to check the power of attorney box by your signature line, or they will reject the W-7. 
4. My wife applied for a certified true copy of her passport through DFA (Philippines). She shipped me the originals through DHL for something like $3,000 pesos. It took about 5 days, I think, to get to me in Wisconsin.
5. Then I printed my tax returns, and I mailed my federal tax return packet to the IRS ITIN Operations address in Austin, TX. 

The federal tax return packet you file for the first year you apply for your wife’s ITIN, does not go to the normal IRS filing address. It goes to the ITIN operations center, where your wife’s ITIN will be generated, and your tax return filed. These addresses are on the W-7 instructions. 

 

The packet you mail should contain:

 

1. Your tax return
2. A copy of the 2848 your wife faxed to the IRS to apply for your CAF number and provide you POA 
3. A completed IRS form W-7 with power of attorney box checked
4. Your wife’s original passport or an original certified true copy of your wife’s passport
5. A copy of your certificate of marriage
6. A cover letter explaining why you are filing with the status married filing jointly, but your wife is not a resident and needs an ITIN. (Essentially, something like: We’re married. We’ve applied for a spousal visa, it is not yet approved. She is a resident of and lives in [X country] and she is not a U.S. resident, and we need an ITIN for tax filing purposes.)

 

State Taxes

 

Your state taxes is a different story. I called my department of revenue and asked them what to do. They told me to write in her SSN box on the tax forms “ITIN applied for,” and include the IRS form W-7 to prove her ITIN is applied for, a copy of our marriage certificate, copy of her CTC of her passport, and a cover letter explaining the circumstances.

 

I guess some states might make you wait until her ITIN is issued to file. Mine didn’t, though. 

 

Miscellaneous: 

 

 

I do my taxes through TurboTax. There are a few forms where you have to put in your wife’s SSN, and you can only type numbers. So when I printed my taxes, I went through all my tax forms, and on the few where my wife’s SSN needed to be, I wrote in, “ITIN applied for.” This was what my state's DOR agent told me to do to avoid my taxes being rejected for corrections. 

 

When I signed the W-7 for my wife, I signed her name and then wrote, “By Jason L. Fairweather, Husband, [and my CAF number].” 

 

When I signed our taxes, I signed her name and then wrote, “By Jason L. Fairweather, Husband, [and my CAF number].” 

 

_______________________________________________________________

 

I hope this helps someone else. It was a lot to figure out, but once you know the procedure and what is needed, it's not really so bad. 

 

Warmest wishes, 

 

Jason and May

Edited April 15, 2023 by Jason and May
Grammar

[Ryan & Rachaya 9]

Wow, thank you for sharing! That may make my life a lot easier (though I really should have started on this earlier :).

 

edit: Obviously I'm going to need to file for an extension. I guess that I still send the tax documents to the W-7 location even though the W-7 is the reason I need the extension (and so a completed W-7 will not be in that initial filing)? I suppose I'll include a W-7 filled in as much as possible and a note about the missing stuff (the certified docs, wife's signature, etc.).

 

 

Edited April 16, 2023 by Ryan & Rachaya

[Jason and May 69]

21 hours ago, Ryan & Rachaya said:

Wow, thank you for sharing! That may make my life a lot easier (though I really should have started on this earlier :).

 

edit: Obviously I'm going to need to file for an extension. I guess that I still send the tax documents to the W-7 location even though the W-7 is the reason I need the extension (and so a completed W-7 will not be in that initial filing)? I suppose I'll include a W-7 filled in as much as possible and a note about the missing stuff (the certified docs, wife's signature, etc.).

 

 

You're welcome, Ryan! 

 

I would imagine even if you need an extension, you would still follow all those same procedures and send your federal packet to the ITIN Operation address in Austin, because even if you're filing after the deadline, you're still filing your taxes and applying for an ITIN for Rachaya.

[top_secret 2,061]

I'll answer this thread belatedly since I just noticed it but I did successfully get an ITIN for my wife using a certified true copy of her Philippine Passport from a DFA office.  It totally worked awesome for us.  I would highly recommend LBC over DHL, UPS or FedEx for mailing stuff if at all possible.  Since we live in San Diego and there is a LBC office locally it costs us $11 and takes 5 days to send documents to the Philippines with full detailed tracking.  If you don't live anywhere near a LBC office it might be worth at least calling them to see if they have an option of US mail to LBC US to PH?????

 

As far as an extension you only need to pay what you think your tax will be and if that is $0, that is a perfectly good answer.  You automatically get 6 months with no explanation required.  We mailed our return to the Austin W7 address by the deadline so we did not need an extension.  We heard nothing from the IRS for like 4 months.  Received our return after 6 months.

 

Every state will be different but we just did California State according to TurboTax and mailed it in with 999-88-9999 as the tax number.  California Franchise Tax Board is usually like the mafia if you screw something up but they didn't have any complaints so it must be OK. 

 

Our 2020 return was over $10,000 greater as MFJ rather than me filing MFS or single.  Like literally you check the MFJ check box in TurboTax and the return ticker went up $10,000.

[Jason and May 69]

14 hours ago, top_secret said:

I'll answer this thread belatedly since I just noticed it but I did successfully get an ITIN for my wife using a certified true copy of her Philippine Passport from a DFA office.  It totally worked awesome for us.  I would highly recommend LBC over DHL, UPS or FedEx for mailing stuff if at all possible.  Since we live in San Diego and there is a LBC office locally it costs us $11 and takes 5 days to send documents to the Philippines with full detailed tracking.  If you don't live anywhere near a LBC office it might be worth at least calling them to see if they have an option of US mail to LBC US to PH?????

 

As far as an extension you only need to pay what you think your tax will be and if that is $0, that is a perfectly good answer.  You automatically get 6 months with no explanation required.  We mailed our return to the Austin W7 address by the deadline so we did not need an extension.  We heard nothing from the IRS for like 4 months.  Received our return after 6 months.

 

Every state will be different but we just did California State according to TurboTax and mailed it in with 999-88-9999 as the tax number.  California Franchise Tax Board is usually like the mafia if you screw something up but they didn't have any complaints so it must be OK. 

 

Our 2020 return was over $10,000 greater as MFJ rather than me filing MFS or single.  Like literally you check the MFJ check box in TurboTax and the return ticker went up $10,000.

Thank you for sharing!

[Ryan & Rachaya 9]

Sorry to be a bother, but I'm just filling out the power of attorney (2848) form now. I can probably take a reasonable guess at what goes on the "Description of Matter" lines, but if you've already summitted one of these without issues, could you let me know what you put on these lines in order to be able to sign the W-7 and then the (married filing jointly) 1040? Going in, I had assumed there would be an "sign all tax related docs" option, but now I see you need to list every one that might come up. The actual 1040 return and the W-7 for the ITIN are the only ones I can think of at the moment... And it looks like 3 years is the maximum duration (which is fine).

 

Thanks again!

[Jason and May 69]

8 hours ago, Ryan & Rachaya said:

Sorry to be a bother, but I'm just filling out the power of attorney (2848) form now. I can probably take a reasonable guess at what goes on the "Description of Matter" lines, but if you've already summitted one of these without issues, could you let me know what you put on these lines in order to be able to sign the W-7 and then the (married filing jointly) 1040? Going in, I had assumed there would be an "sign all tax related docs" option, but now I see you need to list every one that might come up. The actual 1040 return and the W-7 for the ITIN are the only ones I can think of at the moment... And it looks like 3 years is the maximum duration (which is fine).

 

Thanks again!

No worries! I'm happy to help if I can! 

 

This is how I filled out the one we submitted. I hope this helps.

 

[Ryan & Rachaya 9]

Thank you!

 

[Jason and May 69]

7 hours ago, Ryan & Rachaya said:

Thank you!

 

You're welcome. ☺️🤙🏾

[Jason and May 69]

Just an update: My wife received her tax ID paperwork today in Manila. The date of the form is May 25, 2023, but it got to her. Like. 5 weeks later.

 

While the IRS cashed my check about 3 days after I mailed my packet to Austin last April, my taxes have still not been processed. I suspect there's progress, though, since May was issued her tax ID number and so forth. It's probably just sitting in queue, waiting to be processed by someone who hates their job. 🙃

 

So, just an update for anyone who comes along the thread: This process is how it should be for MFJ and getting your S/O his or her tax ID number. It's all good. 

 

Warmest wishes, 

 

Jason and May