Questions about first time married filing taxes jointly with K1 spouse

[stegsaurus 6]

My wife entered the US on a K-1 visa in Dec 2024 and we were married in January 2025. She got her work authorization in May 2025 and her first US job in August. She received her green card in November 2025.

Since it's my first time filing jointly and having a foreign spouse is a special circumstance, I want to make sure I'm doing this correctly. I've walked through both federal and PA state taxes in H&R Block's software and to my understanding, there are only two points that I need to double-check:

 

1. Her tax filing status, since she was not a green card holder/permanent resident for the entirety of 2025
2. Any foreign assets she owns

 

For #1: I've seen conflicting information about what to do. Some sources say that she's considered a "Dual-Status" alien for 2025 because she started as a non-resident and then got her GC later in the year. In that case, we have to attach a statement to our return saying that we're choosing to treat her as a US resident for the whole year. Because H&R Block doesn't let you include this with an e-file, we'd have to print and mail the return if this is required, which I'd like to avoid. But I've seen other sources saying that because she had her GC at the end of the year, she can be treated as a GC holder for the entire year, and we don't need to include anything else. I'd appreciate some clarity on this.

 

For #2: My wife left her job in Honduras before she came to the US in Dec 2024. She didn't work for any Honduran company at any point in 2025. She does not have any assets there: no car, house, or investments. She has had some money put into their equivalent of Social Security, but this is akin to how it is for US citizens: they've taken your money and promise to provide something for you once you retire, but there's no account sitting there with your name on it that has the money ready to withdraw if you want.

 

She does still have a Honduran bank account with her name on it, but this has a very small amount just to keep the account open — less than $10 USD. I've made sure to answer "Yes" to the question of foreign account ownership in H&R Block, so our Schedule B has that box checked. The account has well under $10,000, so FBAR and FATCA filing aren't an issue. She's going to check soon if the account earned any interest in 2025 so we can report that if needed; if so, I imagine it was only a few cents.

 

Otherwise, I can't think of anything that would affect our return, but please let me know if I'm wrong. In 2025 we paid off student loans she had in Honduras, but I confirmed those interest payments are not eligible for a deduction in the US because her university is not on this list of eligible international schools.

 

I'm considering contacting a tax expert who has experience with international couples, but don't want to spend the money if I don't need to. Thanks for any advice you can offer!

[JeanneAdil 7,492]

Always follow what IRS says

 

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/tax-residency-status-first-year-choice

 

1. Be present in the United States for at least 31 days in a row in the current year (2025), and
2. Be present in the United States for at least 75% of the number of days following the 31-day period, beginning with the first day of the 31-day period and ending with the last day of the current year (2025). (For purposes of this 75% requirement, you can treat up to 5 days of absence from the United States as days of presence in the United States.)