I've got a mess of a situation on my hands that I hope someone can help make sense of...

My wife and I recently moved back into the United States on September 1 of 2008 (from Canada) [I am a US Citizen, she is a permanent resident]. We moved to an apartment in Georgia in November, and we both started working on December 1. This is my first time working in the US in over 10 years. I am trying to fill out my W-4 and G-4 forms to our advantage...

Married filing jointly, married filing separately?

No kids. Both employed. I suspect we may be exempt based on foreign earned income for 2008 (since we lived more than 6 months out of the US).

Any suggestions for 2008? 2009?

Brian

In most cases it is better to file as married filing jointly. On W4 you and your spouse can claim married and 1 allowance.

Residents and citizens must report the worldwide income on the U.S. tax return. You can claim foreign tax credit by filing Form 1116. Read Your U.S. Tax Return: U.S. Citizen or Resident with Foreign Income (http://taxipay.blogspot.com/2008/03/us-citizen-or-resident-with-foreign.html)

Brian:

Because you are a U.S. citizen, YOU must file a return and claim all world-wide income. The same applies to your wife as a permanent resident. However, you can exclude up to two-thirds of $85,400 for each of you under the Foreign Income Exclusion (Form 2555).

More than likely, filing jointly is your best course of action, but not necessarily. You need to have the returns prepared BOTH ways and compare the results to be sure.