bluto
Dec 16, 2009, 05:19 AM
Hello all, first time poster by I've been lurking for a few weeks. I'm preparing for taxes and am puzzled by my options.
I'm an American working overseas. I was married last year (2008) to a foreign girl and filed married separate in 2008.
I'm considering filing a joint return for 2009 but am not sure I should do this because that would expose her to US taxes, and she has never lived in the US ( I don't understand why my foreign income is excluded up to ~$84k, but she would have to pay? ).
And others write-offs? ) but since she had foreign earned income in 2009, we would have to pay taxes on that amount (which is not a huge sum since she worked only part of the year ~ 18k, but it has already been taxed once).
How in the world will the IRS know she had taxable income in another country?
She will not have taxable income for 2010, so maybe I should wait. One reason I want the large std. deduction this year is I would like to be able to realize some capital gains to use up my deduction. If I file jointly, I can realize another $5,000 + of gains without paying taxes on it.
When does one know which way they should file? I have read that filing separate is rarely the better choice, but I'm not exactly the average filer. Any help would be appreciated.
I'm an American working overseas. I was married last year (2008) to a foreign girl and filed married separate in 2008.
I'm considering filing a joint return for 2009 but am not sure I should do this because that would expose her to US taxes, and she has never lived in the US ( I don't understand why my foreign income is excluded up to ~$84k, but she would have to pay? ).
And others write-offs? ) but since she had foreign earned income in 2009, we would have to pay taxes on that amount (which is not a huge sum since she worked only part of the year ~ 18k, but it has already been taxed once).
How in the world will the IRS know she had taxable income in another country?
She will not have taxable income for 2010, so maybe I should wait. One reason I want the large std. deduction this year is I would like to be able to realize some capital gains to use up my deduction. If I file jointly, I can realize another $5,000 + of gains without paying taxes on it.
When does one know which way they should file? I have read that filing separate is rarely the better choice, but I'm not exactly the average filer. Any help would be appreciated.