I have a question regarding my Status for tax purpose. I will really appreciate if you answer it. I am trying to determine if I am resident or dual status. I have applied for an extension because I was told that I will be a resident status will change on 8 June.Here is my information.

--> Entered US: Jan 2002 on F-1
--> Was out of country for 2 months in 2005,was in US rest of the time
--> Status Changed from F-1 to H-1 on Oct 16 2006


Can you please guide how will I apply for tax return for 2006. Thanks a lot in advance.

Regards
Sham

Sham:

Are you married?

If married, you can file jointly and you and your spouse BOTH choose to be treated as resident aliens, filing Form 1040EZ, 1040A or 1040 (whichever applies).

If you are not married, then you should file as a non-resident alien, filing Form 1040NR or 1040NR-EZ.

Atlanta Tax Expert:

Thanks a lot for your response. I am not married. Actually I am trying to get standard deduction and deduction for education.I am not from india. So If I file as a non resident then I will not be eligible for these deductions and instead of getting a tax return will have to pay. I spoke with IRS and she told me that you can apply for an extension and then apply for tax return when your status changes on 8 June.I am still not sure what I have to do. I will really appreciate your help.

Regards
Sham

If you are not married, then you need to file as a non-resident alien.

Your only other option is to file as a dual-status alien, but, in 99% of the cases, there are NO tax savings by filing a dual-status return.

Which country are you from, and in which state do you reside?

I heard that on dual status you cannot claim standard deduction,but can claim itemized deduction ( for my college fee which I paid last year). Is that right?
I am from Pakistan and I reside in VA. I really appreciate your help. Thanks

Sham

Sham:

You cannot claim the standard deduction for EITHER the non-resident or dual-status tax return.

In both cases, you must claim the itemized deductions using the Schedule A that is part of Form 1040NR.

Now, it is unlikely that you can claim your college fees and tuition as an itemized deduction. Sometimes, it is possible to claim these fees and tuition as employee business expenses, but you must meet several criteria and avoid other conditions that disallows the deduction, and, in most cases, foreign national students cannot meet the criteria.

AtlantaTaxExpert
I really appreciate your time and effort for answering my question. Actually I was confused. So that means I applied for extension for no reason because it is not making any difference any way. I will ask them if I can cancel the extension as I filed as Non resident anyway. Thanks a lot.

Regards
Sham

Sham:

Yes, filing the extension was somewhat a waste of time. However, it is so easy that little is lost.

Just file your return.