Hi,

I have been working in the US on H1B since Apr 2006 (more than 2 year as of date). In August 2008, I returned to my home country to get married. Subsequently, I came back to US to continue working, while my spouse still remains in the home country (She never came to USA). We have plans for her to apply H4 to join me in late January in 2009.

Should I fill jointly or separately for 2008 taxes?

If I fill separately, does my spouse need to fill at all since she is not in US and does not have any income? Also, 1040 asks for spouse's ssn if filing separately, but she does not have one. How do I indicate that my spouse does not need to fill?

If I fill jointly, is my spouse a resident or alien, She don't have income in India)? What are some of the forms I should be looking into?

Can I claim my wife's expenses like flight expenses from india to USA and visa processing fee etc.. as she don't have income in india and I am spending all those expenses from my pocket.

Thank you very much for all your help!

Regards,
ANK

ANK:

You should file jointly, because your wife's visa status and physical location is irrelevent to the filing status. Filing jointly allows you to claim her personal exemption of $3,500 plus a JOINT standard deduction of $10,900 for 2008.

If you file jointly, she must sign a statement that she is a non-resident alien spouse of a resident alien and that she chooses to be treated as a resident alien. This makes HER world-wide income subject to U.S. income taxes, but, since she has NO income, that is not a concern for you.

Since she does not have a Social Security number, she will have to submit Form W-7 with a notarized photocopy of her passport with the 2008 tax return. She must sign this W-7, as well as the return itself, you you must e=wait for her arrival in late January before you file.

Unfortunately, you CANNOT claim her moving expenses from India, because you were NOT married when you originally moved from India to the U.S. in 2006 for work purposes.

If you need professional help with this process, email me at the address below for a fee quote.

Thank you very much for the reply!

I searched in the forums,FOR ITIN & W-7 conflicts, it is better to visit the IRS office in person than to sending the returns through mail. I will be in Virginia at the time(March,2009) of filiing returns, Is it OK if I visit one of the Virginia IRS office ( I am in IL for the year 2008).

As my wife is still in India can we get notarized passport copy from India? Will IRS will approve that?

Thanks,
ANK

You can efile your tax return.
Everyone either efiles or sends return by mail; no body hands over in person.
IRS will not accept passport copy notarized in India. Go to the U.S. embassy in India and get it notarized there.

Sorry, MukatA, but if he is applying for an ITIN, efiling is NOT possible.

You CAN visit the local IRS office to get the passport photocopy certified as a true copy. I do not know if the passport holder MUST be with you for the certification; It is possible that being the spouse of the passport holder (and, in your case, her visa sponsor) may be sufficient.

A phone call to the IRS office will clarify that issue.

MukatA IS correct about the IRS not accepting Indian notarization. If the IRS will NOT certify the passport photocopy, then your wife will need to get it done at the U.S. embassy or consulate office.

My wife is planning to go US embassy in India for her VISA Interview,On the same day or before the day of interview she want her Passport to be notarized by US emabassy ,so that we can use that to get ITIN here in USA. She is planning to get the passport notarized before VISA stamping, means she will not have Notarized copy of VISA .
My question is if we have notraized copy of my wife's passport is that enough to get ITIN or do we also need her VISA also to be notarized ? Please advise.

Filing jointly with your wife is NOT dependent on her visa status. She could remain in India for your entire stay in the U.S. and STILL file jointly with you.

For this reason, The IRS only requires a notarized copy of the passport, NOT the visa.

Thanks A TON for all your replies! It really really useful!

Glad to help!