Hello,

I am a green card holder in US and will be filing my taxes as joint. My in-laws visited us in 2008 with a multiple entry tourist visa from India. They stayed with us from July 28, 2007 to Jan 25 2008 and again from May 18, 2008 to Nov 13, 2008. They stayed with us for more than 183 days in 2008.

The only income my father-in-law had in 2008 was pension. I believe they will be filing taxes in India for this income. Based on this,

1) can I claim both my in-laws as dependents for 2008?
2) I only have copies of their passports. Should this also be notarized?
3) Can I file the W7 form (one for each) for ITIN along with my tax return? If so, what do I enter the box for their ITIN in the form 1040?

Thanks for your help.

To claim parents as dependents,
1. They must not earn more than $3500
2. You provided more than half of the support.
3. They are U.S.citizen or residents for some part of the year.

They completed SPT and 183 days in 2008. So they are dual status with residents from May 18, 2008. They do meet requirement 3.

Thanks very much for the response.

Regarding my other question, should I have their ITIN available prior to claiming them as dependents? Or can I file the W7 to get their ITIN along with 1040 tax filing form? In this case, can I leave the number as blank?

Thanks.

You can attach W7 with your tax return.