My husband and I were married in March 2009. I am a US citizen and I think he would be considered a non-resident alien for US tax purposes. I think I have to file married filing separately with a spouse exemption. He was employed w/ a British company but as a non-resident of New Zealand – is his salary considered taxable income on a joint US tax claim? Do I need the ICTN for him if he’s considered exempt? Or is he not exempt and I need the number and to claim his income as well as file married filing jointly? I just started looking into all this when I tried filing. I’ve always done my own taxes on a 1040EZ, this is much more complex than I anticipated and I don’t want to do anything wrong with it. Thanks.

You can file joint return as residents or as married filing separately. If you file separate return, for the SSN for spouse you can write N.R.A.

On the joint return, both must report worldwide income. If you made taxes in foreign country, then file Form 1116 or Form 2555.