I am a US Citizen and my wife is here on a tourist visa. We where married here in Texas but we are still waiting on her change of status paper work to be approved. Can I file married filling jointly even if she doesn't have a ssn and her kids also I do support them and my wife has no income

Might find out differently... but 20 years ago I was in the same situation... only no kids. And I wasn't allowed to claim her then. BUT the rules may have changed since then... and you do need a unique ID number for every dependent you claim... they won't get an SSN until the gain citizenship... but with have another gov issued number when they get green cards.


Good luck getting that status change... I went through hell for 2 years before I was successful getting my wife's changed. Hopefully you will encounter more competent INS people than I did.

Yes, you CAN file jointly by applying for an Individual Tax Identification Number (ITIN) for your wife and children. You can claim the children IF they spent at least one day in the U.S. in 2010.

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