Hi,

I came to the US from India on H1B visa on April 2nd, 2011 and have been in the US since then. Also, my wife came to the US for two months (on H4) from 6th Aug, 2011 to 8th Aug, 2011. I have the following queries.

1. Do I qualify as resident alien or Non-resident Alien?
2. Can I file the return with my wife as dependent, or will I need to file as single?

You can file joint return as residents. On joint return you must both report your worldwide income for 2011.

You have a choice:

1) You can file by yourself and file dual-status. Since your wife spent SOME time in the U.S. you can claim her as a dependent. On the dual-status return, you would report ONLY your U.S. salary.

OR

2) You can file jointly with her and you both CHOOSE to be treated as resident aliens. In this case, it does NOT matter whether your wife was in the United States or not. Like MukatA noted, you must report all world-wide income in 2011, which means both your Indian salary AND her Indian salary, if applicable. You can offset any double taxation by filing Form 1116 to claim the Foreign Tax Credit for your Indian income taxes.

Option #2 is probably the best course of action tax-wise, but it is also more complex, because your wife has to apply for an Individual Tax Identification Number (Form W-7, which must be SIGNED by her) AND she has to sign the tax return and the Residency Choice Statement. That involves mailing the signed forms from India to you.

I have experience with this process. It takes a bit of time, but it CAN be done. If you want my professional help, double-click on my title above and scroll down to my profile/signature. You will find my email address and websites there.