Hi

Myself and my husband both entered USA in F1 visa in sep 2009

Sep 2009 to Sep 2010 - F 1 visa

October 2010 to sep 2011 - opt period

Oct 2011 on wards H1B. We got married in May 2011. We work for the same company full time in both OPT and H1 B. But during our OPT period we also worked as partime for another company as PRN. So I have 2 w2 and my husband has 3 w2's. Now my question is what's the nest method for filing our taxes? We approached one consultancy and they say as we have to file it jointly now our tax bracket is high and we have to pay taxes back. Our company with held our taxes as filing status single only . So I hope they have taken as much as they could. Then why do we have to pay back. And they also say we are not eligible for any deduction. I am confused whether I have to file as NR or resident. Also is there any way that we could deal this scenario? Please do help us. Because at present we don't have that much money to pay back. We went for extra work to pay our education loan only. Is there any way we could claim the education loan paid in India for USA study?

I would have to look at the W-2s and model the tax returns BOTH ways (separate as non-resident aliens or married filing jointly) to determine which offers the best course of action.

You CAN claim the interest on the education loan in your home country (regardless of HOW you file) IF you can prove that the loan was used to pay ONLY tuition and fees and was not a jumbo loan that also funded your lviing expenses while attending college. I have a client who just recently claimed the interest on such a loan, was challenged on it by the IRS, and, after providing the necessary documents to show it paid ONLY tuition and fees, he had his student loan interest deduction AFFIRMED by the IRS.

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