I was a Indian Citizen and here are my status for last 5 years

F1: Sep 2002 to Aug 2005 (single)
OPT: 6th Sep 2005 - 5th Sep 2006 (married Dec 2005)
H1B: 1st Oct 2006 - 31st Dec 2006 (married)

I was assuming I would be filing my tax as a dual status for this year, but while reading the posts there was mention that dual status applies if I was on H1B before 1st July 06.

Can someone please advice me on what status should I file.

Thank You
Mohit

Mohit:

It is likely that filing jointly with your wife and choosing to be treated as resident aliens for the entire year is your best option. That gets you a double standard deduction of $10,300 and $6,600 in personal exemptions, making the first $16,900 of your income tax-free.

This option is available to your regardless of when you convereted from F-1 to H-1B.

The only requirement is that you wait until earlu June 2007 to file to meet the Substantial Presence Test requirement.

If you need my professional tax help, contact me at [email protected].