[shiva krishna]

Hi to all,

My Question is, I got married in August 2008.. and my wife is coming to USA in Feb 2009 as dependent(H4).. So, my question is can I include her while filing returns for the year 2008.. my payroll shows my marital status as Single.. when should I change that to married?. will that effect me while filing returns ?

And can I know how much monthly tax percentage is reduced when I change marital status to married in my payroll?

--Thank uu..

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

You can and should file jointly with your wife, though you may need to wait until she gets here so she sign the tax return and the Form W-7 to get her Individual Tax Identification Number (ITIN).

As for the withholding, since you are Indian, you can change your withholding status to Married with two exemptions. You should do this as soon as possible.

Your withholding WILL go down, but I cannot say by how much.

[shiva krishna]

Thanks a lot for Quick Response..
But my is not here in 2008, How can file jointly ?
You said to change the status as soon as possible.. But without my wife here, can I change my marital status to Married in Pay roll ?

--Thank You

[shiva krishna]

Thanks a lot for Quick Response..
But my wife is not here in 2008, How can I file jointly for 2008 ?
You said to change the status as soon as possible.. But without my wife here, can I change my marital status to Married in Pay roll ?

--Thank You

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Your wife's physical location is irrelevent!

You can file jointly even if she was still in India, so you can change to MARRIED status on the W-4 now that you are in fact married.

[shiva krishna]

Thanks a lot for giving me Quick response.. it helped me a lot..

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Glad to help!