[ewujun]

I am on H1b and does not pass significant presence test in 2007. My wife lives in home country and had been in the US for less than 30 days in 2007. I think I will need to file 1040nr. Am I single or married? I noticed that on w-4, there was a line saying" if you are married to a non-resident alien, choose SINGLE." Therefore, my federal tax status has always been single and since I am filing 1040nr, I cannot claim my wife as my dependent either. One trick is that single nr can claim student loan interest deduction while married nr cannot. Can I claim single status? Thanks

[ewujun]

Oh, by the way, we are not from Korea, India, Japan, Canada. Nr from those countries are treated differently.

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Ewujun:

If you want, you can file jointly with your wife and you BOTH choose to be treated as resident aliens for ALL of 2007. Her physical location is irrelevent; she could be on the moon for all the IRS cares. That way, you can file Form 1040 or 1040A or 1040EZ and claim her personal exemption and the double standard deduction of $10,700. Also, if you paid tuition in 2007, you can claim either a tuition credit or a tuition deduction.

The only downside to this option is that you BOTH must declare ALL of your world-wide 2007 income.

If you want my professional help to do this, email at the address below.

[ewujun]

Hi, Thanks for the note. For 2007, I am a non-resident alien since I don't pass the two tests. I don't think I can file a joint return with my wife and choose to be treated as residents, right? I sure can use some help.

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

If you have been in the U.S. for at least the month of December in 2007, you meet the criteria to file jointly with your wife.

You will just have to wait a little longer to file.

[ewujun]

So, I assume that I should file an extension and wait until I pass the significant presence test. Right?

Thanks for the answer. I did some research and see that your customers have some really nice things to say about your service. Therefore, I'd like to seek your professional help on preparing my 2007 tax return. Questions:

1. What is Platinum Package? I should buy one, if you are preparing for one return, even if it is a joint return, is that correct?
2. Is state/city tax return included in the package? I am in New York city.

You can email me at [email protected] if you don't want to answer online.

Thanks.

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Right!

I CANNOT discuss any package on this forum (forum rules), so I will email the answer.