[Nola07nov]

Hi, I am Nola. I hold H1-B.
My boy friend(now my husband) visited me with B1/B2 visa, and stayed with me in NY since Aug 07 until Jan 08. We got married in Nov 07. My husband doesn't have income in the US and he doesn't have SSN and ITIN.

What status I should use to maximize my tax return? Single, married jointly or married separately?

I'll have more questions, thanks in advance!

Nola

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

You CAN file jointly with him and you both CHOOSE to be treated as resident aliens, but that would require that he declare ALL of his 2007 world-wide income.

If you were H-1B for every day of 2007, then you can also file Married Filing Separately and claim him as dependent because he has NO U.S.-sourced income. You will need to file by mail, because he does not have a SSN or ITIN. You would put "NONRESIDENT ALIEN" where his SSN would go.

If you converted to H-1B anytime on or after 3 July 2007, you can file as a MARRIED non-resident alien and use the Married Filing Separate tax table to calculate your tax. Depending on your home country, you MAY be able to claim your husband as a dependent.

If you converted to H-1B anytime on or before 2 July 2007, you must file a dual-status return, and you can definitely claim your husband as a dependent.

You can also file dual-status if you converted to H-1B anytime on or after 3 July 2007, but you must WIAT until at least May 2008 before you can file.

If you find this confusing, then you may want to email me your details to see if you would benefit from my professional services. See email address below.

[Nola07nov]

I am on H1B everyday in 2007. My husband and I are both Taiwanese. My annual US income was 65,000 USD, and his 2007 income in Taiwan was 5,300 USD.

In which way I can get bigger refund? Married jointly or Separately?

Thanks!

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

File jointly. His extra standard deduction of $5,350 more than offsets his 2007 Taiwan income.

[Nola07nov]

Thanks for your help!

I am using TurboTax to file married jointly. Can you help me with following questions?

1. Using TurboTax to file married jointly rather than filling forms manually, is there anything I need to be aware of?

2. I assume that after I print out the forms generated by TurboTax, I should manually add W7 form (for my husband's ITIN) in the mail. Any other forms I need to manually add?

3. Does my husband need to write a statement saying he wants to be treated as resident alien?

4. If I declare his 2007 Taiwan salary in world income form 2555, do I really need to provide a document certifying how much he earned? If yes, what document is that? He might get a form similar to W2 from his previous company in a few weeks, but his previous company doesn't exist anymore, so to translate the salary document into English and notary it will be a big pain.

5. Under married jointly situation, can I choose NOT to declare his 2007 income?

6. Now my husband is in Taiwan, and I asked him to send his passport to me because I thought I could save him some hustle bustle running back and forth to US Embassy. Now his passport is with me in NYC but I just found out that my bank can't notary my husband's passport copy because he have to come in person. Is there any way I can get his passport copy notary without his presence? Or can I mail his original passport with W7?

Thanks again!

[MukatA]

1-2. You will attach W7 with your tax return. That is it can't be e-filed. You can use TurboTax and print the return.

2. Yes, both of you must sign the statement that you agree to be treated as residents as First Year Choice...

3. You don't attach any paper with your return as a proof of income so no need to get it translated or notarized. You need to show the IRS in case they question it.

4. No

5. Your husband should take the copy of the passport to the U.S. Consulate/Embassy in Taiwan. They will notarize it.

You can contact AtlantaTaxExpert to do your tax return: [email protected]