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hgd7833 · Feb 1, 2009, 06:45 AM

A resident alien ? Actually I am a student on F1 visa and came to USA in 2007. 4 days ago, a friend of mine advised me to fill out my tax return using the TURBO TAX. After submitting my application , some one told me I am not a resident alien and I am not supposed to use Turbo Tax, because that will give you more than you deserve. I went to my old friend to blame him but he is insist that since I have a baby born in 2008, I can treat myself as a resident alien, and my US baby has a $ 1000.00 credit back. He also says that the money is the same in either, and ask me just to ignore it because I am solely feeding my US baby.
I am confused now. Is what I did is right or wrong ? If wrong, what to do now ? Shall I wait until they deposit the money to my account, or notice them from now? Please if any of you is expert , I would appreciate any valuable true comments and advices.. I appreciate any kind of help.

hgd7833 · Feb 1, 2009, 06:48 AM

I forgot to say that the Turbo Tax claimed $ 7000.00 although my total federal and state tax deductions is $ 2800.00 .

MukatA · Feb 1, 2009, 10:35 AM

Please ask direct question directly. Why you did, what you did and who advised you is not needed.
What do you mean by "Turbo tax claimed $7,000 although my total federal and state tax deductions is $2,800."

Also, to answer your question we need more information:
Are you married? If yes, what is the resident status of your spouse? Did you file as single or married filing jointly? Did you claim your child as dependent? Did you get earned income credit? Did you get child tax credit?

Generally, everyone on F1 must file non-resident tax return for 5-years.

hgd7833 · Feb 1, 2009, 11:24 AM

I am married, and my wife is from Jordan, the same country of mine. I have a social security number since I am a teaching assistant. I filed as a single. I claimed my child as dependent. I got earned income tax of around $ 7000.00. The total federal and state that I paid in 2008 is $2,800.00.
My question again is : Is what I did right or wrong ? Can I use Turbo Tax ? If not, what to do now ? Thanks for your help

MukatA · Feb 1, 2009, 11:20 PM

Still a lot is not clear. Even if you filed resident return as single and claimed your child, you can not get back $7,000. Maximum you will get is $2,800 (taxes withheld) and $2917 (earned income credit).

You still did not answer the question: your wife's visa? You filed resident tax return, and you are married, how can you file as single? Did you claim your wife as dependent and for EIC?

hgd7833 · Feb 2, 2009, 01:52 PM

My wife is F2 visa. And I have another daughter as F2 as well.
I did not claim my wife and my big daughter as dependents, but I claimed my US baby which has been born here in 2008. They told me you have to file as single , and to mention only the US baby in order to get more money. I don't know if that's true or not, but I just trusted them.

hgd7833 · Feb 2, 2009, 01:53 PM

I mean. I came here with my wife and a daughter, they came with F2 visa, and me with F1. We had another daughter born in US IN November 2008

hgd7833 · Feb 2, 2009, 05:49 PM

I hope to hear from you soon Mr Mukata.

hgd7833 · Feb 3, 2009, 07:59 AM

I hope to hear from you soon.

AtlantaTaxExpert · Feb 6, 2009, 12:07 PM

I believe that I have already answered your question via email, but I will answer it again for public consumption.

If you and your wife were non-resident aliens under F-1/F-2 visas, the fact that you had a child in the U.S. does NOT make you resident aliens.

Further, neither you nor your wife can claim EITHER of your children as dependents due to your non-resident alien status.

However, even though you cannot claim your U.S.-born daughter as a dependent, you CAN claim the $1,000 Child Tax Credit for your younger daughter because, by law, she is a U.S. citizen.

Beause you filed as a resident alien under SINGLE status, you filed INCORRECTLY.

You should have filed Form 1040NR with Form 8901 to claim the $1,000 Child Tax Credit. You will need to amend the return using Form 1040X plus a properly-prepared Form 1040NR, 8843 and 8901 attached to the Form 1040X.

Do NOT spend the money you received on the original tax return. You can expect to repay AT LEAST half of that money back to the IRS.

powerlee · Mar 20, 2009, 02:32 PM

But our university just told us to fill in form 1040NR-EZ and 8843... They say that international students staying here less than five years are not qualified for this... Confused!

Originally Posted by AtlantaTaxExpert

I believe that I have already answered your question via email, but I will answer it again for public consumption.

If you and your wife were non-resident aliens under F-1/F-2 visas, the fact that you had a child in the U.S. does NOT make you resident aliens.

Further, neither you nor your wife can claim EITHER of your children as dependents due to your non-resident alien status.

However, even though you cannot claim your U.S.-born daughter as a dependent, you CAN claim the $1,000 Child Tax Credit for your younger daughter because, by law, she is a U.S. citizen.

Beause you filed as a resident alien under SINGLE status, you filed INCORRECTLY.

You should have filed Form 1040NR with Form 8901 to claim the $1,000 Child Tax Credit. You will need to amend the return using Form 1040X plus a properly-prepared Form 1040NR, 8843 and 8901 attached to the Form 1040X.

Do NOT spend the money you received on the original tax return. You can expect to repay AT LEAST half of that money back to the IRS.