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ajdaruka · Dec 20, 2012, 12:36 PM

Hi,

I came to US on 7/17/2012 on a L1B Visa and I have been working since then and US taxes are being cut from my salary each pay slip.
As till Dec 2012 I will be staying less than 183 days, so will I get my paid taxes back?
And if yes how and via what process? What do I need to do?

Thanks

taxesforaliens · Dec 20, 2012, 01:14 PM

You are required to pay income taxes in the US. You should file a tax return for 2012. You are a non-resident alien for 2012, so you would need to file form 1040NR or form 1040NR-EZ. Depending on your withholdings, you might get a refund. Depending on where you live, you might also have to file a state return.
Are you staying in the US? Are you married? Children? There are some other options available which might be more beneficial (First Year choice, filing jointly as resident etc), depending on your answers

ajdaruka · Dec 20, 2012, 01:57 PM

Yes, I am currently staying in Georgia US. I got married on 28th Nov 2012 in India but my spouse doesn't have a SSN as of now.

dontknownuthin · Dec 20, 2012, 03:36 PM

You are not taxed based on how many days you work or for how long. You are taxed based on your income. You will have to file a tax return as explained. If you have overpaid (paid more taxes than are required for your income) you will get a refund. If you have not paid enough, you will have to pay more. If you paid just the right amount, it will be even - no refund, no more owed.

If you are unfamiliar with the tax process, take all of your records to a tax preparer. Even storefront operations like H&R Block can do a good job on a basic return and explain the process to you. You will get W-2s from each employer you worked for and if you were self employed there are different forms for that. You bring all those forms to the tax preparer and they will walk you through the rest of the process.

AtlantaTaxExpert · Dec 20, 2012, 03:53 PM

The basic advice from dontknownuthin is good, but you need to take your return to a tax preparer who specializes in non-resident returns (Form 1040NR) if you choose to file that type of return.

It is probably most advantageous for you to file jointly with your wife, filing Form 1040 with Form 1116 to claim the Foreign Tax Credit. Form 1116 is required because you must claim ALL world-wide income earned in 2012, and the Form 1116 allows you to claim a credit for the income taxes paid to your home country. This applies to BOTH your Indian salary AND your wife's Indian salary (and the taxes paid from those salaries).

Note that you must WAIT until 8 May 2013 before you can file this joint return.

You will need to apply for Individual Tax Identification Numbers (ITINs) for your wife by submitting Form W-7, and that process has undergone some radical procedural changes this past year. Instead of the simple notarization process, the IRS now requires that your home country certify the photocopy of your passport as a true copy. This is due to rampant fraud in the ITIN submission process. the notaries simply cannot tell the difference between a fake passport and the genuine passport.

This certification can be done by the Indian Interior Ministry. Your wife can probably get it done in person at a local ministry office.

The alternative is to mail in the actual passport itself, something most of my clients are reluctant to do.

If you believe that you will need professional help filing this year, this IS what I do. Please double-click on my name (Atlanta Tax Expert) above to access my profile. You will find my email address in the signature portion of the profile (scroll down to the BOTTOM of the page).