[Mia Lee]

I'm from China, and my status changed from F1 to H1 Oct this year.
I got married and my husband is in F1 but he's already been here for 5 years so he's resident alien now I guess...

My questions are:
1. Can I still claim $5000 tax treaty? I'm still nonresident alien and for the first 10 month I was in F1-OPT.
2. Can my husband still claim $5000 tax treaty although he's already resident alien? I think I read somewhere said as long as he's still student he should still have the $5000 treaty but I want to make sure.
3. If we file jointly and I choose nonresident alien to be treated as resident alien, can we still claim tax treaty? If we can, $5000 or $10000?

Thanks.

[AtlantaTaxExpert]

Yes, you BOTH can claim the treaty exemption. There is NO time limit for your husband on his F-1 visa, and you get to claim it because you spent part of the year on F-1. For 2014, you will NOT be able to claim it because of your H-1B visa status.

This is allowed even though you will file a joint return. You need to submit Form 8833 to explain the treaty provisions.

If you need professional help, I have submitted similar returns for Chinese couples in your situation multiple times. If interested, email me at the email address in my profile.