MFJ with NRA Spouse

prin

My wife is a NRA, but earns income here in the United States. Is it possible to print out my return so that I can send it in via mail with Form W-7 for her, or will I have to use another software to file? If I can print it out, how will I fill out information regarding my spouse? Will I just put N/A where it asks for SSN/ITIN? Thank you.

GeorgeM

Hello prin:

Given your tax situation, your options are limited using our software. You could file as Married Filing Separately; however, because it appears you want to file as Married Filing Jointly, we will discuss what you can do as MFJ.

If you want to file as MFJ, follow these steps:

1. Select the Personal tab, and then select the option to enter information about your spouse.

2. For your spouse’s Social Security number, enter a fake number, such as 99-88-9999. You will need to delete this fake Social Security number before you mail your tax return to the IRS.

3. Select No to the question regarding whether your spouse was a non-resident alien. If you select Yes at this point, you will get a notice that we do not support the filing that includes a non-resident alien.

4. Continue through the rest of the software, but when you get to the Final Steps, select the option to print your tax return. Do not e-file your tax return.

5. On your printed copy, remove the fake social security number you entered in step 2 above. You may have to put some tape over the fake social security number and then make another copy of the first page of your Form 1040.

6. Prepare Form W-7 and attach it to your tax return, along with any other supporting documentation.

7. Mail your completed tax return to the address provided on the Form W-7.
The IRS will write in the assigned ITIN on your tax return and forward the tax return for processing.

Please keep in mind that our software does not support foreign earned income or the foreign earned income exclusion.

Recently, we published a very relevant article that explains the tax options available to you given that your spouse is a non-resident alien. The article explains how to file as Married Filing Separately if you decide that may be the better option for you. You can find our article here by selecting this link:

https://community.freetaxusa.com/kb/articles/118-can-a-nonresident-of-the-u-s-file-a-tax-return-with-freetaxusa