My Parents Doesn’t Have a SSN and I can’t file my tax without it.

dnhem5#50#2
dnhem5#50#2 Member Posts: 1 Newcomer
in Situation & Life Changes

To preface, I’m currently a 21 years old full-time international student in California. I have been living here for almost a year now. My parents, Non-US Citizens, are back at home in Cambodia.

I recently obtained my SSN last January, and I also work at my university and make some earned income. However, this income isn’t more than half of what my parent supported me with since they primarily provide financial assistance to help pay my tuition.

As such, I’m led to the page where I have to fill out my parent’s information specifically their SSN which they do not have because they are not US citizens.

This is the only hurdle left that is preventing me from filing my tax return. I’ve filed for an extension just in case. How can I proceed forward?

I would also like to ask if the federal refund I’m getting is higher than the tax I have to pay to California, does that mean I’m expecting a refund in the end from the IRS? If so, if I were to miss the tax deadline, would I incur a tax penalty even though I don’t owe them money?

This is my first time filing taxes so any guidance is much appreciated! Thank you.

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Answers

  • CoryF
    CoryF FreeTaxUSA Agent Posts: 231 image
    edited February 23

    Thank you for joining our community, Dnhem.

    This is a CA issue for underage taxpayers that have unearned income. Yes, the Form 3800 does ask for Parent's information, but since they don't live in the U.S. or have SSN/ITIN there is no way to report their information on the FreeTaxUSA page for Parent Information. You will have to input their name and a bogus SSN with ****-XX-****, to leave the page and move forward. There is a bubble for "Didn't file a California Tax Return". This will allow you to move forward. There is a tax applied to unearned income that will be added to your CA Form 540 tax.

    February 23, 2026 addendum: This may allow you to bypass the alerts, but end up rejecting the E-File. FreeTaxUSA does not support this issue where the Parents don't have an SSN/ITIN for filing on our software.

    Refunds from the IRS come separate from any state refund or tax owed. Meaning, if you have a federal refund from your return, you will get it separate. You will have to pay CA separate as well. FreeTaxUSA 2023 software provides refund information at the top of the account page for federal and your state.

    If you are receiving a refund from the federal return, there is no penalty to filing after the deadline on a tax extension. You are welcome to follow the direction in this comment, or you can ask for more support by upgrading your account to Deluxe or Pro Support and start a chat with an Agent.

  • Filly
    Filly Member Posts: 1 Newcomer
    https://community.freetaxusa.com/discussion/comment/2016#Comment_2016

    Thank you for your response.

    I just want to make sure I understand correctly before I proceed.

    Am I supposed to file my California tax return using my parent’s real name and enter a dummy SSN such as 999-88-9999 in order to move forward? Or is there another recommended way to handle this situation since my parents do not have an SSN or ITIN and do not live in the U.S.?

    Also, if I use FreeTaxUSA to file my CA return with that dummy SSN entered for my parent, will that cause any issues with the state filing? I want to make sure everything is filed correctly and does not create problems later.

    Thank you for your help.

  • TaxMorgan
    TaxMorgan FreeTaxUSA Agent Posts: 79 image
    Hello Filly,

    I would recommend reaching out to Customer Support in your account to assist with this. That way, they will have access to your account information and can better direct you to the necessary screens to resolve this. You can contact us by clicking on 'Support' in your account.

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