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Filing Taxes as Single After Getting Married

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  • 02-28-2014, 09:15 AM
    nbanik1987
    Filing Taxes as Single After Getting Married
    I am a non resident alien, married a US citizen in Aug 2013, currently applying for Green Card. My wife (US citizen) is filing her tax through her CPA, and found that she will have to pay $48 to the IRS. My wife is a full time student and works a full time job at a bank. She was taxed heavily on her bonuses and her paychecks as usual. So of course we were shocked! On contacting the CPA, he is saying that she can file as single, in which case she will get back $3000 as tax refunds. Now all these just doesn't make sense to any of us. Is the CPA making a mistake? Should we get a TurboTax package and file it on our own?

    As a side note, if it is of any use, I am a full time grad student, and my school provides tax filing software for free. I filed my tax as married (as the software asked me whether I was married as of the last day of 2013) and I am getting the usual ~$500 back.
  • 02-28-2014, 09:17 AM
    Dogmatique
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    She cannot file as single.

    The reason for this is very simple: She is married, and IRS generally doesn't like it when people lie about their status.

    Certainly dump the CPA.
  • 02-28-2014, 06:56 PM
    llworking
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    Quote:

    Quoting Dogmatique
    View Post
    She cannot file as single.

    The reason for this is very simple: She is married, and IRS generally doesn't like it when people lie about their status.

    Certainly dump the CPA.

    The only instance where it can maybe be ok to file as single when you are not, is if your spouse does not yet have a SSN or PTIN, and filing as single produces exactly the same result as married filing separately. In this instance you obviously have an SSN, since you are filing taxes yourself, and her filing as single absolutely does not produce the exact same result.

    So I agree...she needs to dump the CPA.
  • 02-28-2014, 07:00 PM
    Bubba Jimmy
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    Ask yourself this questions: if a married person could just file as single, why would there be a filing status of Married Filing Separately? If the law didn't require a married person to file as a married person, why would anyone voluntarily sign up for a filing status that had a higher tax rate? So obviously, there is no legal way for any married person to file as single.

    Why did you and your spouse not file a joint return? From the IRS:

    Quote:

    "If, at the end of your tax year, you are married and one spouse is a U.S. citizen or a resident alien and the other is a nonresident alien, you can choose to treat the nonresident as a U.S. resident."
  • 02-28-2014, 08:26 PM
    nbanik1987
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    Quote:

    Quoting Bubba Jimmy
    View Post
    Why did you and your spouse not file a joint return? From the IRS:

    Really?!
    Because the software that my school provided told me that my wife who is not a dependent needs to file her tax separately.
  • 02-28-2014, 08:36 PM
    Dogmatique
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    Did you actually tell the software she was a dependent?

    Instead of just typing in "married", or clicking the right button>
  • 03-01-2014, 11:13 AM
    llworking
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    Quote:

    Quoting nbanik1987
    View Post
    Really?!
    Because the software that my school provided told me that my wife who is not a dependent needs to file her tax separately.

    You misunderstood the software. She is not your dependent, she is your spouse. The two of you should have filed a joint return. You can remedy the problem by filing an amended return to add her as spouse and to add her income. Use a tax professional for that.
  • 03-01-2014, 02:15 PM
    flyingron
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    You only have two options as a married couple (barring a few things that would allow you to be considered unmarried which do not appear to apply here): married--filing jointly, married--filing separately. But the key word is MARRIED, not single, not head of household.
  • 03-01-2014, 08:49 PM
    Bubba Jimmy
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    Quote:

    Quoting nbanik1987
    View Post
    Really?!
    Because the software that my school provided told me that my wife who is not a dependent needs to file her tax separately.

    Okay, on the basis of this statement I conclude that you are not capable of preparing an accurate tax return using software. Please consult with a tax professional before you end up costing yourself any more money needlessly.
  • 03-02-2014, 09:20 PM
    nbanik1987
    Re: U.S. Citizen Taxed for Marrying Nra
    Quote:

    Quoting Dogmatique
    View Post
    Did you actually tell the software she was a dependent?

    Instead of just typing in "married", or clicking the right button>

    I clicked on the radio button saying married, and then when asked to list the dependents, i just left it blank.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote:

    Quoting Bubba Jimmy
    View Post
    Okay, on the basis of this statement I conclude that you are not capable of preparing an accurate tax return using software. Please consult with a tax professional before you end up costing yourself any more money needlessly.

    I really don't understand the tax laws. I am trying to consult a professional.
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