Question

Filing taxes with Canadian spouse.

Forum|Forum|3 years ago
March 26, 2023
1 reply
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Going to be filing jointly with my Canadian spouse, already have all the needed documents, such as the declaration and other items to setup having him declared as a resident for tax purposes and a form W7 to get an ITIN for him as well, and I know that we will need to mail our first return in to the IRS since we are applying for his ITIN with the returns.

I was going over the TurboTax software and I'm still not 100% sure where to enter his T4 information, I am assuming under foreign income and then using the statement from foreign employer?

But I was also thinking that since we have to mail it in anyways if it would be better to do a paper 1040.

But where you would enter the foreign income on a paper form, our combined is below the standard deduction, so there's no need for exclusion as we wouldn't be taxed. Would I just convert it to USD and add it to line 1a for W2 income or would I have to fill out a Schedule 1 and put it on line 8 for other income, so I don't think we'd need a form 2555 unless that's required for foreign income regardless.

I will most likely end up using TurboTax but I'm also trying to learn how to do it myself as well as best I can.

Or I just thought about it... would it be better or okay to use Schedule 1, line 8z for other income and state it's my husbands Canadian income in USD and then add it to the 1040 with that method since we made less combined than the standard deduction?

Thanks for any help!

E

ErnieS0

Convert your T4 slip into USD and report the amount on Form 1040 line 1h (Other earned income). Do not put it on line 1a. That’s for W-2 income and will not match up with what the IRS receives from employers.

You can claim a deduction or tax credit on tax paid to Canada. Some border states such as New York also allow credit.

For more help: Where do I enter the foreign tax credit (Form 1116) or deduction?

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Z

ZaiKajouAuthor

Thanks so much for the help. I wasn't quite sure where to put his T4 income, that was a great help.

I know for my W2 income I need to attach my W2 to the return since we have to file by mail for the first time along with our declaration and his ITIN application, but would I need to attach a copy of his T4 as well, or just my W2? (I'm fairly certain I only need to attach my W2, but just wanted to double-check that)

Thanks so much for the help.

E

ErnieS0

You only need to attach your W-2 since there is no U.S. tax withheld on the T4 slip.

You can send a copy of the T4 if you want to show your foreign income. Anything you send by mail will be scanned. However, if your return is questioned, there is no guarantee an examiner will even look at any non-required attachments you send so it's entirely possible you'd just have to send the same thing again.

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