老婆去年下半年在美国找到工作，老公在加拿大读书，应该如何报税？

yvan_wa · 发表于 2006-4-5 12:52

usually the mom may claim her son as dependent, if the son is living with the mom in US for the residence period. however there are special cases, if you can prove that the son failed to living in the US is because the reason of school (for example, his mom moved to US in the middle of a school term, the son has to finish that term then join his mom after the term), then the mom can still claim. if after the school term, the son is still out side the US, then your proof may not be strong enough to support that the son was temporary for special reason living out side the US .

Post by booooooooks
Yes, you are right. to meet either the bona fide residence test or the physical presence test can be eligible.

to woandlion，我帮你问过irs了，你们不能claim child credit。因为你的孩子不是resident。她/他也不能claim to be treated as resident因为只有spouse才能claim。而且他们的还解释到那个共同住半年的要求是说要住在美国半年。

如果不能申请child credit，那就。。。。还是nonresident吧form1040NR:eek: 。因为即使make firt year choice，作为part-year resident也不能claim standard deduction。

只是一个建议，你自己算吧。群策群力，有很多很好的建议，但是够你忙的。

booooooooks · 发表于 2006-4-5 13:59

Yes, they can claim their child as dependant. However, to claim as dependant is different from claiming Child Credits. there are some requirements for Child Credits.

Post by yvan_wa
usually the mom may claim her son as dependent, if the son is living with the mom in US for the residence period. however there are special cases, if you can prove that the son failed to living in the US is because the reason of school (for example, his mom moved to US in the middle of a school term, the son has to finish that term then join his mom after the term), then the mom can still claim. if after the school term, the son is still out side the US, then your proof may not be strong enough to support that the son was temporary for special reason living out side the US .

契丹蒙香 · 发表于 2006-4-5 20:39

TO yvan_wa  and booooooooks  :

IS  IT  A  MUST  THAT  I  should declare  to Canada the money which  my wife earned in the US?

because it is just a  private personnal  cheque without no sign of salary!

thanks so much for your guys`warmhearted advices!

yvan_wa · 发表于 2006-4-5 23:18

;)
the form of payment (personal check, cash or direct deposite etc.) does not change the type of income. was your wife working on a working visa in the US? is her employer going to claim the payment as employer's expenses?

you can think and decide what to do with that income based on that infomation.

Post by 契丹蒙香
TO yvan_wa and booooooooks :

IS IT A MUST THAT I should declare to Canada the money which my wife earned in the US?

because it is just a private personnal cheque without no sign of salary!

thanks so much for your guys`warmhearted advices!

booooooooks · 发表于 2006-4-5 23:46

Have you received W2 from your employer? Have you reported the income to the States? If not, I guess, but I am not sure, that you don't have to report it to Canada.

Your situation is kind of weird. If you had a formal employment, then you should have a work permit in the States, even if you are a Canadian Citizen. With a work permit, you should receive W2 and pay checks. But....... :rolleyes:

Post by 契丹蒙香
TO yvan_wa and booooooooks :

IS IT A MUST THAT I should declare to Canada the money which my wife earned in the US?

because it is just a private personnal cheque without no sign of salary!

thanks so much for your guys`warmhearted advices!

BL.TAX · 发表于 2006-4-6 22:10

what i have been doing is to determine if you should join your wife to file US tax return because you have the choice.

my calculation may not be 100% right as i did in a rush ( i had limited time to the internet as i was at the library), just to help you reasoning as i said.

7300 may not be the exact amount ( should be around 7000) for the same reason above ( i had no chance to check it). It is the threshold eligible for 10% tax rate if you file seperately. but will be double if you file jointly. 10% is the first level rate of tax correspondingly.

the reason that i didn't metion child credit up to now is that it has no effect on your choice between resident or non-resident for yourself. it does not depend on if your filing status. your wife will get the credit anyway as long as the kid is eligible(in fact, he is not just as booooooooks comfirmed).

Post by woandlion
Hi guys, thanks for your helpful input.

To BL.TAX:
In your posts, you mentioned "I can't see too much benefits for you to file US return jointly. If you pay a little of tax in Canada, your FTC will be a little, even less, acoordingly. Why do you like to report your income in US?"

I am a little confused. In fact, you discussed if we should file as resident or non-resident (not jointly or separately), right?
(15000-4000-5000-3200)*15%=420, not 300
In (25760-3049-5000-3200-7300)*(15%-10%)=350, what are 7300 and 10%?

Another question:
Why did nobody mention child tax credit? If file as resident, we can claim child tax crdit, which will reduce $1000 directly from our tax, right?

To booooooooks:
You mentioned "你加拿大的income earned druing non-resident period，不用报给美国。也就是说你的收入如果是去美国之前挣的，就不用报给美国。只报去美国之后的那部分。因为first year choice只是part-year resident。"

Where can I find 原文 of the above?
If so, I guess I can't get the total amount of the deduction $5000 and exemption $3200. Probably, only part of them.