TN Visa living & working in US who earned income on F-1

HyeHustle · Post by **HyeHustle** » Wed Apr 14, 2010 10:27 am

I searched through the forum, but was unable to find an answer to this specific scenario. Hope you can help.

I currently have TN visa status (which I obtained in January 2010) and live and work in the U.S. with my wife, who has a TD visa. I got married in October 2009. The entire calendar year of 2009, I was on an F-1 OPT visa, and lived and worked in the U.S. My employer withheld Federal tax, social security tax, and medicare tax.

My only income for the entire 2009 year was U.S. wages. I live and work in Florida, therefore, there is no state income tax.

(1) Do I file in the U.S. only? (I have no Canadian-sourced income)
(2) Can I get any of my withheld taxes back under the treaty?
(3) Can I file a joint return for the entire 2009 year, even though I was married in Canada in October 2009, and my wife obtained her TD in January 2010, which still does not allow her to be employed in the U.S.?
(4) What forms am I required to file for my income tax return for 2009?

nelsona · Post by **nelsona** » Wed Apr 14, 2010 1:33 pm

On F1, you are not considered tax resident of US, so are still Cdn tax resident, until you got TN. So for 2009 you file in Canada as usual, and file 1040NR for US.

Was there a reason you got SS and medicare deducted, since F1's od not have to pay this.

I'll talk about options for filing 1040 instead, another time.

HyeHustle · Post by **HyeHustle** » Wed Apr 14, 2010 1:40 pm

Thanks for the quick response.

I do not know the reason SS and medicare were withheld. That is just what my employer did.

So, I file in Canada and convert my U.S. income to Canadian dollars? Although I meet the Substantial Presence Test, I still do no have to file in the U.S. solely because I had a F-1 OPT visa?

How about getting my withheld federal tax, SS, and medicare back? What do I do to get that back?

nelsona · Post by **nelsona** » Wed Apr 14, 2010 2:56 pm

Your days in F1 do not count towards SPT.

You still have to file a 1040NR which is for non-residents and report your US income on that, (reread my fiorst response please) and you will still probably owe some tax to US. The SS and medicare issue has to first be taken up with your employer. Then you can request SS and Medicare back from Govt.

See:
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p519/ch ... k100039396

HyeHustle · Post by **HyeHustle** » Wed Apr 14, 2010 9:03 pm

Got it. Now, the last part of the question:

I got married in October 2009 and my wife only got her TD in January 2010. May I file a joint return or claim her as a dependent? If so, does she need to get an ITIN, as she does not have a SSN? Do I need to file two Form 8843s?

Thanks!