Taxes for Canadian family in the US on TN visa

[Villatour]

We arrived in the US on April 1, 2023. I have a TN visa and both my kids and wife have a TD visa. They are described in all the documents as my dependents, which is what they are because they cannot work or even get a social security number. So, when I filled out my tax withholding last year, I indicated they are all my dependents. Not sure if this is connected, but it also looks like no federal taxes are beign deducted from my paycheck. Should I just wait until I file my taxes later this month at my local HR Block to see what's going on? Where did I err — if indeed err I did?

Thanks for any help.

[nelsona]

You must have made errors in filling out your W-4 withholding certificate, if indeed no taxes were withheld. You should file a new one with your employer NOW for 2024 to fix this going forward.

You will end up with (a) a HUGE tax bill now and (b) a penalty for not having sufficient tax withheld. Ouch.

Btw, first-year taxes are very difficult, and FAR above the capabilities of your corner HR Blockhead, since they need to be coordinated with your final Cdn departure tax return.

[Villatour]

You were totally correct. I may have made a mistake in trusting my local HR Block guy who said he could handle this. I met with him las Saturday and he says I ow $8k to the IRS. He initiated the request for an ITIN for my kids and wife and says I am now being treated as single without dependents precisely because they do not yet have said ITIN.

Is it too late to involve another professional?

[Villatour]

You were totally correct. I may have made a mistake in trusting my local HR Block guy who said he could handle this. I met with him las Saturday and he says I ow $8k to the IRS. He initiated the request for an ITIN for my kids and wife and says I am now being treated as single without dependents precisely because they do not yet have said ITIN.

Is it too late to involve another professional?