Offered relocation from Canada to the US.....

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howardsternisbatman
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Jun 12, 2015 7:14 pm

Offered relocation from Canada to the US.....

Post by howardsternisbatman »

Hello,

My work has offered me a relocation from Canada to the US, it will be on an L1 visa.

My current situation is this;

I am a Canadian citizen, legally separated, I am current with spousal and child support.

I will continue to pay the above from the U.S to my ex staying in Canada.

From what I understand spousal support (alimony) in the US is tax deductable...

Question: How do I / where do I account for this during tax time?

thanks!
ND
Posts: 334
Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2013 5:28 pm

Post by ND »

you make the claim on line 31a of your 1040; you also file 1042-S and withhold according to US-Canada treaty rate on alimony assuming your ex is NRA.

Alimony payments made by a US resident to his NRA former spouse are FDAP subject to 30% or treaty-reduced withholding [on Form 1042-S, Box 1 income code indicates 15 for alimony, for example, box 3a can indicate "4" for “exempt under tax treatyâ€￾ (such as UK treaty) and box 3b indicates the rate].

the NRA can supply Form W-8BEN to the W/A to establish that NRA is not a U.S. person; claim that NRA is the beneficial owner of the income for which Form W-8BEN is being provided; and claim an exemption from withholding as a resident of a foreign country with which the United States has an income tax treaty and who is eligible for treaty benefits

said W-BEN is valid without an ITIN so long as it lists the tax ID of the NRA from NRA’s country. However, for case at hand, you want your NRA ex to obtain an ITIN and provide it to you so that you may report it on line 31a of his 1040, as that will be necessary in order for you to make the 1040 claim.
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