Tax Treatment of NRAs Married to U.S. Citizens

Section 6013(g) of the Internal Revenue Code allows a nonresident alien who is married to a U.S. citizen or to a resident alien to elect with his or her spouse to file a joint return as if both spouses were residents of the USA.

That same section of the Code specifies that a nonresident alien for the purposes of Chapter 1 (income taxes) and Chapter 24 (income tax withholding) of the Code. Thus, the nonresident alien spouse you described may file a Form W-4 with your institution claiming the same exemptions she would be entitled to if she were a resident alien. She should complete the W-4 herself and attach a statement to the form W-4, stating that she elects to be treated as a resident alien for income tax purposes under IRC 6013(g).

Caution: IRC 6013(g) of the code does not specify that a nonresident alien who elects to file a joint return under IRC 6013(g) shall be treated as a resident alien for the purposes of chapter 21 of the Code (FICA taxes). Thus, a nonresident alien who elects to file a joint return under IRC 6013(g) of the Code must still be treated as a nonresident alien with respect to FICA taxes for as long as he/she remains a nonresident alien.