{"id":199,"date":"2022-04-04T22:00:16","date_gmt":"2022-04-04T22:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ogtax.wpengine.com\/?p=163"},"modified":"2023-02-23T12:58:54","modified_gmt":"2023-02-23T12:58:54","slug":"need-itin-for-wife-even-though-married-filing-separately","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oandgaccounting.com\/staging\/need-itin-for-wife-even-though-married-filing-separately\/","title":{"rendered":"Do You Need an ITIN for Your Non-Resident Alien\/Foreign Spouse If You\u2019re \u201cMarried Filing Separately?\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"onefivequestion\">\n<div class=\"section container\">\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"container text-left\">\n<p>Recently, I received this question:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI married a Non-Resident Alien this year, she is not interested in filing jointly, therefore I\u2019ll have to file as \u2018Married Filing Separately\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>Another issue is that my foreign spouse does not have an ITIN or SSN. Can I still file as Married Filing Separately ? <\/p>\n<p>The simple answer is yes\u2014you can. You are not required to have an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/individuals\/how-do-i-apply-for-an-itin\">ITIN<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ssa.gov\/ssnumber\/\">SSN<\/a> for your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/individuals\/international-taxpayers\/nonresident-aliens\">Non-Resident<\/a> or Foreign spouse when filing as Married Filing Separately. In your case, all you have to do is write \u201cNRA\u201d where your spouse\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/individuals\/how-do-i-apply-for-an-itin\">ITIN<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ssa.gov\/ssnumber\/\">SSN<\/a> would normally go.<\/p>\n<p>You can find the instructions for this in the latest version of the IRS <a href=\"http:\/\/www.irs.gov\/pub\/irs-pdf\/p17.pdf\">Publication 17.<\/a> On page 24, it says:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf your spouse doesn&#8217;t have and isn&#8217;t required to have an SSN or ITIN, enter\u2018NRA\u2019 in the space for your spouse\u2019s SSN.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The instruction above will generally work for paper filing; however, some tax preparation software&#8217;s \u2014 such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.taxact.com\/?version=52607fea-9862-4f9f-9342-e7320167eca8&#038;ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Taxact<\/a> \u2014 will allow you to e-file as Married Filing Separately without your spouse\u2019s SSN or ITIN.<\/p>\n<p>Every year, I successfully e-file tax returns for my clients even when their spouses don\u2019t have an ITIN or SSN.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019d like some help with your tax return, I\u2019d be happy to lend a hand. As a licensed CPA, I\u2019ve helped countless taxpayers across the world file their US taxes and optimize their financial strategies.<\/p>\n<p><!--===============google ad=================--><\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3039986354638252\"\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n     style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\"\n     data-ad-layout=\"in-article\"\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3039986354638252\"\n     data-ad-slot=\"7838143718\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/p>\n<p><!--===============google ad=================--><\/p>\n<p>Just contact me, and I can:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Gather and review all the necessary documents<\/li>\n<li>Prepare your tax forms<\/li>\n<li>E-file or mail on your behalf<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u2026so you can focus on other things.<\/p>\n<p>I look forward to hearing from you!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/oandgaccounting.com\/staging\/appointment-booking-form\/\">Click here to get in touch today.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/ol>\n<p>If you&#8217;re in need of professional bookkeeping services, we recommend visiting our subsidiary, <a href=\"https:\/\/ursaservicesllc.com\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">URSA Services LLC<\/a>. They specialize in keeping your finances in order so you can focus on growing your business. Don&#8217;t worry, we&#8217;ll still be here to handle all your tax needs. <a href=\"https:\/\/ursaservicesllc.com\/\">Visit URSA Services LLC<\/a> today to learn more!!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Question: I married a nonresident this year and I have to file MFS, because my spouse is not interested in filing jointly, neither is she interested in obtaining an ITIN.  Can I file MFS without spouse SSN or ITIN?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3339,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Do You Need an ITIN for Your Non-Resident Alien\/Foreign Spouse If You\u2019re \u201cMarried Filing Separately?\u201d - O&amp;G Tax and Accounting<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/oandgaccounting.com\/staging\/need-itin-for-wife-even-though-married-filing-separately\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Do You Need an ITIN for Your Non-Resident Alien\/Foreign Spouse If You\u2019re \u201cMarried Filing Separately?\u201d - O&amp;G Tax and Accounting\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Question: I married a nonresident this year and I have to file MFS, because my spouse is not interested in filing jointly, neither is she interested in obtaining an ITIN. 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