I’m on h1 and Spouse working as well. Joined a new company and trying to submit w4 for federal withholding. I’m checking the box Non resident alien but when I check the box it says *Marital status must be single or married filing separately when Non resident alien box is checked* since I checked the marital status as Married filing jointly because we have been filing jointly. For more info I looked up Notice 1392, supplemental form w4 instructions for Non resident aliens it says *do not account for spouse’s job coz non resident aliens may not file jointly*. Is this for real ? Is it okay to go with *single or married filing separately * and select the check box Non resident alien even if we plan to file jointly?
If you and your spouse are residing in US then you would marked as “married filing jointly” and Check Resident Alien.
Resident alien for tax purposes and resident is different thing. If you qualify for presence test then you are resident alien.
Jus looked up. Looks like anyone who is not a citizen is non resident alien. However for tax purposes if you either meet the green card test or substantial presence test(total days of presence is >=183 in calendar year) you are resident alien. Hence I’m not a non resident alien for tax purposes, so I don’t have to check the NRA box. Thanks for the info, appreciate it!
Yup most of the time first year you enter in US you can do NR and after that most will be resident alien unless large gaps in residency.