Married Taxes

**mnmarty03** · 05-18-2009, 01:12 PM

Hey! It's been awhile since I've been here, but you guys always give the best advise..so I'm back.

I recently got married. My husband is a German citizen who is immigrating here. He currently can't work legally but will have his work permit and (hopefully) a job around Aug. 2009.

I make 21,000 a year for both of us. I used the IRS 2009 withholding calculator and based on my information they said that I should get all of my fed. taxes withheld back April 2010 and should have 2 allowances on my W4 form.

My question though - is how will my husband getting a job in Aug. affect this? Should I adjust my withholding now in preparation for this or should I leave my withholding at 2 allowances?

Also - he recieved a sizeable inheritance (10,000 euros) from his grandparent's death recently... we will be paying taxes on the money to the German government and the money itself is staying in his German bank account (we are using a German credit card to "spend" the money, then paying the bill each month with his German account). Will we need to pay American taxes on this money? I'm pretty sure the answer is no - but I just want to make sure.

Thanks for the help!

**kellieetter** · 05-18-2009, 02:16 PM

I am not sure about everything else but when I got married last year I changed my withholding to allow more money in pay check ONLY because my husband made less then me. My accountant said in that situation it is a good idea.

**mnmarty03** · 05-21-2009, 07:21 PM

Alright - Thanks for the reply. I find all of this tax stuff super confusing... and my husband understands it less than I do... lol.

If anyone else has any thoughts let me know - sorry it took so long to get back to this post. We had internet the day I posted it - then since then (until today) our internet hasn't worked!

Thanks again.

**xtena** · 05-21-2009, 08:03 PM

Is your husband already here? I'm thinking the IRS may want to tax the inheritance. Did he inherit before or after the marriage?. If you were already married, they may not care if the money is in a foreign country; if your husband already has a taxpayers ID number (or an SSN) even foreign income may be taxable if you are living on U.S. soil.

Since it's in a foreign bank account, being spent with a foreign credit card, there is no U.S. record so you would probably be safe to not report it; but I'm not recommending you break the law. You should research it on the IRS website.

**CrazyCat** · 06-02-2009, 11:12 AM

I would leave your withholding as it is. If and when he does get a job...then he will want to put 0 or 1. If you overpay...you will get it back...but if you UNDERPAY...it's a red flag...you will owe interest.

I would consult a legal opinion on the inheritance. Perhaps the attorney in Germany can help you with that.

**mnmarty03** · 06-03-2009, 08:40 AM

Thanks for the advice guys. I should do more searching on the IRS website or with an attorney. The inheritance came after we were married. Hopefully we won't have to pay taxes on it twice (Germany and America) - that would be a huge bummer.