Has your husband been in the US continuously since you got married? Because that affects whether he's considered a resident alien or non-resident alien for tax purposes. If he passes the substantial presence test (basically in the US for 183 days or more in a year), he might actually be considered a resident alien for tax purposes regardless of his immigration status. This matters because resident aliens are taxed on worldwide income, while non-resident aliens are only taxed on US-source income. It completely changes the approach to addressing the back taxes.

I want to emphasize something that might get overlooked in all the technical discussion - don't panic about this situation. While it's complex, the IRS generally works with taxpayers who are making good faith efforts to come into compliance. Given the complexity of your situation (married filing status issues, NRA determination, 20 years of unfiled returns), I'd strongly recommend working with an Enrolled Agent or CPA who specializes in international tax matters. They can help you prioritize which issues to address first and in what order. One thing to consider is that your husband may not actually owe taxes for all those years - if his income was below certain thresholds or if tax treaties apply based on his country of origin, some years might not have required filing at all. The key is getting professional guidance to navigate this systematically rather than trying to tackle everything at once. Start with getting him an ITIN, correcting your recent filing status, and then working backward through the most critical years. This isn't insurmountable - it just needs a careful, strategic approach.

Just a heads up - if your insurance reimbursed you for any of the damage, you need to subtract that from your casualty loss calculation. The IRS only allows you to deduct losses that weren't covered by insurance. Same goes for any FEMA assistance you received for repairs.

I went through something very similar after Hurricane damage last year. For documentation, I found that taking detailed photos before any cleanup was crucial - I wish I had taken more! The IRS accepts multiple types of evidence for fair market value: 1) Contractor estimates (like others mentioned) - get at least 2-3 if possible 2) Insurance adjuster reports - even if they denied coverage, their damage assessment is valuable 3) Real estate appraisals if you have recent ones 4) Receipts for original purchases when available 5) Online research for replacement costs (save screenshots with dates) For your specific situation with back-to-back storms, make sure to clearly separate the damage from each event since they're different FEMA declarations. I had to create a detailed timeline showing what was damaged in storm #1 vs. what additional damage occurred in storm #2. One thing that caught me off guard - if you're planning to rebuild/repair, keep ALL receipts. Sometimes the actual repair costs can help support your "difference in value" calculations, especially if contractors find additional damage during the work that wasn't initially visible. The key is having a paper trail for everything. The IRS wants to see that you made reasonable efforts to establish fair values, not necessarily that you hired expensive appraisers.

Wait, I think there might be some confusion about the timing here. You mentioned buying the vehicle "in the next couple months" - are you planning to take delivery in 2024 or 2025? This is crucial because the income limits are based on the tax year when you actually take delivery of the vehicle. If you're taking delivery in 2024, you can use either your 2023 or 2024 income to qualify (whichever is more favorable). But if you're taking delivery in 2025, you'd need to use your 2025 income, which makes planning much harder since you don't know what that will be yet. Also, given the California community property issue that others mentioned, your MFS strategy won't work regardless. But if your 2023 combined income was under $300k and you can take delivery before year-end 2024, you might still be able to qualify by filing jointly for 2023. What was your actual combined income for 2023? And can you adjust your purchase timeline to take delivery in 2024 if needed?

Holly, I see you're getting great advice here about the California community property rules potentially derailing your MFS strategy. But I want to add another angle that might help - have you looked into whether you qualify for any of the other clean vehicle credits that might have different income limits? For instance, if you're considering a used EV instead of new, the used clean vehicle credit has lower income thresholds ($150k MFJ, $75k MFS) but also a lower credit amount ($4,000 max). There's also the commercial clean vehicle credit if you have any legitimate business use, though as others mentioned, you need to be very careful about the business use requirements. Also, some states and utilities offer additional EV rebates that aren't tied to federal income limits. California has the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project (though it might be paused right now) and many utilities offer cash rebates for EV purchases. These could help offset some of the lost federal credit if you can't make the income limits work. Worth exploring all your options since the federal credit situation seems challenging with your income levels and California's community property rules.

quick question - wouldn't this situation be simpler if the parents just reported the entire sale on their return since they got most of the money? seems like unnecessary complication for the kid to report anything if they just got a small gift from the proceeds.

@Haley Bennett - I went through something very similar when my mom added me to her house deed before selling. Since your parents gifted you the ownership interest, you definitely need to report your portion even though you only received $6,800. Here's what worked for me: First, figure out your exact ownership percentage from the deed (sounds like it might be equal thirds if all three names are listed). Then on Form 8949, report only your percentage of the $240k proceeds. For basis, since it was a gift from your parents, you'll use your share of their original purchase price plus any improvements they made before gifting your interest. In FreeTaxUSA, when you get to the 1099-S section, there should be an option to edit or override the amounts. Enter your calculated portion and add a description like "Reporting 33.33% ownership interest per deed" in the description field. The key is making sure your reported numbers match your actual ownership percentage, not the cash you received. Don't stress too much - this is actually a common situation and the IRS sees it all the time with family property sales!

Hey OP, just curious - how long have you been trying to get this sorted? I'm in a similar boat and wondering how long I'm gonna be treading water 🏊‍♂️

Based on my experience, here's what I'd recommend for getting that Letter of Indemnity: 1. **Call early in the morning** (like 7-8 AM) - wait times are usually shorter 2. **Have your EIN/SSN ready** plus the exact bank routing/account info 3. **Be super specific** about what the letter needs to say - the IRS reps aren't mind readers 4. **Get a case number** for your request so you can reference it in follow-ups Also, some banks have specific forms they want the IRS to use, so check with your bank first about their requirements. Saved me a lot of back-and-forth when I had to do this for a business account issue. The whole process took about 2-3 weeks for me, but that was with one revision needed. Good luck! 🤞