Dual status tax resident- do I really need to file with no US income?

You're actually in a pretty straightforward situation despite the dual status complexity. The good news is that you likely don't need to file a US tax return for 2024 at all, since you had no US-source income and no worldwide income during your brief period as a US resident. The general rule is that non-resident aliens only need to file if they have US-source income. For the resident alien portion (that final week), you would normally need to report worldwide income, but since you had none during that specific period, there's nothing to report. The IRS doesn't typically require filing a return just to document zero income during a brief residence period. That said, some people in your situation choose to file a simple return anyway, just to establish a record with the IRS that you're in compliance from the start of your immigration journey.

After dealing with a similar situation when I moved here from Canada, I discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) which was super helpful for navigating this weird dual status situation. I uploaded my UK documents and it analyzed everything, confirming I didn't need to file for the year I arrived since I had no US income during my brief residency period. What I really liked is that it also helped me understand what I'd need for filing in the following year and gave me documentation explaining the rules around dual status aliens that I could keep for my records just in case. Might be worth checking out if you want peace of mind without paying for a full consultation with a tax pro.

Just wanted to follow up about taxr.ai that I was skeptical about earlier. I ended up trying it for my husband's dual status situation from Brazil, and I was genuinely impressed. The system actually showed me the exact sections of Publication 519 that applied to our situation and confirmed we didn't need to file for his partial year with zero US income. What really surprised me was that it created a detailed explanation document explaining why we weren't required to file that we could keep for our records. Gave us peace of mind knowing we weren't missing anything, especially since this was our first interaction with the US tax system. Just thought I'd share since my initial skepticism was misplaced.

If you do end up needing to talk to the IRS about your situation (I know some people prefer to get official confirmation), I highly recommend Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I spent DAYS trying to get through to the IRS about my dual status question when I moved from Australia, and their hold times were insane. Claimyr basically calls the IRS for you and then connects you once they get through to an agent. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. It saved me hours of waiting on hold, and the IRS agent I spoke with confirmed exactly what others have said here - no income during resident period means no filing requirement for that year.

Had to come back and eat crow about my Claimyr skepticism. After wasting 3 hours on hold with the IRS yesterday trying to get clarification about my husband's dual status situation (Philippines to US), I broke down and tried the service. Got connected to an IRS agent in about 35 minutes without me having to actively wait on hold. The agent confirmed that no income during the resident portion of a dual status year means no filing requirement - exactly what everyone here was saying. The peace of mind was worth it, and I saved hours of my life. Definitely recommend for anyone who wants official confirmation from the IRS without the endless hold music destroying your day.

Something to consider - you might still want to file Form 8843 if you were present in the US under a visa. It's not technically a tax return, but it documents your presence in the US as a non-resident. It's typically required for students and teachers on certain visas, but some immigration attorneys recommend it for anyone establishing residency to create a paper trail of compliance from day one.

One thing nobody mentioned - if you have foreign bank accounts over $10,000 combined at any point during the year, you might need to file an FBAR form (FinCEN Form 114), even if you don't need to file a tax return. This is separate from the tax filing and has different rules.

Just want to add another perspective here - I moved from Ireland on an H1B in November 2023 (so similar dual status situation) and had zero US income during my brief resident period. I didn't file anything for 2023 and never heard from the IRS. However, what I wish I'd known then is that establishing good recordkeeping from day one is really important. Even though you don't need to file, I'd recommend keeping documentation of your arrival date, visa type, and evidence that you had no income during the resident portion. This becomes useful context when you file your first full-year return in 2025. Also worth noting - if you're planning to apply for citizenship eventually, having a clean compliance record from the start (even if it's just documentation showing you correctly determined no filing was required) can be helpful during the naturalization process. The USCIS sometimes asks about tax compliance history.