Non-resident spouseAs a first step, it must be determined whether the spouse who resides outside of Canada may be a deemed resident of Canada.
For this purpose, we suggest that you contact the CRA at 1-800-959-8281.
You can also consult the following link:
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/forms-publications/publications/t4058.html
If the non-resident spouse has no connection to Canada, please follow the procedure below:
In such a case, the spouse who is a Canadian resident must be designated as the "Family head" (i.e., the first person whose information is entered in the program). Please follow these steps:1- On the "Left side menu on the Interview tab" of the family head's file, select "Identification", and on the screen to the right, go the line "Marital status on December 31, 2019" and select "Married" or "Common-law spouse"; then click on "Next" at the bottom of the page.
2- Return to the "Left side menu on the Interview tab" and click "Spouse interview type". In the drop-down menu on the right-hand side of the screen, choose "Net income only", and then click "Next" at the bottom of the page.
3- The line "Spouse - basic information" will appear in the "Left side menu on the Interview tab". Select this line and complete the fields on the right-hand side.
If the spouse does not have a SIN, enter 000-000-000. The taxpayer who is a Canadian resident may file the federal tax return electronically via NetFile. For Québec residents, the provincial tax return must be printed and mailed since the spouse doesn't have a SIN.
Please note that it is not possible to transmit the tax return via NETFILE if you do not have a social insurance number, but only a temporary identification number that begins with 0.
ID: 20191112132627DEX.xml
Webpage: KPA310-20191112132627DE.htm