On this page
- The short answer: there is no joint Form 1040-NR
- Why each spouse’s winnings stay on that spouse’s return
- The resident election and why it rarely fits two Canadians
- Shared play and a single payout: whose win is it?
- Losses cannot be pooled between spouses
- Table games one spouse played, slots the other played
- Two returns means two taxpayer numbers
- How the paperwork for a couple is prepared
- Frequently Asked Questions
You and your spouse spent a weekend at a U.S. casino. One of you hit a slot jackpot, the other had a smaller win paid by hand, and the cage took 30% from each payout under the withholding rule for non-residents. Now you have two payout receipts, one household and a fair question: can Canadian spouses file a joint US return for casino winnings? Form 1040-NR has no joint filing option. Each spouse with withholding to claim files a return of their own. This article explains how winnings, withholding and losses are split across those two returns, and what each spouse needs.
The short answer: there is no joint Form 1040-NR
The IRS answers this one directly. The IRS Instructions for Form 1040-NR (2025) state that a person filing Form 1040-NR can’t file a joint return. The form has no joint filing status to check. A married non-resident who files it chooses a separate status, usually married filing separately, and the return covers that one person’s U.S. income and that one person’s withholding.
For a Canadian couple, the result is simple. If both spouses won at a U.S. casino and both had the 30% withholding rate applied, each spouse files their own Form 1040-NR. That means two returns, two signatures and two separate refund claims. The IRS reviews each return on its own and decides each one separately, even when the two spouses were on the same trip and played at the same casino.
If only one spouse had tax withheld, only that spouse has a withholding claim. The other spouse is not added to the return as a co-filer, and does not sign it. For more on how a single non-resident return works, see how Canadian casino winners file Form 1040-NR. The sections below explain how winnings, losses and taxpayer numbers are handled once there are two returns instead of one.
Why each spouse’s winnings stay on that spouse’s return
Form 1040-NR is a return for one individual. The name and taxpayer number at the top belong to one person, and every line below reports that person’s income and that person’s tax withheld. There is no column or line for a spouse. So when two Canadian spouses both win at a U.S. casino, the winnings follow the person who was paid. Each spouse’s winnings belong on that spouse’s own return, and nowhere else.
The casino’s paperwork already sorts this out. On the day of a hand-paid win, the cage gives the winner a payout receipt in their name. Later, the casino issues Form 1042-S. This is an annual form: one per recipient, income type and tax rate for the year, furnished by March 15 of the following year. It shows the recipient’s name, the gross winnings and the federal tax withheld. If both spouses won, each receives a separate 1042-S.
Those figures then belong to the matching return. The winnings on a 1042-S issued to the wife go on her return, and the husband’s 1042-S, with its withholding credit, goes on his. The IRS matches each return against the forms the casino filed under that person’s name. For more on the form itself, see what Form 1042-S shows.
The resident election and why it rarely fits two Canadians
U.S. law has one route that puts a married non-resident on a joint return. Under IRC section 6013(g), a non-resident alien can choose to be treated as a U.S. resident for the entire tax year. The condition is narrow. On the last day of that tax year, the other spouse must be a U.S. citizen or a resident alien. The couple then files a joint Form 1040, not Form 1040-NR.
Two Canadians who live in Canada and won on a U.S. trip usually fail that condition at the first step. Neither spouse is a U.S. citizen or resident alien, so neither has a qualifying spouse to elect alongside. A couple in that position files two separate 1040-NR returns, one per person. The election only comes into view when one spouse holds U.S. citizenship or a green card, or is treated as a U.S. resident under the substantial presence test. How the substantial presence test works for snowbirds explains the 183-day rule.
Even where the election is open, it changes what the return covers. A joint Form 1040 under the election reports both spouses’ worldwide income for the full year. Canadian wages, pensions and investment income go on it alongside the casino win. IRS guidance also says the electing spouse generally cannot claim treaty benefits as a resident of Canada while the election is in effect. The gambling loss deduction under Article XXII(3) is one of those treaty benefits, so it may be lost. How these trade-offs play out depends on the household and is checked case by case.
| Point | Separate Forms 1040-NR | Joint Form 1040 under the election |
|---|---|---|
| Who qualifies | Each non-resident spouse with U.S.-source income, filing alone | A non-resident whose spouse was a U.S. citizen or resident alien on the last day of the tax year, with both spouses agreeing |
| What is filed | One return per spouse, each backed by that spouse’s own Form 1042-S | One joint return signed by both spouses, with the election made |
| Income reported | Each spouse’s own U.S.-source income, including casino winnings | Both spouses’ worldwide income for the whole year, from every country |
| Treaty position | A Canadian resident can claim the Article XXII(3) loss deduction | Treaty benefits as a Canadian resident may be forfeited for each year the election is in effect |
| Later years | Each tax year stands on its own | The election generally stays in effect for later years until it is suspended or ended |
Shared play and a single payout: whose win is it?
A slot jackpot is paid to the person who claims it at the cage. That person shows ID, the casino records the payout under their name, and any tax withheld is recorded against them too. If a couple was feeding the same machine, the casino has no way of knowing that unless someone tells it. Without that step, the whole win and the whole withholding sit with one spouse.
The casino is told with Form 5754, Statement by Person(s) Receiving Gambling Winnings. It lists everyone entitled to a share of the win. The form goes to the payer, which is the casino. It is not sent to the IRS. Our guide on splitting a jackpot with Form 5754 explains what it is for.
The casino uses Form 5754 to split its own reporting. On the day of the win, each person leaves with a payout receipt, not a tax form. Form 1042-S is an annual form, furnished by March 15 of the following year, so each spouse later receives a 1042-S in their own name showing their share of the income and the tax withheld on it. That form supports that spouse’s own return. More on reading it is in the guide to Form 1042-S.
When no Form 5754 was completed, the casino’s records show one winner. The 1042-S issued for that year then carries the full amount in that one person’s name, and that is the form the IRS receives from the casino. A return that reports only half of it would not match. This is why the share-out is a matter for the cage at the time of payout rather than something arranged later between two separate returns.
Losses cannot be pooled between spouses
The treaty rule for losses is personal. Article XXII(3) of the tax treaty between Canada and the U.S. lets a Canadian resident deduct losses from U.S. wagering, but only against that same person’s gains from U.S. wagering. The deduction cannot be larger than that person’s winnings on the same return. The article what Article XXII(3) allows explains the treaty wording.
A net loss is not deductible. Losses that exceed a spouse’s own winnings simply go unused. They do not move to the other spouse’s return, because there is no joint return and so no shared deduction. Picture a couple on one trip. One spouse hit a slot jackpot and had tax withheld. The other spouse lost steadily and won nothing. The losing spouse has no winnings to deduct against, and the winning spouse cannot borrow those losses. Each return stands on its own figures.
For tax years beginning after 2025, U.S. law (IRC 165(d) as amended) counts only 90% of wagering losses as a deduction, and the deduction is still capped at the same spouse’s winnings. So for a 2026 or later tax year, a spouse whose losses match or exceed their own winnings still has part of those winnings left as taxable income. Losses reduce the taxable amount on that spouse’s return. They do not erase it.
Because the limit works person by person, the loss records need to work the same way. A casino win-loss statement is usually tied to one player’s card, which helps. The IRS standard is an accurate diary or similar record, backed by receipts, tickets or statements, kept for each person who played. More on that in what counts as a casino win-loss record.
Table games one spouse played, slots the other played
U.S. tax law treats some casino games differently for non-resident aliens. Under IRC 871(j), winnings from blackjack, baccarat, craps, roulette and the big-6 wheel are not taxed for a non-resident alien. Those winnings are left off Form 1040-NR entirely. For a non-resident, a win at one of those five games simply sits outside the U.S. return.
Slot machines are not on that list. Neither are keno or bingo. A slot jackpot paid to a Canadian is the kind of win the casino reports on the annual Form 1042-S issued in that person’s name, and it is the kind of win that is reported on the U.S. return. So the same trip can produce taxable winnings for one person and exempt winnings for the other, depending only on where each one played.
Picture a couple where one spouse spent the trip at the blackjack table and came home ahead, while the other hit a slot jackpot and had 30% withheld under the rule. The slot spouse’s return shows the jackpot, the withholding from the 1042-S and any treaty loss deduction, limited to that spouse’s own winnings. The blackjack winnings appear on neither return. Whether the blackjack spouse files at all depends on whether they had other U.S. income or withholding of their own.
Set side by side, two such returns can look lopsided, and that is how the rule is built. What decides it is the game behind each payout, so records that show where each win came from matter. A payout receipt from the cage or a casino win-loss statement usually names the game or machine. The article on why table games aren’t withheld like slots explains the table-game side of this in more detail.
Two returns means two taxpayer numbers
A Form 1040-NR identifies one taxpayer, with a taxpayer identification number. Because each Canadian spouse files a separate return, each return carries that spouse’s own number. For most Canadians this is an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), since few have a U.S. Social Security number. One spouse’s ITIN cannot be used on the other spouse’s return, and there is no household or joint number. The withholding claimed on each return belongs to the person named on that return and on the matching Form 1042-S.
When a spouse has no ITIN yet, that spouse applies for one. If both spouses need an ITIN, each applies separately, with their own identity documents. The W-7 guide for Canadian casino winners explains what the ITIN application is. U.S. Tax Recovery handles it for you.
Couples are often in different positions. One spouse may already hold a valid ITIN from an earlier win while the other has never needed one. In that case only the spouse without a number needs to apply. An ITIN that has expired has to be renewed before it can be used. More on renewals is in renewing an expired ITIN.
How the paperwork for a couple is prepared
U.S. Tax Recovery treats a couple as two separate claims from the start. Each spouse gets a file in their own name. That file holds their own return, the Form 1042-S issued to them, and the loss records that belong to their play. Nothing is merged or averaged between the two files. The document checklist shows what each spouse gathers for their half.
U.S. Tax Recovery is an IRS Certifying Acceptance Agent, listed on the IRS’s Acceptance Agents directory for Canada. For a spouse who needs a new or renewed ITIN, this means the company can review that person’s identity documents and certify the copies. The original passport then does not have to be mailed to the IRS. Each spouse’s documents are checked and certified on their own, even when the couple comes in together.
U.S. Tax Recovery is not affiliated with the IRS. The company prepares and certifies documents. It does not decide anything about a return. The IRS reviews each spouse’s 1040-NR as a separate return and makes its own decision on each one. The two returns may not move at the same pace, and the IRS sets that pace, which varies from case to case. What usually comes next is laid out in what happens after a claim is filed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my wife and I file one U.S. tax return for our casino winnings?
No. Form 1040-NR has no joint filing status, so a married non-resident files as married filing separately. Each spouse files a separate 1040-NR that reports only the winnings paid to that spouse, as shown on that spouse’s Form 1042-S. The tax withheld on each form is credited only on the return of the person named on it.
We won a jackpot together but it was paid in my husband’s name. Can it be split between us?
It can be split if the casino receives Form 5754 when the win is paid. That form goes to the casino, not the IRS, and lists each person who shares the win. The casino then reports each share on that person’s own Form 1042-S. Without it, the whole win and its withholding generally belong to the person named on the casino’s paperwork.
My wife lost a lot more than I won. Can her losses offset my winnings?
No. Losses cannot be moved from one spouse’s return to the other’s. Under the tax treaty between Canada and the U.S., a Canadian resident deducts gambling losses only against that person’s own winnings. For tax years beginning after 2025, U.S. law allows only 90% of wagering losses as a deduction. Each spouse needs separate records.
I played blackjack and my husband played slots. Do we both need to file?
Usually only the slots winner has winnings to report. Under IRC 871(j), winnings from blackjack, baccarat, craps, roulette and the big-6 wheel are not taxed for non-resident aliens and are left off the U.S. return. Slot winnings are taxable. They go on the husband’s own return, and the withholding on his Form 1042-S is credited there.
Do both of us need an ITIN, or can one number cover the couple?
Each spouse who files needs a separate taxpayer number. The IRS ties every return, and the withholding claimed on it, to one person, so one ITIN cannot cover two people. A spouse without a number applies for one, and an expired ITIN has to be renewed. U.S. Tax Recovery handles both.
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