The default rule

Form 3520 is filed by the US person who received the gift or bequest. If both spouses are US persons and both received gifts (or jointly received a single gift), there are options for joint vs. separate filing.

The most common case: only one spouse received

Sarah is a US citizen. Her foreign-resident parents gave her $150,000. Her husband Mark is also a US citizen but received nothing from his own foreign relatives.

Sarah files Form 3520 in her name alone, reporting the $150,000 gift from her parents. Mark does NOT file Form 3520. The gift is Sarah's, not Mark's, regardless of whether they file Form 1040 jointly.

The joint-gift case: gift went to both spouses

A foreign relative sent a $200,000 wire to a joint US bank account in Sarah and Mark's names. The gift is to both of them, potentially split 50/50 by default (joint bank account presumption).

Options:

Each spouse files separately for their $100,000 share — both fall under the threshold and neither files. (This presumes a true 50/50 split of joint property under state law.)
One spouse files for the full $200,000 if the underlying donor characterization clearly identifies that spouse as the recipient (e.g., the donor said "this is for my niece Sarah" in a letter accompanying the wire).
Joint filing — Form 3520 instructions allow spouses to file a single joint Form 3520 reporting the gift to both, when they file Form 1040 jointly.

The joint filing path is the cleanest when both spouses are US persons and the gift was clearly intended for both.

How to file jointly

The Form 3520 instructions allow joint filing when:

Both spouses are US persons.
Both received the same gift or bequest.
Both file Form 1040 as Married Filing Jointly.

Both spouses sign the Form 3520. The form lists both names at the top:

John Smith and Jane Smith (joint filers)

The total gift amount appears once on Part IV — not split.

Married Filing Separately

If you and your spouse file Form 1040 as Married Filing Separately, you each file your own Form 3520 for your own gifts. There is no joint-filing path for separately-filing spouses.

The gift-splitting question

In US estate-and-gift tax law, US-citizen spouses can "gift-split" — treating a gift from one spouse as half from each. This is a Form 709 (gift tax return) concept, not a Form 3520 concept.

For Form 3520, gift-splitting is not available. The recipient of the gift is whoever actually received it under standard ownership rules. You cannot retroactively "split" a foreign gift to one spouse into halves between two spouses.

What if one spouse is a foreign person

If you (US person) received the gift and your spouse is a non-US person (e.g., a foreign-national spouse without a green card), only you file. Your spouse has no US filing obligation because they are not a US person.

If your spouse is the gift recipient and they are a non-US person, no one files Form 3520. The form is only required of US persons receiving foreign gifts.

This trips up couples where the foreign-relative gift went into an account held by the non-US-citizen spouse. In that case, even if the US-citizen spouse benefits from the household money, the gift technically was to the foreign-citizen spouse and no Form 3520 is required. Document this carefully — the IRS may probe.

A worked example

Sarah is a US citizen. Her husband Pranav is a US lawful permanent resident (green-card holder, so also a US person). In 2025:

Sarah's foreign-resident parents gave Sarah $80,000.
Pranav's foreign-resident parents gave Pranav $70,000.
Sarah and Pranav also received a joint $50,000 from a foreign-resident family friend.

Filing options:

Option A: Each files separately for their own gifts.

Sarah: $80,000 from her parents + her share of the $50,000 friend gift (presume 50% = $25,000) = $105,000. Files Form 3520.
Pranav: $70,000 from his parents + his share of the $50,000 friend gift = $95,000. Below threshold, does not file.

Option B: Joint filing.

File jointly reporting all gifts: $80,000 (Sarah's parents) + $70,000 (Pranav's parents) + $50,000 (friend, joint) = $200,000. Both spouses sign.

Either option works if both Sarah and Pranav file MFJ on Form 1040. Joint filing is administratively simpler but slightly less precise about which gifts went to which spouse.

Practical guidance

When both spouses are US persons and any portion of the joint household received gifts from foreign sources, file jointly if possible. It is simpler to document, simpler to defend in an audit, and more consistent with how most couples handle their financial lives.

When one spouse is a non-US person and the gift was clearly to the other (US person) spouse, the US-person spouse files alone for their share of the gift.

Our app and joint filing

In the question flow we ask about filing status (jointly or separately on Form 1040). If you select jointly, we generate one Form 3520 with both spouses' names and signature lines. If separately, we generate two separate Forms 3520 (one for each spouse) with the gifts split per your input.

3520file is software, not a CPA firm or law firm. We prepare IRS Form 3520 based on the facts you provide. For advice on your specific situation, talk to a tax attorney or CPA. The above is plain-English explanation, not tax advice.

Joint or Separate? Filing Form 3520 When You're Married