Filing Status
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Filing Status
Introduction
This lesson will help you determine the most advantageous (and allowable)
What do I need?
□ Form 13614-C
□ Publication 4012
□ Publication 17
Optional:
□ Publication 501
□ Publication 555
□ Publication 971
□ Form 1040
□ Form 2120
□ Form 8379
What are the ve ling statuses?
Taxpayers must use one of ve ling statuses. Filing status impacts the calculation of income tax, aects
the amount of the standard deduction, and determines allowance or limitation of certain credits and
deductions. The following list puts them in order from the most benecial to the least benecial to the
taxpayer.
• Married Filing Jointly
• Qualifying Widow(er)
• Head of Household
• Single
• Married Filing Separately
Note: Most nonresident aliens and dual status aliens have dierent ling requirements and may have to le
Form 1040-NR. In this case, the return is Out of Scope. Refer the taxpayer to a site with Foreign Student
certication.
Taxpayers may qualify for more than one ling status. Choose the ling status that results in the lowest tax for
the taxpayer. Use the Volunteer Resource Guide to help determine the correct ling status.
Tax Software Hint: Filing status is selected in the Basic Information section. Go to the Volunteer
Resource Guide to review the software entries.
How does marital status aect ling status?
The rst step in determining taxpayers’ ling status is to conrm their marital status on the last day of the tax
year. Avoid using information from the prior year, as it may have changed.
ling status for the taxpayer. Selecting and entering the correct ling
status is a critical component of completing the taxpayer’s return.
See Tab B, Starting a Return and Filing Status, in the Volunteer Resource
Guide for ling status interview tips with helpful probing questions to use
in your interview with the taxpayer.
Objective
At the end of this lesson, using your resource materials, you will be able to:
• Determine the most benecial ling status allowed for the taxpayer.
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Generally, taxpayers are considered to be unmarried for the entire year if, on the last day of the tax year,
they were:
• Unmarried.
• Legally separated from their spouse under a divorce or separate maintenance decree. State law
governs whether taxpayers are married or legally separated under a divorce or separate maintenance
decree.
Taxpayers are considered to be married for the entire year if:
• They were married on the last day of the tax year, or
• The spouse died during the year and the surviving spouse has not remarried
What are the requirements for each ling status?
Who is considered Single?
Taxpayers can use the Single ling status if, on the last day of the tax year, they were:
• Not married
• Legally separated or divorced, or
• Widowed before the beginning of the tax year and did not remarry
A marriage that has been legally annulled is treated as never having existed, even if it is annulled in a later
year.
Can Single taxpayers qualify for another status?
Some single taxpayers qualify for Head of Household or for Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child
status, which can mean a lower tax. These statuses will be discussed later in this lesson.
What is Married Filing Jointly?
Married taxpayers who choose to le a joint return will use one return to report their combined income
and to deduct combined allowable expenses. Married taxpayers can select this status even if one of the
spouses did not have any income or any deductions. The Married Filing Jointly status can be claimed by
taxpayers who, on the last day of the tax year:
• Were married and lived together.
• Were married and living apart, but were not legally separated under a divorce or separate maintenance
decree. State law governs whether taxpayers are married or legally separated under a divorce or
separate maintenance decree.
• Were common law married pursuant to the laws of the state in which they live (or in the state where the
common law marriage began) and the marriage has not been dissolved, such as by death or divorce.
• Are the surviving spouse who did not remarry before the end of the tax year (surviving taxpayer can le
a joint return with the deceased spouse).
Taxpayers who le a joint return can’t choose to le separate returns for that year after the due date of the
return.
A citizen or resident alien married to a nonresident alien may be able to choose from more than one ling
status. More information can be found in the Unique Filing Situations lesson.
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Filing a joint return for a common law marriage applies to the federal return only. Volunteers must check state
or local laws before completing a state return. Volunteers are not responsible for determining whether a couple is in a
common law marriage. If taxpayers are not certain, refer them to a professional tax preparer.
What are the responsibilities of each taxpayer on a joint return?
Both taxpayers must include all worldwide income on their joint return. They each may be held responsible
for all the tax and for any interest or penalty due, even if all the income was earned by only one spouse. A
subsequent divorce usually does not relieve either spouse of the liability associated with the joint return.
In some cases, a spouse may be relieved of joint liability. Information is available in Publication 971,
Innocent Spouse Relief, however, this topic is beyond the scope of the VITA/TCE programs. Refer
taxpayers in this situation to a professional tax preparer.
When a joint return is led and only one spouse owes a past-due amount, the other spouse may be
considered an injured spouse and able to claim their portion of a joint refund. This is discussed later in this
lesson.
What is Married Filing Separately?
The Married Filing Separately status is for taxpayers who are married, and either:
• Choose to le separate returns, or
• Cannot agree to le a joint return
Taxpayers who le as Married Filing Separately each report their own income and deductions on separate
returns. These rules do not apply in community property states. More information on community property is
provided later in this lesson.
Taxpayers can change their ling status from a separate return to a joint return by ling an amended return
using Form 1040-X.
Can Married Filing Separately taxpayers qualify for another status?
Some married taxpayers may be considered unmarried even if they are not divorced or legally separated.
Such taxpayers may be able to use the Head of Household ling status, which may result in a lower tax
than Married Filing Separately. Refer to the topic “Can married taxpayers ever le as Head of Household?”
in this lesson to see if the “considered unmarried” denition applies.
Why are taxes usually higher for Married Filing Separately?
Special rules apply to Married Filing Separately taxpayers, which generally result in a higher tax. For
example, when ling separately:
• The tax rate is generally higher than on a joint return.
• Taxpayers cannot take the child and dependent care credit, education credits, and certain other benets
and credits.
• Some credits and deductions, such as the child tax credit and the retirement savings contributions
credit, are reduced at income levels that are half those for a joint return.
• If a taxpayer is Married Filing Separately and the spouse itemizes deductions on their return, the
taxpayer must itemize and cannot take the standard deduction.
For Married Filing Separately taxpayers, enter the spouse’s name and Social Security number or ITIN on
the tax return. If the taxpayer does not know the spouse’s Social Security number, refer to the Volunteer
Filing Status
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Resource Guide, Tab B, Starting a Return and Filing Status, Entering Basic Information (continued). The
return will need to be paper led.
Whether or not a spouse is itemizing is only a concern for Married Filing Separately status. Married taxpayers
qualied to le as Head of Household can take the standard deduction even if their spouse is itemizing.
For the complete list of special rules, see Publication 17, Filing Status.
Are there special rules for taxpayers who live in community property states?
The income of taxpayers who lived in Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas,
Washington, or Wisconsin during the tax year and who choose to le separate returns may be considered
separate income or community income for tax purposes. Each state has its own community property laws,
which may aect the amount of tax owed by taxpayers. See Publication 555, Community Property, for more
information.
If your tax assistance program views community property tax laws for taxpayers who are Married Filing
Separately or who are ling as Head of Household because they can be considered unmarried for income
tax ling purposes as beyond the scope of the program, refer such taxpayers to a professional tax preparer.
Tax Software Hint: If the taxpayer is in one of the community property states and is married and les
a separate return from the spouse, Form 8958, Allocation of Tax Amounts Between Certain Individuals in
Community Property States, must be completed in order to e-le the return. See the instructions for Form
8958 for details on completing the form.
If ling jointly generally results in the lowest total tax, why would married taxpayers want to le
separately?
Married taxpayers sometimes choose to le separate returns when one spouse does not want to be
responsible for the other spouse’s tax obligations, or because ling separately may result in a lower total
tax. For example, if one spouse has high medical expenses, separate returns may result in lower total taxes
because a lower adjusted gross income allows more expenses to be deducted.
Another common reason taxpayers le as Married Filing Separately is to avoid an oset of their refund
against their spouse’s outstanding debts. This includes past due child support, past due student loans, or a
tax liability the spouse incurred before they were married. If married taxpayers want to le separately, and
a potential refund oset is the reason, suggest that they le a joint return with Form 8379, Injured Spouse
Allocation or, after having led separately, they can later amend and elect to le a joint return.
Who is considered to be an injured spouse?
When a joint return is led and only one spouse owes a past-due amount, the other spouse can be
considered an injured spouse. Injured spouses may le Form 8379 to receive their share of the refund
shown on the joint return. The injured spouse:
1. Must not be legally obligated to pay the past-due amount, and
2. Must have made and reported tax payments (such as federal income tax withheld from wages or
estimated tax payments), or claimed a refundable tax credit (see the credits listed in Publication 17
under Who Should File?).
Both of these conditions must apply unless the injured spouse lived in a community property state at any time
during the tax year. In community property states, the injured spouse must meet only the rst condition. If the
taxpayer meets these requirements, Form 8379 can be e-led with the joint return. See the Instructions for
Form 8379 for details on how to complete the form.
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If a taxpayer already led a joint return and the refund was oset, Form 8379 can be led by itself. When
led after the oset, it can take up to eight weeks for the taxpayer to receive a refund. Do not attach the
previously led tax return, but do include copies of all Forms W-2 and W-2G for both spouses and any
Forms 1099 that show income tax withheld. The processing of Form 8379 may be delayed if these forms
are not attached. A separate Form 8379 must be led for each tax year to be considered.
An injured spouse claim is dierent from an innocent spouse relief request. Form 8379 allows an injured
spouse to request the division of the tax overpayment attributed to each spouse. An innocent spouse uses Form
8857, Request for Innocent Spouse Relief, to request relief from joint liability for tax, interest, and penalties on a joint
return for items of the other spouse (or former spouse) that were incorrectly reported on the joint return. For informa-
tion on innocent spouses, see Publication 17, Innocent Spouse Relief and Relief from Joint Responsibility. Form 8858
is out of scope for the VITA/TCE programs.
What if a spouse died during the tax year?
Remember, taxpayers whose spouses died during the tax year are considered married for the entire year,
provided they did not remarry. The surviving spouse is eligible to le as Married Filing Jointly or Married
Filing Separately.
Surviving spouses who have remarried must le with the new spouse, either jointly or separately. The
deceased spouse’s ling status becomes Married Filing Separately.
Surviving spouses who have a dependent child may be able to use the Qualifying Widow(er) status in the
two tax years following the year of the spouse’s death. This is discussed later in this lesson.
Who is Head of Household?
Taxpayers may qualify for the Head of Household ling status, if they:
• Are unmarried or “considered unmarried” on the last day of the tax year, and
• Paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the required period of time, and
• Had a qualifying person living in their home for more than half the year (except for temporary absences,
such as school)
A qualifying person who is the taxpayer’s dependent parent does not have to live with the taxpayer.
However, the parent(s) must qualify as the taxpayer’s dependent(s) for the taxpayer to qualify as Head of
Household without using the multiple support provision (Form 2120, Multiple Support Declaration). For more
information, review the Volunteer Resource Guide, Tab B, Starting a Return and Filing Status, Who is a
qualifying person for Head of Household status?
For a married taxpayer to be “considered unmarried,” there are special rules, discussed later in this topic.
What are the costs of keeping up a home?
The costs of keeping up a home include expenses such as rent, mortgage interest, real estate taxes,
insurance on the home, repairs, utilities, and food eaten in the home. Under proposed regulations, a
taxpayer may treat a home’s fair market rental value as a cost of maintaining a household instead of the
sum of payments for mortgage interest, property taxes, and insurance. See Publication 17, Filing Status,
Keeping Up a Home, for more information.
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example
Kate’s unmarried 16-year-old daughter, Shelby, lived with her all year. Kate is single, provided all
of Shelby’s support, and paid all the costs of keeping up the home. Shelby is Kate’s qualifying child
dependent and is Kate’s qualifying person for Head of Household ling status.
Who is a qualifying person for Head of Household status?
Turn to the chart, Who Is a Qualifying Person Qualifying You To File as Head of Household? in the
Volunteer Resource Guide. A qualifying person for Head of Household is dened as:
• A qualifying child who is single (whether or not the child can be claimed as a dependent)
• A married child who can be claimed as a dependent
• A dependent parent
• A qualifying relative who lived with the taxpayer more than half the year, and is one of the relatives
listed on the chart, and can be claimed as a dependent by the taxpayer
Sometimes no one provides more than half of the support of an individual. Instead, two or more persons,
each of whom would be able to claim the individual as a dependent but for the support test, together
provide more than half of the individual’s support. When this happens, a person who individually provides
more than 10% of the individual’s support can claim the individual as a dependent by agreement (Form
2120). An individual who is claimed as a dependent only because of a multiple support agreement is not a
qualifying person for Head of Household status.
A person may be a qualifying relative dependent, but not qualify the taxpayer for Head of Household ling
status. For example, a companion or friend who lives with the taxpayer all year may be the taxpayer’s dependent but
not a qualifying person for Head of Household ling status.
Refer to the Volunteer Resource Guide, Tab B, Starting a Return and Filing Status, Who is a Qualifying
Person Qualifying You To File as Head of Household? chart, when reviewing these examples. You will learn
more about who can be claimed as a dependent in a later lesson.
example
Jane and Todd are not married. Their daughter, Amanda, lived all year with Jane in an apartment. Todd
lived alone. Todd earns more than Jane, and provides for some of her living expenses. He paid over
half the cost of Jane’s rent and utilities. He also gave Jane extra money for groceries. Even though Todd
paid over half the cost of providing a home for Jane and Amanda, he cannot le Head of Household
because Amanda did not live with him over half the year. Jane cannot be Head of Household either
because she did not provide more than half the cost of keeping up the home for her daughter.
example
Nancy is single and lives alone. Nancy’s mother, Maxine, lives alone in another city. Maxine receives
Social Security payments, but has no other income. Nancy pays all of the costs of keeping up the home
her mother lives in, and provides over half her support. Even though Maxine did not live with her, Maxine
is Nancy’s qualifying person for Head of Household ling status because Nancy can claim her mother as
a dependent under the rules for qualifying relative.
example
Michael provided all the costs of keeping up his home for the year. Michael’s son Justin lived with
him the entire year. Justin is 22 and was not a full-time student during the tax year, so he cannot be
Michael’s qualifying child. Although Justin only worked part-time, his income is greater than the gross
income threshold amount for Michael to claim him as a qualifying relative dependent. Therefore, Michael
cannot le Head of Household because he does not have a qualifying person.
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Notice that the relatives who qualify a person for Head of Household may not be the same individuals who
could qualify as a taxpayer’s dependent. One such situation is when the custodial parent releases the
child’s exemption to the noncustodial parent. The child remains the custodial parent’s qualifying person for
Head of Household status.
The qualifying person for Head of Household ling status must be related to the taxpayer.
What are the advantages of ling as Head of Household?
The Head of Household ling status provides a higher standard deduction and, generally, a lower tax rate
than Single or Married Filing Separately.
Who can be “considered unmarried” for Head of Household?
Married taxpayers may be “considered unmarried” and le as Head of Household if they:
• File a return for the tax year separate from their spouse.
• Paid more than half the cost of keeping up their home. See the Worksheet for Cost of Keeping Up a
Home in the Volunteer Resource Guide.
• Lived apart from their spouse during the entire last six months of the tax year. The spouse is considered
to have lived in the home even if temporarily absent due to special circumstances, such as military
service or education.
• Provided the main home for more than half the year of a dependent child, stepchild, or foster child
placed by an authorized agency. This test is also met if the taxpayer cannot claim the exemption only
because the noncustodial parent can claim the child using the rules described in Publication 17.
example
Since her spouse died ve years ago, Joan has lived with her friend, Mary Ann, who is also a widow.
Joan is a U.S. citizen, is single, and lived with Mary Ann all year. Joan had no income and received all
of her support from Mary Ann. Joan is Mary Ann’s qualifying relative because she lived with Mary Ann all
year as a member of her household. Mary Ann can claim Joan as a dependent on her return.
However, Joan is not a qualifying person for Head of Household ling status because she is not related
to Mary Ann in one of the ways listed on the chart in the Volunteer Resource Guide. She is Mary
Ann’s qualifying relative dependent only because she lived with Mary Ann all year as a member of her
household.
EXERCISES
Answers are after the lesson summary.
Question 1: Alexandra’s younger brother, Sebastian, is seventeen years old. Sebastian lived with his
grandparents for the rst two months of the year. From March through July, he lived with Alexandra.
On August 1, Sebastian moved in with some friends and stayed there for the rest of the year. Since
Sebastian did not have a job, Alexandra gave him money every month. Assuming Alexandra had no
other dependents, can she le as Head of Household? ¨ Yes ¨ No
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A taxpayer who is married to a nonresident alien spouse may be able to le as Head of Household even
if the taxpayer lived with the spouse for the year. Review the Unique Filing Situations lesson for more
information.
Who is a Qualifying Widow(er)?
Taxpayers who do not remarry in the year their spouse dies can le jointly with the deceased spouse. For
the two years following the year of death, the surviving spouse may be able to use the Qualifying Widow(er)
ling status. To qualify, the taxpayer must:
• Be entitled to le a joint return for the year the spouse died, regardless of whether the taxpayer actually
led a joint return that year.
• Have had a spouse who died in either of the two prior years. The taxpayer must not remarry before the
end of the current tax year.
• Have a child, stepchild, or adopted child who qualies as the taxpayer’s dependent for the year or
would qualify as the taxpayer’s dependent except that he or she does not meet the gross income test,
or does not meet the joint return test, or except that the taxpayer may be claimed as a dependent of
another taxpayer.
• Live with this child in the taxpayer’s home all year, except for temporary absences.
• Have paid more than half the cost of keeping up the home for the year.
A foster child does not qualify a taxpayer for the Qualifying Widow(er) ling status.
The standard deduction and tax tables are the same for Qualifying Widow(er) and Married Filing Jointly ling
statuses. These are more favorable than those for Head of Household ling status.
How do I determine the correct ling status?
To determine the correct ling status, follow the Filing Status Interview Tips in the Volunteer Resource
Guide, Tab B, Starting a Return and Filing Status. Be sure to complete the shaded dependent portion on the
Intake/Interview and Quality Review Sheet.
example
Laura’s spouse, Jim, died in September of the tax year. She has not remarried, and provides all the
support for their dependent children, ages 8 and 10. Laura can le as Married Filing Jointly for this tax
year. For the next two tax years, she can use the Qualifying Widow(er) status if she does not remarry.
example
Denise is married but has lived apart from her spouse for two years. Denise pays all the costs of
keeping up her home for herself and her dependent 12-year-old son, who lives with her. Denise can
choose to le as Head of Household for the tax year because she meets the denition of “considered
unmarried.”
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EXERCISES (continued)
Check your understanding of each ling status. Review the lesson and use the Filing Status Interview
Tips in the Volunteer Resource Guide to determine the answer. Answers are after the lesson summary.
Question 2: Jane’s husband moved out of their home in February of the tax year and has not returned.
Jane provides all the cost of keeping up the home for herself and her two dependent children. Jane
refuses to le a joint return with her husband. What ling status should she use?
• Single
• Married Filing Separately
• Head of Household
• Qualifying Widow(er)
Question 3: Seth lives alone and has never married. He does not support either of his parents. What
ling status(es) can he use?
• Single
• Married Filing Jointly
• Married Filing Separately
• Head of Household
• Qualifying Widow(er)
Question 4: Tanya’s divorce became nal in early September of the tax year. She has sole custody
of her three children, who lived with her the entire year. The children are all under the age of 19. She
provided more than half of the cost of keeping up the home. What ling status(es) can she use?
• Single
• Married Filing Jointly
• Married Filing Separately
• Head of Household
• Qualifying Widow(er)
Question 5: Sydney’s spouse died two years ago in January. He led a joint return for that year as
the surviving spouse. Since then, Sydney has not remarried, maintains a home for his young children
who lived with him all year, and provides their sole support. Using the Filing Status Interview Tips in the
Volunteer Resource Guide, determine what ling status Sydney should use?
• Single
• Married Filing Jointly
• Married Filing Separately
• Head of Household
• Qualifying Widow(er)
Filing Status
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EXERCISE ANSWERS
Answer 1: No, because Sebastian lived with Alexandra for ve months, which is less than half the
year.
Answer 2: Head of Household. Even though Jane is still married to her husband, she meets the
requirements to be “considered unmarried” for ling status purposes and qualies to le as Head of
Household. Although technically she could le as Married Filing Separately, it would not be to her
advantage to do so.
Answer 3: Because he is not married, has no dependents living in his household, and does not claim
his parents as dependents, Seth can only le as Single.
Answer 4: Because she is legally divorced, Tanya could le as Single. However, because she has
children and meets the requirements for Head of Household, she should use this as her ling status
because it will result in a lower tax.
Answer 5: Although Sydney meets the requirements to le as Single, Head of Household or
Qualifying Widower, the Interview Tips will help you to determine that he should use the Qualifying
Widower ling status because it will result in the lowest tax.
Summary
This lesson covered the ve ling statuses:
• Single
• Married Filing Jointly
• Married Filing Separately
• Head of Household
• Qualifying Widow(er)
If taxpayers qualify for more than one ling status, choose the one that results in a lower tax. For example,
in most cases, married couples pay less tax if they le a joint return.
In general, the Head of Household ling status is for unmarried taxpayers who paid more than half the
cost of maintaining a home for a qualifying person for the required period of time. However, some married
taxpayers who lived apart from their spouse during the last six months of the year and provided for
dependent children may be “considered unmarried” and qualify to le as Head of Household.
A widow or widower with one or more qualifying children may be able to use the Qualifying Widow(er) ling
status, which is available for two years following the year of the spouse’s death.
What situations are out of scope for the VITA/TCE programs?
The following are out of scope for this lesson. While this list may not be all inclusive, it is provided for your
awareness only.
• A spouse who may be relieved of joint liability as an innocent spouse
• Depending on your tax assistance program, married taxpayers who wish to le a separate return from
their spouse and are subject to community property tax laws
• Taxpayers who are not certain they are in a common law marriage (rules are complex and dier from
state to state)
