| What is a filing status? | Top |
A taxpayer's filing status determines the rate at which his or her income is taxed. There are five filing statuses:
single
married filing a joint return
married filing a separate return
head of household
qualifying widow(er) with dependent child
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Taxpayers who are eligible to use more than one filing status usually choose the filing status with the lowest tax rates.
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| Last year, I filed married filing joint using my maiden name. Since then I have had my name changed to my married name. However we have been separated since early 2004. How do I file? | Top |
| You will need to file using the name that appears on your Social Security Card. The IRS checks your SSN against the first 4 letters of your last name as it is on their records. So regardless of whether you are filing jointly or separate, if your married name is the name that appears on your Social Security Card, that is the name you will need to enter. Th same is true if your name is hyphenated on your Social Security Card, then you will need to enter the hyphenated name. |
Also, to answer the second question. If you were married as of Dec 31st of the tax year you may file Married Filing Separate or Married Filing Joint. You may be able to file Head of Household if you lived apart from your spouse for the last six months of the year and you have a qualifying dependent.
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| Is there a limit to the number of years you can choose the filing status Qualifying Widower? | Top |
Yes. The year of death is the last year for which you can file jointly with your deceased spouse. You may be eligible to use qualifying widow(er) with dependent child as your filing status for two years following the year your spouse died if you are eligible. The eligibility rules are as follows:
1. You were entitled to file a joint return with your spouse for the year your spouse died. It does not matter whether you actually filed a joint return.
2. Your spouse died in one of the two years prior to the current year, and you did not remarry before the end of the current tax year.
3. You have a child, stepchild, adopted child, or foster child for whom you can claim an exemption.
4. You paid more than half of the cost of keeping up a home for you and that child for the entire year, except for temporary absences. Temporary absences include illness, education, business, vacation, or military service.
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You may also be eligible to file as a qualifying widow(er) with dependent child, even if the child who qualifies you for this filing status has been kidnapped. You can claim qualifying widow(er) with dependent child filing status if all the following statements are true:
1. The child must be presumed by law enforcement authorities to have been kidnapped by someone who is not a member of your family or the childs family.
2. In the year of the kidnapping, the child lived with you for more than half the part of the year before the kidnapping.
3. You would have qualified for qualifying widow(er) with dependent child filing status if the child had not been kidnapped. |
| My husband is from another country, and has not yet migrated to the U.S. He has never lived in the U.S. We got married on 10/17/2004. How do I file? | Top |
| If, at the end of your tax year, you are married and one spouse is a U.S. citizen or a resident alien and the other is a nonresident alien, you can choose to treat the nonresident as a U.S. resident. This includes situations in which one of you is a nonresident alien at the beginning of the tax year, but a resident alien at the end of the year, and the other is a nonresident alien at the end of the year. |
If you make this choice, the following two rules apply:
You and your spouse are treated, for income tax purposes, as residents for all tax years that the choice is in effect
You must file a joint income tax return for the year you make the choice
If you make this choice, you and your spouse are treated as residents for your entire tax year for the purpose of your federal individual income tax return, and for the purpose of withholding U.S. federal income tax from your wages. However for the purpose of Chapter 3 withholding you may still be treated as a nonresident alien. Refer to Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens and Foreign Corporations (Chapter 3 of the IRC) in Tax Withholding Types. In addition, you may still be treated as a nonresident alien for the purpose of withholding Social Security and Medicare tax. Refer to Aliens Employed in the U.S. Social Security Taxes. |
Generally, neither you nor your spouse can claim tax treaty benefits as a resident of a foreign country for a tax year for which the choice is in effect and you are both taxed on worldwide income. However, the exception to the saving clause of a particular tax treaty might allow a resident alien to claim a tax treaty benefit on certain specified income. You must file a joint income tax return for the year you make the choice, but you and your spouse can file joint or separate returns in later years.
For example: Pat Smith has been a US citizen for many years. She is married to Norman, a nonresident alien. Pat and Norman make the choice to treat Norman as a resident alien by attaching a statement to their joint return. Pat and Norman must report their worldwide income for the year they make the choice and for all later years unless the choice is ended or suspended. Although Pat and Norman must file a joint return for the year they make the choice, they can file either joint or separate returns for later years. |
How To Make The Choice
Attach a statement, signed by both spouses, to your joint return for the first tax year for which the choice applies. It should contain the following:
A declaration that one spouse was a nonresident alien and the other spouse a U.S. citizen or resident alien on the last day of your tax year, and that you choose to be treated as US residents for the entire tax year, and
The name, address, and social security number (or individual taxpayer identification number) of each spouse. (If one spouse died, include the name and address of the person making the choice for the deceased spouse.)
You generally make this choice when you file your joint return. However, you can also make the choice by filing a joint amended return on Form 1040 or Form 1040A. Be sure to write the word "Amended" across the top of the amended return. If you make the choice with an amended return, you and your spouse must also amend any returns that you may have filed after the year for which you made the choice.
You generally must file the amended joint return within 3 years from the date you filed your original US income tax return or 2 years from the date you paid your income tax for that year, whichever is later. |
Suspending The Choice
The choice to be treated as a resident alien does not apply to any later tax year if neither of you is a US citizen or resident alien at any time during the later tax year.
For Example:Dick Brown was a resident alien on December 31, 2001, and married to Judy, a nonresident alien. They chose to treat Judy as a resident alien and filed a joint 2001 income tax return. On January 10, 2003, Dick became a nonresident alien. Judy had remained a nonresident alien. Dick and Judy can file joint or separate returns for 2003. Neither Dick nor Judy is a resident alien at any time during 2004 and their choice is suspended for that year. For 2004, both are treated as nonresident aliens. If Dick becomes a resident alien again in 2005, their choice is no longer suspended and both are treated as resident aliens in 2005. |
Ending The Choice
Once made, the choice to be treated as a resident applies to all later years unless suspended (as explained above) or ended in one of the ways shown below. If the choice is ended for any of the reasons listed below, neither spouse can make a choice in any later tax year.
Revocation by either spouse
Death of either spouse
Legal Separation
Inadequate records
For a fuller explanation of these items, refer to the section titled Ending the Choice in Chapter 1 of IRS Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens.
Note: If you do not choose to treat your nonresident spouse as a US resident, you may be able to use head of household filing status. To use this status, you must pay more than half the cost of maintaining a household for certain dependents or relatives other than your nonresident alien spouse. For more information, refer to Head of Household and IRS Publication 501. |
Social Security Number
If your spouse is a nonresident alien and you file a joint or separate return, your spouse must have either an Social Security Number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). To get an SSN for your spouse, apply at a social security office or US consulate. You must complete Form SS-5. You must also provide original or certified copies of documents to verify your spouse's age, identity, and citizenship. If your spouse is not eligible to get an SSN, he or she can file Form W-7 with the IRS to apply for an ITIN. Refer to Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TIN) for more information.
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| I am a single mother, and my child was born 11-24-04, do I need to, or can I claim head of household, the child lives with me only, there is no father involved, also which one would be better to claim single or head of household. And is this also determined on what you claim on your paycheck? | Top |
Yes, you can file as head of household if your child was born during the tax year. It will benefit you to file as head of household, because the standard deduction is greater. You do not necessarily have to claim what youve claimed on your paycheck. What you claim on your paycheck affects the amount of taxes withheld from each check.
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| I just got married in June, so I need to know how to file as a married couple, and if I just enter my maiden name or my married name? | Top |
When you file, if you choose to file together, you will choose the filing status married filing jointly. This will combine the income that both of you make into one return. As far as you name, if you have changed your name on your Social Security card, then enter your married name. If you have not yet changed your name legally, then you should enter your maiden name. Either way, you should enter your name exactly as it appears on your Social Security card.
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| Is it possible to change my filing status after Ive already filed my return? | Top |
Yes, you can amend your return by filing Form 1040X if you have reported your filing status incorrectly. This is generally simple, however there are a few requirements if you are married, and your original filing status is married filing jointly or married filing separate.
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You can change your filing status by filing an amended return using Form 1040X.
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If you or your spouse (or both of you) file a separate return, you generally can change to a joint return any time within 3 years from the due date of the separate return or returns. This does not include any extensions. A separate return includes a return filed by you or your spouse claiming married filing separately, single, or head of household filing status.
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Once you file a joint return, you cannot choose to file separate returns for that year after the due date of the return. |
