Tax Return Filing Status


This is Part One of my continuing series of basic tax help articles.   This series of articles applies to the 2012 tax filing season for the tax year ended December 31, 2011 – Fling status and exemptions. As always, consult a tax professional for specific guidance on your individual situation.  Contact the Law Office of Martin Cantu for more information, or www.sataxhelp.com.

Filing Status

This is step number one in filing your tax return. You have five choices - Single, Married Filing Jointly, Married Filing Separately, Head of Household and Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child.  Filing status determines basic tax items such as filing requirements, your standard deduction, eligibility for certain credits and deductions, and your correct tax. This is the foundation of your tax return and making the wrong choice here will have detrimental impacts throughout your return.
You may qualify for more than one filing status, so the choice of filing status may get complicated. This is especially true in a year in which you may have had any number of life events happen to you – marriage/divorce, death of spouse, birth of child, death of a child, or caring for an elderly family member.  Here are eight facts quick tips about filing status to keep in mind as you prepare for this filing season:
1. Marital status on the last day of the year determines your marital status for the entire year.
2. If more than one filing status applies to you, choose the one that gives you the lowest tax obligation. You may have to run various scenarios to determine which status provides you with the lowest tax due.
3. Single filing status generally applies to anyone who is unmarried, divorced or legally separated according to state law. Keep in mind that in some states, such as Texas, there is no such status as separated, so you may be forced to file married filing separately.
4. A married couple may file a joint return together. The couple’s filing status would be Married Filing Jointly.
5. If your spouse died during the year and you did not remarry during 2011, usually you may still file a joint return with that spouse for the year of death.
6. A married couple may elect to file their returns separately. Each person’s filing status would generally be Married Filing Separately.
7. Head of Household generally applies to taxpayers who are unmarried. You must also have paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home for you and a qualifying person to qualify for this filing status.
8. You may be able to choose Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child as your filing status if your spouse died during 2009 or 2010, you have a dependent child, have not remarried and you meet certain other conditions.


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