Home / Dependents and My Filing Status / Choosing Your Filing Status
In general, your filing status depends on your family situation and whether you are legally considered married, not married (unmarried), or , because the world is round, "unmarried married".
The following paragraphs describe each of these personal situations. Links describing each filing status are also provided.
Under Federal law, a marriage means only a legal union between a man and a woman as husband and wife. Some states recognize Civil Unions, but this does not affect how you file your Federal tax return. Civil Union partners file as not being married on the Federal 1040s and married in their civil union resident state.
Considered married. You are considered married for the whole year if on December 31, 2005 you and your spouse meet any one of the following tests.
You are married and living together as husband and wife; or,
You are living together in a common law marriage that is recognized in the state where you now live or in the state where the common law marriage began; or,
You are married and living apart, but not legally separated under a decree of divorce or separate maintenance; or,
You are separated under an interlocutory (not final) decree of divorce. For purposes of filing a joint return, you are considered married and are not considered divorced.
Married persons. If you are considered married for the whole year, you and your spouse can file a joint return, or you can file separate returns.
Spouse died during the year. If your spouse died during the year, you are considered married for the whole year for filing status purposes. If you did not remarry before the end of the tax year, you can file a joint return for yourself and your deceased spouse. If you have a dependent child, for the next 2 years, you may be entitled to the special benefits described later under Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child. If you remarried before the end of the tax year, you can file a joint return with your new spouse. Your deceased spouse's filing status is married filing separately for that year.
You are considered not married for the whole year if, on December 31, 2005 , you are not married or if you are legally separated from your spouse under a divorce or separate maintenance decree. State law governs whether you are married or legally separated under a divorce or separate maintenance decree.
Divorced persons. If you are divorced under a final decree by the last day of the year, you are considered unmarried for the whole year.
Not Married with Dependents. If you are considered not married (unmarried), and you have qualifying dependents you may be able to file as a head of household or as a qualifying widow(er) with a dependent child.
Married persons living apart. If you are legally married but live apart from your spouse for the last six months of the year and have a qualifying child as a dependent, you may be considered "unmarried married". If this applies to you, you can file as head of household even though you are not divorced or legally separated. If you qualify to file as head of household instead of as married filing separately, your standard deduction will be higher, your tax may be lower, and you may be able to claim the earned income credit and other tax credits.
As stated above, your marital status on the last day of the year determines your status for the entire year. If more than one filing status applies to you, you may choose the one that gives you the lowest tax obligation. There are five filing status options:
1. Single. Generally, if you are unmarried, divorced or legally separated according to your state law, your filing status is Single.
2. Married Filing Jointly. If you are married, you and your spouse may file a joint return. If your spouse died during the year and you did not remarry, you may still file a joint return with that spouse for the year of death.
3. Married Filing Separately. Married taxpayers may elect to file separate returns.
4. Head of Household. You must be unmarried and paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home for you and a qualifying person.
5. Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child. If your spouse died during 2003 or 2004, you have a qualifying child and meet certain other conditions; you may be able to choose this filing status. If your spouse died in 2005, you can file as Married Filing Jointly for this year; the next 2 years you can file as qualifying widower if you have a dependent.
If more than one filing status applies to you, choose the one that will give you the lowest tax and/or the highest refund.
