Married couples do many things together. However, there are a few things that they should not do together.

On occasion, filing taxes is one of the things that couples should do separately. Most of the time married couples receive more deductions and benefits if they file taxes together.

One of the reasons that you may Viagra Jelly want to consider filing separately is if your spouse is involved in illegal activity. If you suspect or are aware that your spouse is trying to evade paying taxes or is participating in other illegal techniques for gain, you will want to protect yourself by filing taxes separately.

Under the regulations of a joint tax return, both of your will be held responsible if the IRS catches you in this illegal activity. If you are unaware of your spouse’s dishonesty and the IRS catches him or her, there are innocent spouse rules in place that are designed to protect you.

However, if you know about the illegal activities of your spouse, you will want to file separately. You will not be protected by these “innocence” rules if you are aware of what your spouse is doing.

Whether or not you decide to file separately, it is always a good idea to become very good friends with a professional tax attorney or certified public accountant.

If issues arise and you have a friend like this, they can lend you their experienced advice. Another reason you may want to file separately is if your spouse owes a lot of back child support from a previous marriage.

A spouse that owes child support will not receive his or her tax refund. If you file jointly, the IRS will take your refund to help pay for child support as well.

Large medical bills would be another reason to file separately. You may be eligible for some medical bill deductions depending on your income.

If you have a lot of medical expenses, the IRS may give you more deductions if you file separately thereby reporting only your income. However, there are other tax benefits that may be lost through this tactic.

You will need to carefully weigh the benefits and disadvantages of filing separately and jointly before you make a decision. In addition, you do not want to make a mistake and commit an illegal action on your taxes.

Make sure you consult with a tax attorney or certified public accountant friend to make sure you are completing your taxes legally and correctly if you are going to pursue maximizing tax deduction techniques.

One more reason that you may want to file separately is if you or your spouse has very high investment or job-related expenses. Investment and job related expense deductions are also based on income.

By reporting separate incomes, you may be eligible for more deductions and higher exemptions. You may also want to file separately if you do not understand your spouse’s complicated affairs.

Your spouse’s affair could become much more complicated if he or she is self-employed, pays child support, invests and so forth. It is also a very good idea to file separately if your spouse gets defensive or angry when you try to question and understand their affairs.

Take a step back and let them handle it. You will be responsible for any mistakes, so make sure you understand their affairs before you file jointly.

Some couples decided to file jointly simple because they do not want to be held responsible for any mistakes that their spouse makes. There may be few other times when filing separately would be advantageous to your finances, but most couples will benefit from filing taxes jointly.

You will be eligible to file jointly if you are considered to be legally married by December 31st of the tax year. Those who are domestic partners or same-sex couples are not eligible for filing joint tax returns.

In addition, you can still file separately if you are not together but have not filled out any legal paperwork to end your marriage. A temporary pendente does not affect your marital status as viewed by the IRS either.

You will be considered single if your divorce is finalized by December 31st of the tax year. At this point you will be required to file separately from your ex-spouse.

No matter how you file, make sure you file in a way that is legal. Review your calculations three times to make sure they are correct so that you avoid any penalties for mistakes from the IRS.

Author Bio: Jack R. Landry has worked since 1988 as a tax attorney. He has written hundreds of articles about finding a Bakersfield tax attorney.

Contact Info:
Jack R. Landry
JackRLandry@gmail.com
http://www.TaxCrisisInstitute.com

Category: Finance/Taxes
Keywords: Tax debt relief