File Separately or Together, if both spouse work at decent paying jobs?

Question

Follow up: can you file separately if you filed jointly in three previous years?

Answer 1

If you are legally married at the end of the tax year, your filing choices are 1) married filing jointly or 2) Married filing separately. The standard deduction is cut in half if you file separately. Also, the tax rates are higher than they would be if you were filing as a single person. In addition, if one spouse uses itemized deductions, the other spouse must itemize as well, even if it means that that their liability is increased. There are few situations where filing separately is done, and almost none of these is because it works out better for the couple tax-wise. If you are really curious about the difference, go ahead and figure it both ways, but my advice is to not waste your time figuring out what filing married-separate returns will be. I am 99.9% sure that tax-wise, it will definitely be to your advantage to file a joint return. If both spouses taxable incomes are equal, joint filing is a few dollars better. If there is a $20,000 or more difference between the taxable income of the two spouses, separate filing results in hundreds or more in income tax versus joint filing.

An example of when filing separately could be beneficial. When both spouses have nearly equal taxable income, but one spouse incurred medical bills that exceeded 7.5% his/her adjusted gross income (AGI), but it did not exceed 7.5% of the combined AGI. In that case, additional deductions could be achieved by filing separately and the total tax would be less than filing jointly. However, if there was something like a 70/30 split in taxable income between the two spouses, the extra deduction would probably not offset the higher taxes from separate filing.

Answer 2

You would need to know how much they were getting paid separately and calculate the tax on the income, then add their incomes together and calculate the tax on it, then compare the two and see which one would be best.

Hint: There is usually a "marriage penalty" when they file separately. Which means that they pay more separately than they would if they filed jointly. But there are situations where the couple derived a tax benefit from filing separately.

And they could file separately if and only if they are legally separated or if they haven't had contact for the taxable year, and of course aren't living together. Or if the spouse has left and the other one could not contact his/her wife to get the information that was needed.

Answer 3

I know there's FAR more financial benefit to filing jointly than there is in filing separately...you need to talk to an accountant.

Answer 4

you may get in lots of hassle doing that, when you're married, the finest filing prestige is MFJ, now in case you separated or are divorced this previous 3 hundred and sixty 5 days then both you or him can declare head of loved ones, whoever took care of the living house/children for better than 6 months, yet the different individual would declare separate/which has its hazards. verify inclusive of your tax preparer for an estimate to ascertain that is better. yet both one in all you may't declare head of loved ones.

Answer 5

Have you ever filed on-line using one of the on-line companies...there are several...TaxAct comes to my mind now. It is quick, easy, and you can have it figure your taxes separately and jointly, then pick the best one.

Answer 6

Talk to an accountant. It's their job to know which will be better. Our accountant does the taxes both ways to see which is cheaper. The money you pay for the accountant (And I DONT mean H&R Block) is well worth it.

Answer 7

i would file seperatley and do it where you can save it is more money that way and depending if you have probblems with the one that yo are with.

Answer 8

joint is almost always the better deal...yes you can. if you doubt you can work it both ways and see.