Should my husband and i file married separate if he owes child support?

Question

My husband owes $500 in child support from when he was off work due to surgery. We were told if we file together his child's mother will receive it all even if it is over what he owes to her. We were told to file separately. Should we do so? I need help with this issue ASAP!!

Answer 1

Yes. Difinitely file separate. That way you can get something back. Let him file and that will go to Child Support. You file and you'll have a better chance of getting money back.

Answer 2

Actually, you would be very much better off filing jointly and submitting an "injured spouse" claim form - as others have said. My husband and I will be doing this this year, and got the idea from friends of ours who were told for years by H&R Block to file seperately.

Thing is this: when one files seperately, one cannot claim many of the exemptions etc that one CAN claim filing jointly. You'll notice this if you ever try to fill out the main federal tax form without using TurboTax or any of the like. Some of the exeptions actually double when you file jointly, thereby enabling the husband and wife "team" to claim back a larger sum of money in a normal situation than they would have, had both filed seperately. For example, take a couple who fill out seperate tax returns and both get a total $2000 return - that's $4000 total, right? Then take that same couple, and have them fill a joint return, and they might make $5000 jointly instead. Say the husband owes back child support, and they'd normally take the lot - well - the wife can file the injured spouse form WITH the taxes, the IRS will do the calculations and she might get $2400 back (these are very rough, example figures!).

That's how the injured spouse claim form works, and why it works to your advantage. Here's a link to the form directly: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8379.pdf - alternatively, you will very likely find it as one of the forms in TurboTax or any other decent tax software. If you're in doubt, go to a local and good tax professional - but this IS something that can be done yourself, and is nothing to be scared of doing in a simple situation like yours would appear from your post to be.

Happy tax-time!

Answer 3

Do your taxes both ways to see if it matters whether you file joint or as married filing separately. If it's only a dollar or two different, then file separately. But if it's enough different to matter, then file joint, but you should file an injured spouse form with the return. That way you'll still get whatever share of the refund is due to your income, even though his is taken for his overdue child support.

Answer 4

Nope.
When you file, you can actually file a paper asking that your part of the refund be returned to you. I'm searching for it on the IRS web site, and if I find it I will update.
And no, they can't take everything. Once the child support amount is satisfied, they are legally required to return whatever is left.

Answer 5

Consult a tax professional - You generally will lose credits you may qualify for if you file married filing seperately.

Please consult a tax professional who can look at your tax return with you.

Answer 6

File seperately! If you have any exemptions you can claim, try to do it all on your tax return. His will go straight to the child's mother. Good luck!

Answer 7

you could report married submitting one after the other (it does the trick) yet you additionally can basically report together & finished the injured companion style (the IRS will discern it out). in many situations (no longer constantly), married submitting one after the other supplies the least benefit while it includes taxes (nevertheless there is not any injured companion style to end). maximum folk gets the suitable refund (or alleviation in taxes) by skill of submitting "together". that's once you will decide to report the injured companion style.