In my tax-paying lifetime, I've been just about every category of filing status as you can be. It CAN be very confusing to determine what your status might be. To begin with, your income tax filing status is based upon whether or not you are single, married, or widowed. It is important as it pertains to the correct amount of tax being deducted from your paycheck. Let’s go over each filing status to give you a clear picture of your options.
According to the Internal Revenue Service:
* A single person can claim single status if unmarried, divorced or legally separated.
* If you are married, you and your spouse may file a joint return.
* If you are married, but wish to file a separate return, you can.
* To claim head of household, you must be unmarried and pay more than half the cost of maintaining the home for you and a qualified person.
* If you are a widow or widower, and if your spouse died in 2006, you can use married jointly as your filing status for 2006. Note: The year of death is the last year for which you can file jointly with your deceased spouse.
While there are new tax changes every year, the filing status seems to be the same. To determine what type of filing status is best for you, talk to your tax professional or visit the IRS site online here. However, it should be noted that the information supplied by the IRS may take quite a bit of time to read and digest.
It's true what they say, “there are only two things you can count on in life; death and taxes.”
Get a jump on filing your taxes by gathering all of your papers and make an appointment with your tax professional today!
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