2011 Tax Concerns

[Americangirl10 1]

Just married in Nov. I have already started the process of CR 1 for my husband. Yet, I have a dependent, so does anyone know if I still have the option to file head of household?? Or do I have to file Married......even without a SSN for him. Confused???? I seriously don't want to mess anything up, especially since I have to submit my tax forms later within this process!

[VisaJourney2011 14]

i would like to know this as well.

[immiprocess 1]

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/347245-tax-filing/

[Americangirl10 1]

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/347245-tax-filing/

Thanks for your reply, however I am still confused even after reading your post. I guess I should just file Head of Household, but acknowledge the marriage.........No idea what to do. I'm not trying to "claim" him on my taxes so is there a real need to include him or his information seeing that he is still in his residing in his country?

[aaron2020 11,651]

You can file as head of household. You are "considered unmarried" for the purpose of filing your income tax return as head of household. You lived apart from your spouse for at least the last six months of 2011 (visits don't count - we're talking official residence). Your marital status for the tax year is determined by your status on Dec. 31, 2011.

http://taxes.about.com/od/filingstatus/qt/headofhousehold.htm

You can claim the Head of Household (HOH) filing status on your tax return if you are unmarried, have cared for a dependent for over half the year, and paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home.

Taxpayers claiming the Head of Household filing status benefit from a higher standard deduction and lower tax rates compared to the single filing status. The definition of HOH filing status is quite specific, so read over the criteria carefully.

• You are unmarried or "considered unmarried" on the last day of the year.
  
• You paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year.
  
• A "qualifying person" lived with you in the home for more than half the year (except for temporary absences, such as school). However, if the "qualifying person" is your dependent parent, he or she does not have to live with you.
  

From the Head of Household section of IRS Publication 501.

"Considered Unmarried"

You are "considered unmarried" for tax purposes if on the last of the year you are:

• unmarried,
  
• legally separated from your spouse under a divorce or separate maintenance decree, or
  
• married but lived apart from your spouse for at least the last six months of the year.
  

State law governs whether you are married or legally separated under a divorce or separate maintenance decree. For federal tax purposes, domestic partners are considered unmarried.

Edited January 23, 2012 by aaron2020

[Americangirl10 1]

You can file as head of household. You are "considered unmarried" for the purpose of filing your income tax return as head of household. You lived apart from your spouse for at least the last six months of 2011 (visits don't count - we're talking official residence). Your marital status for the tax year is determined by your status on Dec. 31, 2011.

http://taxes.about.com/od/filingstatus/qt/headofhousehold.htm

You can claim the Head of Household (HOH) filing status on your tax return if you are unmarried, have cared for a dependent for over half the year, and paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home.

Taxpayers claiming the Head of Household filing status benefit from a higher standard deduction and lower tax rates compared to the single filing status. The definition of HOH filing status is quite specific, so read over the criteria carefully.

• You are unmarried or "considered unmarried" on the last day of the year.
  
• You paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year.
  
• A "qualifying person" lived with you in the home for more than half the year (except for temporary absences, such as school). However, if the "qualifying person" is your dependent parent, he or she does not have to live with you.
  

From the Head of Household section of IRS Publication 501.

"Considered Unmarried"

You are "considered unmarried" for tax purposes if on the last of the year you are:

• unmarried,
  
• legally separated from your spouse under a divorce or separate maintenance decree, or
  
• married but lived apart from your spouse for at least the last six months of the year.
  

State law governs whether you are married or legally separated under a divorce or separate maintenance decree. For federal tax purposes, domestic partners are considered unmarried.

Ok thanks! This makes a lot more sense now. *Whew, as I wipe away sweat*

[Donnison2011 1]

You can file as head of household. You are "considered unmarried" for the purpose of filing your income tax return as head of household. You lived apart from your spouse for at least the last six months of 2011 (visits don't count - we're talking official residence). Your marital status for the tax year is determined by your status on Dec. 31, 2011.

http://taxes.about.com/od/filingstatus/qt/headofhousehold.htm

You can claim the Head of Household (HOH) filing status on your tax return if you are unmarried, have cared for a dependent for over half the year, and paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home.

Taxpayers claiming the Head of Household filing status benefit from a higher standard deduction and lower tax rates compared to the single filing status. The definition of HOH filing status is quite specific, so read over the criteria carefully.

• You are unmarried or "considered unmarried" on the last day of the year.
  
• You paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year.
  
• A "qualifying person" lived with you in the home for more than half the year (except for temporary absences, such as school). However, if the "qualifying person" is your dependent parent, he or she does not have to live with you.
  

From the Head of Household section of IRS Publication 501.

"Considered Unmarried"

You are "considered unmarried" for tax purposes if on the last of the year you are:

• unmarried,
  
• legally separated from your spouse under a divorce or separate maintenance decree, or
  
• married but lived apart from your spouse for at least the last six months of the year.
  

State law governs whether you are married or legally separated under a divorce or separate maintenance decree. For federal tax purposes, domestic partners are considered unmarried.