Comments on: Together in Life and Taxes Too?

By: Mary

Mary — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 17:14:33 +0000

Hi,

My husband didn’t work in 2012 and we have 3 children but i filed “head of household” and not include him and got the refund already for my 3 dependents. Someone told me to file “Married filing Joint” and I did. However, he has child support case open. Now, I no longer working anymore and he is. What can i do for next year tax refunds? Please advise

By: Youenn

Youenn — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 08:40:19 +0000

I again repeat, that wiinrtg to Judy Kaye about anything illegal, corrupt or unethical, going on within HER judicial system…is signing your death warrant! This woman is one of the most outrageously criminal and self centered witches, the court system has ever known ( in such tremendous power)…and believe me there are more of them.. they are just not in complete power like her! My advice to everyone, is to stay away from complaining to anyone in power at OCA…you will regret it and they know it!

By: Ginita Wall, CPA, CFP®

Ginita Wall, CPA, CFP® — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 14:17:06 +0000

Greg,

If your wife lied on her tax return and said she was single when she was still married, that doesn’t affect your tax return. But you do have a right to see her tax return: she should attach it to her Income and Expense Declaration, which is required paperwork in California, or you can simply send her a request to produce the tax return she filed.

By: TurboTaxLisa

TurboTaxLisa — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 17:22:29 +0000

Hi Greg,
I can’t give you tax advice on this issue. I can only tell you the law. You should file according to the law. If you were not divorced last year and not legally separated you are still considered married so you may file married filing separately. If you have obtained a final decree of divorce or separate maintenance by the last day of your tax year you must follow your state law to determine if you are divorced or legally separated.

Thank you,
Lisa Greene-Lewis

By: Greg

Greg — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 19:37:43 +0000

Hi,

I live in California and my wife and i filed for divorce this year. We had discussed filing as “married filing separately”, but now she doesn’t want to share her tax info. I suspect that she filed as single even though she knows we needed to file that way. Any advice on what to do when she won’t share tax info would be appreciated.

By: Ginita Wall, CPA, CFP®

Ginita Wall, CPA, CFP® — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 22:25:28 +0000

Antonio, You and your wife should consider filing a joint income tax return, even though your wife has no income. That way you can get lower tax rates and claim her personal exemption.

By: TurboTaxLisa

TurboTaxLisa — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 20:32:14 +0000

Hi Antonio,
Yes you can receive a personal exemption for her as long as you are a U.S. citizen or a resident alien. You cannot, however claim a spouse as a dependent.

Thank you,
Lisa Greene-Lewis

By: Antonio

Antonio — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 13:28:41 +0000

I got married this year, but my wife does not work and is not a citizen of the United States. However, I am responsible for supporting her until she is able to work. Can I claim her on my taxes?

By: TurboTaxLisa

TurboTaxLisa — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 07:54:49 +0000

Hi Barbara,
Unfortunately, the right to claim a credit such as the earned income credit must be made within 3 years of the return due date.

Thank you,
Lisa Lewis

By: barbara

barbara — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 04:19:31 +0000

in 1997 i let my sister in law do my taxes i had three sm. children at the time and i never recieved the earned income credit is it possible i would still get that back

By: Andy

Andy — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 23:06:10 +0000

You forgot two important points…turbo tax does nothing to help you “try” switching between JFS or MFS. Second, in some states due to their straight line income tax brackets, MFS might actually slightly lower your federal return amount, but greatly increase your state return, to the point that the total return amount for both is greater with MFS, instead of filing jointly.