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Tax Filing FAQs
- Do I need to file a tax return?
- What's my "filing status"?
- When must I file?
- How quickly can I get my refund?
- If I owe taxes, what are my payment options?
- What if I can't pay the balance due by the due date?
- How can I get a copy of my prior year return?
Do I need to file a tax return?
The answer depends on your age, filing status, and income.
You must file a return if you are a US citizen or resident (or resident of Puerto Rico) and you meet any of the tests in Tables 1 through 4 below. You should file a return if you meet any test in Table 5.
Special rules may apply to
- citizens of community property states
- US citizens or residents living outside the United States
- individuals with income from Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, or the US Virgin Islands
- nonresident aliens and dual-status taxpayers
Table 1. 2010 Filing Requirements for Most Taxpayers
| If your filing status is | And at the end of 2010 you were* | Then file a return if your gross income** was at least |
|---|---|---|
single |
under 65 | $9,350 |
| 65 or older | $10,750 |
|
married filing jointly*** |
under 65 (both spouses) | $18,700 |
| 65 or older (one spouse) | $19,800 |
|
| 65 or older (both spouses) | $20,900 |
|
married filing separately |
any age | $3,650 |
head of household |
under 65 | $12,050 |
| 65 or older | $13,450 |
|
qualifying widow(er) with dependent child |
under 65 | $15,050 |
| 65 or older | $16,150 |
|
|
* If you were born on 1 January 1946, you're considered to be 65 at the end of 2010. ** Gross income means all income not exempt from tax, including income from sources outside the US (even if you may exclude all or part of it). Do not include social security benefits unless you're married filing a separate return and you lived with your spouse at any time during 2010. *** If you did not live with your spouse at the end of 2010 (or on the date your spouse died) and your gross income was at least $3,650, you must file a return regardless of your age. |
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Table 2. 2010 Filing Requirements for Dependents
If your parents (or someone else) can claim you as a dependent, you must file a return if you meet any of the tests in this table.
Exception: The parent of a child under age 18 may elect to report the child's income on the parent's return if the child's only income is interest and dividends (including capital gain distributions and Alaska Permanent Fund dividends) totaling less than $8,500 and certain conditions are met.
| Marital status | 65 or older or blind | Income threshold (see definitions at end) |
|---|---|---|
| Single | No |
Unearned income more than $950 |
| Earned income more than $5,700 | ||
| Gross income more than the larger of (a) earned income (up to $5,400) plus $300, or (b) $950 | ||
Yes |
Unearned income more than $2,350 ($3,750 if 65 or older and blind) | |
| Earned income more than $7,100 ($8,500 if 65 or older and blind) | ||
| Gross income more than the larger of (a) earned income (up to $5,400) plus $1,700 ($3,100 if 65 or older and blind), or (b) $2,350 ($3,750 if 65 or older and blind) | ||
| Married | No |
Unearned income more than $950 |
| Earned income more than $5,700 | ||
| Gross income at least $5 and your spouse files a separate return and itemizes deductions | ||
| Gross income more than the larger of (a) earned income (up to $5,400) plus $300, or (b) $950 | ||
Yes |
Unearned income more than $2,050 ($3,150 if 65 or older and blind) | |
| Earned income more than $6,800 ($7,900 if 65 or older and blind) | ||
| Gross income at least $5 and your spouse files a separate return and itemizes deductions | ||
| Gross income more than the larger of (a) earned income (up to $5,400) plus $1,400 ($2,500 if 65 or older and blind), or (b) $2,050 ($3,150 if 65 or older and blind) | ||
| • Unearned income: investment-type income such as taxable interest, ordinary dividends, and capital gains distributions; also unemployment compensation, taxable social security benefits, pensions, annuities, and distributions of unearned income from trusts. • Earned income: salaries, wages, tips, professional fees, and taxable scholarships and grants. • Gross income: the total of earned and unearned income. |
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Table 3. Other Situations When You Must File a 2010 Return
| You must file a return if any of the following conditions apply, even if your income is less than the amount shown in Tables 1 or 2. | |
| You had net earnings from self-employment of at least $400. | |
| You had wages of $108.28 or more from a church or qualified church-controlled organization that is exempt from employer social security and Medicare taxes. | |
| You received an advance earned income credit (EIC) payment from your employer. This amount should be shown in your Form W-2 box 9. | |
| You owe any special taxes, such as: | Social security or Medicare tax on tips you did not report to your employer. |
| Social security or Medicare tax on wages you received from an employer who did not withhold these taxes. | |
| Uncollected social security, Medicare, or railroad retirement tax on tips you reported to your employer. | |
| Uncollected social security, Medicare, or railroad retirement tax on your group-term life insurance. This amount should be shown on Form W-2 box 12. | |
| Alternative minimum tax. | |
| Additional tax on a qualified retirement plan, including an IRA.* | |
| Additional tax on an Archer MSA or health savings account. | |
| Additional tax on a Coverdell ESA or qualified tuition program. | |
| Household employment taxes.** | |
| Recapture of the first-time homebuyer credit. | |
| Recapture of an investment credit or a low-income housing credit. | |
| Recapture tax on the disposition of a home purchased with a federally subsidized mortgage. | |
| Recapture of the qualified electric vehicle credit, alternative motor vehicle credit, or alternative fuel vehicle refueling property credit. | |
| Recapture of an education credit. | |
| Recapture of the Indian employment credit. | |
| Recapture of the new markets credit or the credit for employer-provided child care facilities. | |
| *If filing only for this purpose, can file Form 5329 by itself. **If filing only for this purpose, can file Schedule H by itself. |
|
Table 4. Surviving Spouses, Executors, Administrators, and Legal Representatives
| You must file a final return for a decedent (a person who died) if both of the following are true: | You are the surviving spouse, executor, administrator, or legal representative. |
| The decedent met the filing requirements at the time of death. |
Table 5. Who Should File
| Even if you are not required to file a return, you should file to get money back if any of the following conditions apply. | |
| You had federal income tax withheld from your pay or made estimated tax payments. | |
| You qualify for the | earned income credit. |
| additional child tax credit. | |
| health coverage tax credit. | |
| refundable credit for prior year minimum tax. | |
| first-time homebuyer credit. | |
| Making Work Pay credit. | |
| refundable adoption credit | |
| refundable American Opportunity Credit | |
What's my "filing status"?
There are five possibilities:
- Single
- Married filing jointly (MFJ)
- Married filing separately (MFS)
- Head of household (HoH)
- Qualifying widow(er) with dependent child
Which status to use depends on your marital status on the last day of the tax year (for most taxpayers, 31 December) and whether you meet the conditions for the three optional statuses: married filing jointly, head of household, or qualifying widow(er).
General rule: You must file "single" if you are considered unmarried on 31 December (Table 6) and do not meet the test for HoH (Table 7) or qualifying widow(er) (Table 8). You must file "married filing separately" if you are considered married on 31 December (Table 6) and do not meet the test for MFJ (Table 9) or HoH (Table 8).
Caution: Even if you qualify to file "married filing jointly," you should calculate your tax liability under both statuses (MFJ and MFS) to determine which results in less tax. Also see Tables 9 and 10 for the benefits and drawbacks to each filing status.
Table 6. Definition of "unmarried" and "married"
| You are considered | if | |
|---|---|---|
| unmarried | you have never been married (Note 1), or | |
| you received a final decree of divorce and the effective date of the decree is on or before 31 December (Note 2), or | ||
| you received a legal separation (sometimes called divorce from bed and board or divorce a mensa et throro) or separate maintenance decree with an effective date on or before 31 December, or | ||
| you received a decree of annulment (Note 3), or | ||
| you meet the tests to qualify for head of household status (Table 7). | ||
| married | on 31 December, you and your spouse | are married and living together as husband and wife, or |
| are living together in a common law marriage that is recognized in the state where you now live or in the state where the common law marriage began, or | ||
| are married and living apart, but not legally separated under a decree of divorce or separate maintenance (but see Table 7, HoH), or | ||
| are separated under an interlocutory (not final) decree of divorce (but see Table 7, HoH). | ||
| your spouse died during the tax year (Note 4). | ||
| Note 1: For federal tax purposes, "marriage" means only a legal union between a man and a woman as husband and wife. Note 2: If you obtain a divorce in one year for the sole purpose of filing tax returns as unmarried individuals, and at the time of divorce you intended to and did remarry each other in the next tax year, you must file as married individuals. Note 3: You are considered unmarried even if you filed joint returns for earlier years. You must file Form 1040X (amended return) claiming single or HoH status for each tax year affected by the annulment that is not closed by the statute of limitations (generally, 3 years from the date of filing). Note 4: If you did not remarry before the end of the tax year, you can file a joint return for yourself and your deceased spouse for this year. For the next 2 years, you can file as a qualifying widow(er) if you meet certain additional tests. If you did remarry before the end of the tax year, you can file a joint return with your new spouse, in which case your deceased spouse's filing status is married filing separately. |
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Table 7. Head of Household
| You may be able to file as head of household if you meet all of the following requirements | |
|---|---|
1. You are unmarried or "considered unmarried" on the last day of the year. You are "considered unmarried" if you meet the tests at right. (See Note 1 regarding a nonresident alien spouse.) |
A. You file a separate return (single, MFS, or HoH). |
| B. You paid more than half the cost of keeping up your home for the tax year. | |
| C. Your spouse did not live in your home during the last 6 months of the year (Note 2). | |
| D. Your home was the main home of your child, stepchild, or foster child for more than half the year (Notes 2, 3). | |
| E. You must be able to claim an exemption for the child (Note 4). | |
2. You paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year. |
|
3. A "qualifying person" lived wih you in the home for more than half the year. |
The simplest example is your child or grandchild who is single, or who is married and for whom you can claim an exemption. Other relatives may qualify, but the rules are complex. See pages 6-18 of Pub 501. |
| Note 1: You are considered unmarried for HoH purposes if your spouse was a nonresident alien at any time during the year and you do not choose to treat him or her as a resident alien. In such case, your spouse cannot be a "qualifying person." Note 2: Your spouse, or the "qualifying person," is considered to live in your home even if temporarily absent due to special circumstances such as illness, education, business, vacation, or military service. It must be reasonable to assume that the absent person will return to the home after the temporary absence. Note 3: If the qualifying person was born or died during the tax year, you must have provided more than half the cost of keeping up a home that was that person's main home for more than half the year or, if less, the period during which he or she lived. Note 4: You meet this test if you cannot claim the exemption only because the noncustodial parent can claim the exemption under the rules pertaining to children of divorced or separated parents. |
|
Table 8. Qualifying Widow(er)
You can use married filing jointly as your filing status for the tax year in which your spouse died, if you otherwise qualify. For the next two tax years, you may be able to use qualifying widow(er) with dependent child as your filing status. This status allows you to use joint return tax rates and the highest standard deduction amount (if you don't itemize deductions).
| You can use "qualifying widow(er) with dependent child" as your filing status if you meet all of the following tests. |
|---|
| You were entitled to file a joint return with your spouse for the year in which your spouse died, whether or not you actually filed a joint return. |
| Your spouse died in 2008 or 2009 and you did not remarry before the end of 2010. |
| You have a child or stepchild for whom you can claim an exemption. This does not include a foster child. |
| The child lived in your home all year, except for temporary absences (see Table 7 Note 2). If the child was born or died during the year, your home must have been the child's main home for the entire part of the year he or she was alive. |
| You paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year. |
Table 9. Married Filing Jointly
To use this filing status, you must be considered married on the last day of the year (see Table 6) and your spouse must agree to file MFJ. (See Table 8 if your spouse died during the tax year.) If your spouse does not agree to file MFJ, you must file MFS unless you qualify to file as head of household (Table 7).
| Filing jointly offers certain benefits, but has one potential drawback. Review this table for more details. | |
|---|---|
| Benefits: | Tax is usually—but not always—lower than with other filing statuses. |
| Standard deduction (if you don't itemize deductions) may be higher. | |
| You may qualify for tax benefits that do not apply to other filing statuses (see Table 10). | |
| Drawback: | Joint responsibility; general rule: Both spouses are responsible, jointly and individually, for the tax and any penalties and interest due on a joint return. One spouse may be held responsible for all the tax due even if all the income was earned by the other spouse. Divorce: This rule remains in force even if the spouses later divorce, and even if the divorce decree states that only one spouse will be responsible. Relief from joint liability: In some cases, one spouse may be relieved of joint liability for tax, penalties, and interest on a joint return for items of the other spouse that were incorrectly reported (or not reported). Relief must be requested and is not guaranteed. There are four types of relief: • Innocent spouse relief • Separation of liability, which applies to joint filers who are divorced, widowed, legally separated, or have not lived together for 12 months • Equitable relief • Relief based on community property law |
Table 10. Married Filing Separately
You can choose this filing status if you are married. This filing status may benefit you if you want to be responsible for only your own tax, or if it results in less tax than a joint return.
You must use this filing status if your spouse does not agree to file a joint return, unless you qualify for head of household status (Table 7).
| The following special rules apply if you use the status married filing separately. These rules usually result in a higher combined tax liability than married filing jointly. |
|---|
| Your applicable tax rate is generally higher than on a joint return. |
| Your exemption amount for figuring the alternative minimum tax is half that allowed to a joint return filer. |
| You cannot take the credit for child and dependent care expenses in most cases, and the amount you can exclude under an employer's dependent care assistance program is limited to $2,500 (compared to $5,000 for a joint return). |
| You cannot take the earned income credit. |
| You cannot take the exclusion or credit for adoption expenses in most cases. |
| You cannot take education credits (Hope or Lifetime Learning), the deduction for student loan interest, or the tuition and fees deduction. |
| You cannot exclude any interest income from qualified US savings bonds used for higher education purposes. |
| If you lived with your spouse at any time during the tax year: • You cannot claim the credit for the elderly or disabled. • You must include in your income more (up to 85%) of your social security or equivalent railroad retirement benefits. • You cannot roll over amounts from a traditional IRA into a Roth IRA. |
| The following deductions and credits have income-based reductions (phase outs) at half the income levels allowed for a joint return: • The child tax credit. • The retirement savings contribution credit. • Itemized deductions. • The deduction for personal exemptions. |
| Your capital loss deduction limit is $1,500 (vs. $3,000 for a joint return). |
| If your spouse itemizes deductions, you cannot claim the standard deduction. If you can claim the standard deduction, the base amount is half that allowed on a joint return. |
| You may not be able to deduct all or part of your contributions to a traditional IRA if you or your spouse was covered by an employee retirement plan at work during the year. Your deduction is reduced or eliminated at a much lower income level than joint filers if you lived with your spouse at any time during the year. |
| If you actively participated in a passive real estate activity that produced a loss, you cannot deduct the loss if you lived with your spouse at any time during the year (joint filers can claim this "special allowance" up to $25,000). If you lived apart the entire year, each spouse may claim up to $12,500. |
When must I file?
General rule: Most individual income tax returns are due 15 April. If you're a fiscal year filer (you use a tax year other than January-December), your return is due by the 15th day of the 4th month following the close of your tax year.
Weekends and holidays: When the due date for any tax act (filing, paying, etc.) falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the due date is extended until the next business day. Legal holidays include both federal and state holidays. For tax year 2010 returns, the IRS has extended the filing deadline to Monday, 18 April 2011.
Extensions: Most individuals can get a 6-month extension of the filing deadline. (This is not an extension of time to pay any tax due.) Additional rules apply to persons outside the US or serving in a combat zone. Click here for more information.
Nonresident aliens: The general rule above applies if you earned wages subject to US income tax withholding. If you did not earn wages subject to US income tax withholding, your return is due 2 months later.
Timely filing; US Postal Service: Your paper return is filed on time if it is postmarked by the due date, is properly addressed, and has sufficient postage. If you want proof of timely mailing, you should pay for a Certificate of Mailing. You may use Certified or Registered mail, but these services are more expensive and provide no significant additional benefit. (You don't have to prove delivery, only mailing.)
Timely filing; e-file: Your return is filed on time if the electronic return transmitter "postmarks" the transmission by the due date. Since the transmitter is often an intermediary between your paid preparer and the IRS, you should allow at least one additional day for this process. (For example, Hamilton Tax Services is a paid preparer and electronic return originator (ERO), but not a transmitter. We send returns through ATX/CCH Small Firm Services.)
How quickly can I get my refund?
If your e-filed return is transmitted and accepted by the weekly cutoff (11:00 am each Thursday), the IRS will issue your refund by direct deposit (or by adding the funds to your Western Union prepaid debit card) the following Friday (8 days later). If you don't request direct deposit, a paper check will take one week longer, plus mailing time. These processing times are typical but not guaranteed.
Paper (mailed) returns take longer to process—at least two weeks and as much as three months longer than an e-filed return.
If I owe taxes, what are my payment options?
Electronic funds withdrawal.
When you file your return, you can authorize the IRS to withdraw funds from your checking or savings account immediately or on a future date (as late as the return due date). You'll need your account number and your financial institution's routing transit number. If you haven't made an electronic withdrawal from that account before, you should check with your financial institution to make sure it's allowed.
The federal government also has a free service, the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS), that individuals and business taxpayers can use to pay taxes, but it requires registration and is somewhat less convenient than a one-time electronic funds withdrawal. For more info, see eftps.gov.
Check or money order.
Payable to "United States Treasury." On the memo line, write the year and tax form (e.g., "2008 Form 1040A") and your social security or other taxpayer ID number (for a joint return, enter the ID number shown first). Also include your name, address, and daytime phone number if not pre-printed on the check. If you're filing a Form 1040, include a Form 1040-V payment voucher.
Credit card.
This is the worst option and should be used only as a last resort. You'll pay a "convenience fee" of about 2.5%, and if you don't pay your card balance in full within one billing cycle, you'll pay interest (usually from the date of the charge) at your card's interest rate, which is rarely under 10% and may be as high as 30% or more. If you're even thinking about paying your taxes with a credit card, you probably have a financial management problem that needs to be addressed promptly.
What if I can't pay the balance due by the due date?
Your best option is to borrow money from a relative, friend, or bank. You might pay the lender interest, but you'll avoid paying penalties and interest to the IRS.
The next best option depends on whether you'll have the funds available in the near term (within a few months) or a longer term (1-3 years).
In the short term, the safest approach is to request a 30-120 day extension of time to pay. You can do this online if you file your own return, or your paid preparer can do it with a power of attorney. If the IRS approves your request, you'll normally pay less in penalties and interest than with an installment agreement.
If you can't pay within a few months, you can apply for an installment agreement of up to 60 months (or longer in unusual circumstances). You'll still pay interest, and probably late payment penalties, but the IRS won't take other enforcement actions as long as you comply with the agreement. The IRS will not reject your request for an installment agreement if you meet all of the following tests:
- The tax you owe is $10,000 or less.
- During the past 5 years, you (and your spouse if filing jointly) have timely filed all income tax returns and paid any tax due, and have not entered an installment agreement for payment of income tax.
- The IRS determines you cannot pay the tax owed in full when due. (You must cooperate in making this determination by providing any information requested.)
- You agree to pay the full amount due within 3 years and comply with the tax laws while the agreement is in effect.
In the short term, it may be less costly to simply pay your tax balance late (with penalties and interest) than to use a credit card. The IRS late payment penalty is 1/2% per month, and IRS interest (which varies quarterly) is only 3% per year as of the first quarter 2011.
Remember, this discussion is only about paying a balance due after the due date. Even if you know you'll have a balance due, you should still file your return on time to avoid penalties for late filing or failure to file.
