taxes

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? nc
My husband has been ordered out of the marital home by a judge. We have always filed taxes jointly. Can I file single, head of household? He cannot have any contact with me or the children.

fedupinnc said:

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? nc
My husband has been ordered out of the marital home by a judge. We have always filed taxes jointly. Can I file single, head of household? He cannot have any contact with me or the children.

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For next year, or the year that is now mostly past?

And you are NOT single until unmarried.

This past year. Even married file seperate tax returns. Do I have to file jointly is my question?

fedupinnc said:

This past year. Even married file seperate tax returns. Do I have to file jointly is my question?

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Married, filing seperately is not the same as single.

Did you meet the filing criteria for head of household for the majority of the year?

fedupinnc said:

This past year. Even married file seperate tax returns. Do I have to file jointly is my question?

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It will depend on whether the divorce was final by Dec 31. If the divorce was final on Dec 31, you file as single.

If the divorce was NOT final on Dec 31, you file as Married filing jointly (which will be tough since you have to agree to do so and share information and he can't have contact with you - so you'd have to do it all through your attorney), Married filing separately, or Head of Household (if you meet the requirements). Go to Internal Revenue Service for the details on which one you can use.

if fedupinnc has not lived with the husband in the last six months of the year, she can file as head of household on the taxes as long as she meets the other criteria. otherwise, she has two choices: married filing jointly or married filing separately.

if she chooses married filing separately, she will lose the opportunity to qualify for a number of the credits, such as earned income credit, child and dependent care credit and retirement credit.

fedupinnc said:

This past year. Even married file seperate tax returns. Do I have to file jointly is my question?

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NO, you do not have to file jointly.

See Tinkerbelle's response for the details.