tax

[twhynes 1]

If someone is filing for there spouse and the spouse lives in the caribbean and the filer lives in florida can the person file head of house hold being that the spouse is still in the process or woule it mess up with his papers

[Collie 122]

I don't believe that you can file for that person unless they physically lived in the same house...

[Shiobhan 235]

Petitioner is head of household until

beneficiary is legally admitted to the

US as a resident, and cannot be claimed

until living in the US

Edited February 14, 2014 by Shiobhan

[novedsac 355]

Petitioner is head of household until

beneficiary is legally admitted to the

US as a resident, and cannot be claimed

until living in the US

No, not based upon the information the OP has provided.

In order to qualify for Head of Household, the following three requirements must be met:

1) Unmarried. However, there are provisions for married people to be considered 'unmarried' in the context of determining eligibility for Head of Household filing status. First, if there is a legal separation agreement in place governing maintenance support. Second, if your spouse has lived outside the country entirely for the last six months of the year (that is July through December). If you meet one of these two options, then you can be considered 'unmarried' for the purpose of filing Head of Household. Of course, you won't be able to claim your spouse's tax exemption.

2) Pay more than half the cost (at least 51%) of maintaining the household. This would include costs associated with the residence and not costs associated with things such as medical payments, clothing, food, etc.

3) Have at least one qualifying dependent living with you in the household for at least half the year - doesn't matter which part of the year, but at least six months of the year. Qualifying means that you are eligible to claim that person as a dependent on your tax return.

If you cannot meet ALL these requirements, then you cannot file as Head of Household. If you are married, that leaves you with Married Joint or Married Separate.

[Jawaree 717]

The person that reside in a home, work ,pay the bills

while mate still overseas not contributing to the household,

as not yet a resident, doesn't that person qualify as the head

of household who manages the home?....I don't know I am

asking so I cant get the facts

[florida4life 29]

Yes you can still file as head of house hold. I am doing it as well. My husband don't have income to report.

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

~ Moved from Bring Family Members to General Immigration-Related Discussion - topic is filing taxes during immigration process ~

[Zedayn 485]

No, not based upon the information the OP has provided.

In order to qualify for Head of Household, the following three requirements must be met:

1) Unmarried. However, there are provisions for married people to be considered 'unmarried' in the context of determining eligibility for Head of Household filing status. First, if there is a legal separation agreement in place governing maintenance support. Second, if your spouse has lived outside the country entirely for the last six months of the year (that is July through December). If you meet one of these two options, then you can be considered 'unmarried' for the purpose of filing Head of Household. Of course, you won't be able to claim your spouse's tax exemption.

2) Pay more than half the cost (at least 51%) of maintaining the household. This would include costs associated with the residence and not costs associated with things such as medical payments, clothing, food, etc.

3) Have at least one qualifying dependent living with you in the household for at least half the year - doesn't matter which part of the year, but at least six months of the year. Qualifying means that you are eligible to claim that person as a dependent on your tax return.

If you cannot meet ALL these requirements, then you cannot file as Head of Household. If you are married, that leaves you with Married Joint or Married Separate.

You cannot claim your spouse as a dependent. In order to file head of household, you need to have one other qualifying person living with you (NOT your spouse).

Read IRS publication 501 which explains better the requirements for filing head of household: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p501.pdf

Page 10 has a chart of qualifying dependents, page 11 specifically states:

Your spouse is never considered your dependent.　

[novedsac 355]

You cannot claim your spouse as a dependent. In order to file head of household, you need to have one other qualifying person living with you (NOT your spouse).

Read IRS publication 501 which explains better the requirements for filing head of household: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p501.pdf

Page 10 has a chart of qualifying dependents, page 11 specifically states:

Your spouse is never considered your dependent.　

Absolutely correct. I never implied that a spouse could be a dependent. A spouse can NEVER be a dependent, only an exemption (though we often, including myself sometimes, use the terms interchangeably which is not correct).

[novedsac 355]

The person that reside in a home, work ,pay the bills

while mate still overseas not contributing to the household,

as not yet a resident, doesn't that person qualify as the head

of household who manages the home?....I don't know I am

asking so I cant get the facts

No, managing your home whilst your spouse is living overseas, does not qualify as Head of Household.

The guidelines are quite clear from the IRS … read them.

I am assuming, based on your post, that you do not have any children or other qualified dependents (by IRS definition) residing in your home for at least six months of the year. If so AND your spouse is nonresident for the entire period of July through December of the tax year, then you do meet the definition of 'unmarried' for the purposes of filing Head of Household - but it is a very narrow definition with very specific requirements. In other words, spouse been in the USA for as much as a single day between July 1 - December 31 of the tax year, then you no longer qualify.

If you file Head of Household AND do not include at least one dependent on your tax return, then your return will be kicked out of the automated processing system and reviewed by a real human (well, as 'human' as a tax man could be). This will most likely result in a recalculation of your tax return by the IRS, who will likely assume a filing status of single, followed by an unexpected tax bill in your mailbox.

You must file either MFS or MFJ and elect the option to consider a nonresident spouse as a resident spouse for tax reporting purposes.

Edited March 6, 2014 by novedsac