Married filed separated for tax return

[peacemaker111 0]

Hi all,

I was wondering if would it be a bad idea that we sent " Married filed separated " tax return with my I-751 package? We have filed taxes jointly in 2004 but filed separated in 2005.

Thanks in advance.

[pj1959us 0]

Many couples file married but separately for various reasons, usually because it benefits them monetarily. If both returns have the same address it should cause no problems; if different, then an explanation would be in order to explain why you are maintaining different households.

PJ

[lucyrich 20]

There's no requirement to file jointly. MFS is ok as far as the law is concerned.

But for very many scenarios, couples will save money by filing jointly, so most married couples file jointly.

I can think of two reasons for filing separately. One is that the couple is in an unusual financial situation where filing separately was in their financial best interest (or perhaps it was a wash, didn't really cost them anything nor save them anything). Another unfortunately common reason is that the couple isn't talking to each other and one spouse refuses to cooperate with the other and sign a joint return, even though the joint return would clearly save the couple money. This frequently happens when couples are going through a bitter divorce that's not final yet.

If the person adjudicating your form thinks your tax situation looks like the second scenario, a bit of explanation may be called for. If you're in the first scenario, it may help to point that fact out.

[peacemaker111 0]

Thank you guys, I feel so much better already