Joint Responsibility

• If you choose to file a joint return, both you and your spouse are held responsible for the accuracy of the income, credits and deductions listed on your joint return. In addition, you are both held responsible, jointly and separately, for any tax, interest or penalties due as a result of the return. If your spouse owes a federal or state debt such as child support, state taxes or federal taxes, then the refund is applied to any debt owed.
  
  

Married Filing Separate Advantages

• Married filing separately is beneficial for married couples who desire to keep their tax records separate. If you file a separate return, your spouse is responsible for his taxes and you are responsible for your own. There is no joint responsibility or co-mingling of tax accounts; you report only your own income, tax, credits, deductions and losses.
  
  

Examples

• Filing separate returns is advantageous for couples who have complex tax situations. For example, a spouse who owes a tax debt may not wish that his spouse take joint responsibility for that debt. A separate return may also be beneficial if, based on one spouse's tax situation, she would receive a refund were it not for the other spouse's tax situation. For instance, if one spouse is a business owner and will not receive a refund because there were not enough estimated taxes paid, and his spouse is a teacher who is eligible for a refund, then the teacher may choose to file a separate return.
  
  

Disadvantages

• If you file separate returns, then you are forbidden from claiming a variety of credits on your income tax return. For example, separate filers are prohibited from claiming the Hope Credit, Lifetime Learning Credit, Earned Income Credit and a variety of other credits. In addition, the standard deduction for separate filers is less than the standard deduction for joint and head of household filers.
  
  

Considerations

• For the purpose of taxation, you and your spouse are considered married if you and your spouse are married and living together, are living in a common law marriage, are married and living apart but not legally separated or divorced, or you are separated but your divorce is not final. If you meet this criteria on the last day of the tax year, then you are considered married.