How to Choose Your Tax Filing Status if You’re Married
If you’re married then you’ve probably just always filed a joint return with your spouse. In fact, chances are you’ve never even considered filing any other way. However, for some people, married filing jointly is not the best option. Depending on your situation, it could be more advantageous to file separately. Here are some things to consider when choosing what filing status to use if you are married.
While in many cases, filing together could help lessen the tax hit on you and your spouse it doesn’t always work that way. Sometimes, the only advantage of filing jointly is that you only have to worry about one return. If you and your spouse both work and one of you earns a lot more than the other, then it will typically be better to file jointly, as it will usually help reduce your combined tax bill.
On the other hand, there are other circumstances wherein it that might better to file separately. For example, if you both have taxable income and one of you has a lot of itemized deductions limited by adjusted gross income (AGI), then it might make sense to file separately. That’s because by filing separately, you can also separate both of your AGI’s. If your AGIs are lower on your separate returns, you can save on your tax bill.
This is just one example of where filing separately from your spouse could be helpful. However, it’s best to weigh all your options before making that choice. If you’re not sure what status to choose, you can contact us at GROCO for help. We’ll look at all the numbers and all the possible scenarios and choose the best path for you. Call us at 1-877-CPA-2006, or click here.
Is Your Large Tax Refund a Good Thing?
Is Your Large Tax Refund a Good Thing? What’s the best part of tax season? When it ends, right? Well, for many taxpayers that might be the answer. But for millions, the fact that they get a large refund is probably what comes to mind. A big tax refund might seem like a great thing on the surface. Who…
Will the Shutdown Delay Your Tax Refund?
Will the Shutdown Delay Your Tax Refund? Whether or not you’re following the government shutdown, eventually it could affect you. For most people, life has continued as normal since the federal government decided to shut down late last year. If you don’t work for the government, then chances are you haven’t noticed any significant changes…
The Big Changes You Need to Know Before Tax Day
The Big Changes You Need to Know Before Tax Day It’s safe to say this could be one of the most interesting tax filing seasons in the last several decades. This is the first year of filing taxes under the new Tax Cut and Jobs Act. And that means there are significant changes you need…
How Will Billion Dollar Lottery Winner Fair Under New Tax Law?
How Will Billion Dollar Lottery Winner Fair Under New Tax Law? What would you do if you won $1.5 billion dollars? That’s exactly what happened for one ultra lucky individual in October. The life of the winner of the largest single ticket jackpot in history will never be the same. What about his or her…