SAHM and taxes

Telyco · March 2010

We've never done our taxes without any income from me - and didn't think to ask last year. Are there any credits for being a SAHM? I really want a big return!! : )

jenifairies · March 2010

I don't think so. But your taxable income will probably be lower because there's only one income instead of 2.

Depending on how much he makes you could qualify for EIC. We made over that this year though by a couple thousand- 45k for 3 people - so if he's a higher earner, that's probably a no-go.

cepcep · March 2010

We went down a tax bracket which helped but having two kids really helped!

Stacyc625 · March 2010

No the gov doesn't give you any breaks for being a SAHM-

you both make less money so they take less- that is the trade off.

detroitblondie · March 2010

I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.

mandymack · March 2010

detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.

Not to frighten you or anything but a spouse can NEVER be a dependent and to even qualify for Head-of-Household status, your spouse could NOT have lived with you during the last 6 months of the year.

How were you able to file your DH as Head of Household?!?

jenifairies · March 2010

TobeMrs.Shavers:

detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.

Not to frighten you or anything but a spouse can NEVER be a dependent and to even qualify for Head-of-Household status, your spouse could NOT have lived with you during the last 6 months of the year.

How were you able to file your DH as Head of Household?!?

Ditto. It's married filing jointly - hoh is only for single parents i think.

MrsRebecca · March 2010

Stacyc625:
No the gov doesn't give you any breaks for being a SAHM-

you both make less money so they take less- that is the trade off.

This. I was hoping we'd go down a tax bracket but no such luck. We don't normally get a big refund anyway- we prefer to keep our money throughout the year and break even or owe a small amount.

Stacyc625 · March 2010

detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.

As a tax professional- i hate to tell you that this is VERY wrong. A spouse CANNOT be claimed as a dependent.

Mj2lyons4 · March 2010

TobeMrs.Shavers:

detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.

Not to frighten you or anything but a spouse can NEVER be a dependent and to even qualify for Head-of-Household status, your spouse could NOT have lived with you during the last 6 months of the year.

How were you able to file your DH as Head of Household?!?

This is what I thought as well

MainelyFoolish · March 2010

jenifairies:
TobeMrs.Shavers:

detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.

Not to frighten you or anything but a spouse can NEVER be a dependent and to even qualify for Head-of-Household status, your spouse could NOT have lived with you during the last 6 months of the year.

How were you able to file your DH as Head of Household?!?

Ditto. It's married filing jointly - hoh is only for single parents i think.

Like everyone else said, you cannot file Head of Household if you're married and living together. This is a serious error that you must correct. You'll need to file 1040X to amend your return to married filing jointly (or married filing separately, if you wish).

janbrady · March 2010

My income eliminated a lot of deductions for us because it pushes us out of the phase out limits. Without it we can write a lot more off.

LiLnikkiMe · March 2010

jenifairies:
TobeMrs.Shavers:

detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.

Not to frighten you or anything but a spouse can NEVER be a dependent and to even qualify for Head-of-Household status, your spouse could NOT have lived with you during the last 6 months of the year.

How were you able to file your DH as Head of Household?!?

Ditto. It's married filing jointly - hoh is only for single parents i think.

this!

NerdBride_D&D · March 2010

Without my income last year, we had a lot less taxable income. We also qualified for the EIC, which made our return pretty nice. Between the EIC and the Child Tax Credit, we came out pretty good.

detroitblondie · March 2010

TobeMrs.Shavers:
detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.
Not to frighten you or anything but a spouse can NEVER be a dependent and to even qualify for Head-of-Household status, your spouse could NOT have lived with you during the last 6 months of the year.
How were you able to file your DH as Head of Household?!?

Probably because we're not legally married. That's why. Sorry for the misinformation if I confused anybody.

MrsRebecca · March 2010

detroitblondie:
TobeMrs.Shavers:
detroitblondie:
I filed DH as head of household and I was his dependent- which was a deduction. But I found no specific deductions for SAHM's.
Not to frighten you or anything but a spouse can NEVER be a dependent and to even qualify for Head-of-Household status, your spouse could NOT have lived with you during the last 6 months of the year.
How were you able to file your DH as Head of Household?!?
Probably because we're not legally married. That's why. Sorry for the misinformation if I confused anybody.

How can he claim you as a dependent if you are an adult?

detroitblondie · March 2010

Because I am a "qualifying relative" according to the IRS (I lived with him the entire year), my gross income was less than $3,650 and he provided more than half of my support. That's how.

mandymack · March 2010

detroitblondie:
Because I am a "qualifying relative" according to the IRS (I lived with him the entire year), my gross income was less than $3,650 and he provided more than half of my support. That's how.

Hi there!

I'm sure you're probably frustrated by all the attention you are getting in this post but as a former Tax Professional I just feel it's my duty to try and help you see that you are incorrect.

Yes, you pass the support and gross income test requirements to be a "qualifying relative"; however, the third (of 4 total!) test you have to pass is to actually be related to him; you are not related to him (at least I hope not if you are living as husband & wife and have a child!) in the ways that are necessary and legal for him to file as HOH as I have copied and pasted for you below. I don't know who helped you file your return but they gave you misinformation and you will have to amend your return.

I hope the table I pasted for you is helpful so you can see for yourself that you do not qualify. You can also search for Publication 501 on https://www.irs.gov.

Best of luck!

Table 4. Who Is a Qualifying Person Qualifying You To File as Head of Household?¹

Caution. See the text of this publication for the other requirements you must meet to claim head of household filing status.

IF the person is your . . .	AND . . .	THEN that person is . . .
qualifying child (such as a son, daughter, or grandchild who lived with you more than half the year and meets certain other tests)²	he or she is single	a qualifying person, whether or not you can claim an exemption for the person.
	he or she is married and you can claim an exemption for him or her	a qualifying person.
	he or she is married and you cannot claim an exemption for him or her	not a qualifying person.³
qualifying relative⁴ who is your father or mother	you can claim an exemption for him or her⁵	a qualifying person.⁶
qualifying relative⁴ who is your father or mother	you cannot claim an exemption for him or her	not a qualifying person.
qualifying relative⁴ other than your father or mother (such as a grandparent, brother, or sister who meets certain tests).	he or she lived with you more than half the year, and he or she is related to you in one of the ways listed under Relatives who do not have to live with you on page 17, and you can claim an exemption for him or her⁵	a qualifying person.
	he or she did not live with you more than half the year	not a qualifying person.
	he or she is not related to you in one of the ways listed under Relatives who do not have to live with you on page 17 and is your qualifying relative only because he or she lived with you all year as a member of your household	not a qualifying person
	you cannot claim an exemption for him or her	not a qualifying person.

¹A person cannot qualify more than one taxpayer to use the head of household filing status for the year.
²The term ?qualifying child? is defined under Exemptions for Dependents , later. Note: If you are a noncustodial parent, the term ?qualifying child? for head of household filing status does not include a child who is your qualifying child for exemption purposes only because of the rules described under Children of divorced or separated parents or parents who live apart under Qualifying Child, later. If you are the custodial parent and those rules apply, the child generally is your qualifying child for head of household filing status even though the child is not a qualifying child for whom you can claim an exemption.
³ This person is a qualifying person if the only reason you cannot claim the exemption is that you can be claimed as a dependent on someone else's return.
⁴The term ?qualifying relative? is defined under Exemptions for Dependents , later.
⁵If you can claim an exemption for a person only because of a multiple support agreement, that person is not a qualifying person. See Multiple Support Agreement .
⁶See Special rule for parent for an additional requirement.

Relatives who do not have to live with you. A person related to you in any of the following ways does not have to live with you all year as a member of your household to meet this test.

Your child, stepchild, foster child, or a descendant of any of them (for example, your grandchild). (A legally adopted child is considered your child.)
Your brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, or stepsister.
Your father, mother, grandparent, or other direct ancestor, but not foster parent.
Your stepfather or stepmother.
A son or daughter of your brother or sister.
A brother or sister of your father or mother.
Your son-in-law, daughter-in-law, father-in-law, mother-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law.

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SAHM and taxes

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