hi, I married 12/6/16. we currently live in different states & didn't live together any of 2016, therefore I took care of my 3 yr old solely. can Ifile single and head of house??? or should I file jointly, he receives some kind of soc.security benefits but I don't know if they are taxable. I trying to find out my best option. I will be moving with him sometime this year.

hi, I married 12/6/16. we currently live in different states & didn't live together any of 2016, therefore I took care of my 3 yr old solely. can Ifile single and head of house??? ====>No you can not file as single; Even though you live in different states and id not live together, you are still considered married unless you obtained a divorce or a decree of separate maintenance from the courts by Dec. 31 of the tax year of 2016. You can still file a joint return if your spouse agrees to file with you, even though you no longer live together. This usually provides the greatest tax advantages overall. But if for any reason you choose to file a separate return, you are prohibited from claiming "single" as your filing status. Normally you must choose "married filing separately," although in certain cases you may qualify to file as "head of household." If you meet the IRS qualifications to be "considered unmarried," you might be able to file as head of household. To file under this status, you must have lived apart from your spouse for the last 6 months of the tax year, You were not married (you were single, divorced, or legally separated), or were "considered unmarried" on the last day of the tax year, paid more than half the expenses of keeping up a home, and have had a qualified child living with you most of the year. A qualifying child can be your child, a grandchild, or etc. You also must be able to claim the child as a dependent, unless your spouse is claiming the exemption as part of a written agreement.


or should I file jointly, he receives some kind of soc.security benefits but I don't know if they are taxable. I trying to find out my best option.==> When you file using the Married Filing Separately filing status, you lose certain benefits. For example, you can't claim the earned income tax credit or the credit for child and dependent care expenses. If your spouse itemizes deductions, you must also itemize your deductions. In most cases, you will pay higher combined income taxes by filing separate returns, according to the IRS. you have the choice between filing a joint tax return or a separate tax return. The MFJ filing status provides more tax benefits than MFS status, but taxpayers will need to weigh the pros and cons and decide for themselves which is the best filing status. Your spouse?s soc sec income is taxable if your MAGI(agi plus 50% of yopur spouse?s soc sec income) exceeds these thresholds:
$32k if you?re married and file a joint tax return (as most couples do), or
$25k if you?re single; however, if you file your taxes separately, the threshold is reduced to zero?you always have to pay taxes on your benefits. The only exception is if you did not live together at any time during the year; in this event the $25k threshold appliesThis applies to all types of Social Security benefits: disability, retirement, dependents, and survivors benefits.
How much of your Social Security benefits will be taxed depends on just how high your combined income is.

Unlike income taxes, the amount you owe in Social Security taxes is unaffected by the size of your family or by your tax filing status. Your Social Security tax obligation depends on only one thing: how much income you make. For couples filing joint tax returns, the amount they owe in Social Security taxes depends on each spouse's individual income

hi, I married 12/6/16. we currently live in different states & didn't live together any of 2016, therefore I took care of my 3 yr old solely. can Ifile single and head of house??? ====>No you can not file as single; Even though you live in different states and id not live together, you are still considered married unless you obtained a divorce or a decree of separate maintenance from the courts by Dec. 31 of the tax year of 2016. You can still file a joint return if your spouse agrees to file with you, even though you no longer live together. This usually provides the greatest tax advantages overall. But if for any reason you choose to file a separate return, you are prohibited from claiming "single" as your filing status. Normally you must choose "married filing separately," although in certain cases you may qualify to file as "head of household." If you meet the IRS qualifications to be "considered unmarried," you might be able to file as head of household. To file under this status, you must have lived apart from your spouse for the last 6 months of the tax year, You were not married (you were single, divorced, or legally separated), or were "considered unmarried" on the last day of the tax year, paid more than half the expenses of keeping up a home, and have had a qualified child living with you most of the year. A qualifying child can be your child, a grandchild, or etc. You also must be able to claim the child as a dependent, unless your spouse is claiming the exemption as part of a written agreement.


or should I file jointly, he receives some kind of soc.security benefits but I don't know if they are taxable. I trying to find out my best option.==> When you file using the Married Filing Separately filing status, you lose certain benefits. For example, you can't claim the earned income tax credit or the credit for child and dependent care expenses. If your spouse itemizes deductions, you must also itemize your deductions. In most cases, you will pay higher combined income taxes by filing separate returns, according to the IRS. you have the choice between filing a joint tax return or a separate tax return. The MFJ filing status provides more tax benefits than MFS status, but taxpayers will need to weigh the pros and cons and decide for themselves which is the best filing status. Your spouse?s soc sec income is taxable if your MAGI(agi plus 50% of yopur spouse?s soc sec income) exceeds these thresholds:
$32k if you?re married and file a joint tax return (as most couples do), or
$25k if you?re single; however, if you file your taxes separately, the threshold is reduced to zero?you always have to pay taxes on your benefits. The only exception is if you did not live together at any time during the year; in this event the $25k threshold appliesThis applies to all types of Social Security benefits: disability, retirement, dependents, and survivors benefits.
How much of your Social Security benefits will be taxed depends on just how high your combined income is.

Unlike income taxes, the amount you owe in Social Security taxes is unaffected by the size of your family or by your tax filing status. Your Social Security tax obligation depends on only one thing: how much income you make. For couples filing joint tax returns, the amount they owe in Social Security taxes depends on each spouse's individual income