How can i prove wife filed fraud returns for e.i.c for seven years and filed my return without reporting my income?

[cowough]

I havent filed in 7 years. Im self employed and the year my wife and i were preoaring to file we found out we made too much money for the e.i.c.  that day and ever since then she has rushed to file and lied on her returns to get the eic.  She also included me in her 17 return but didnt include my earnings to get the eic.  I have proof we have been married and at the same address the whole time.  She files online with turborax or hr block to avoid a live person. What do i do?

[xmasbaby0]

This is unclear.  You say   "I havent filed in 7 years"    Then you say you know she included you on the 2017 tax return.  What about all the other years?  Was your name on joint returns then too?  it is not possible to get EIC if you file married filing separately, so not sure what you mean when you refer to "her returns."  Have you actually seen copies of the returns?

You can get free transcripts of the returns from the IRS. 

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript

And what about your self-employment income-----why was it not on a return you filed yourself?  Have you known all along that your wife was only putting her own income on the tax returns?    Or did you leave it all to her and not know that she was filing incorrectly?  Were the tax refund checks/deposits coming in with both of your names on them?  If you have not reported your self-employment income for those years that means you have not been paying the self-employment tax you owe for Social Security and Medicare, or the ordinary income tax owed for your income.

We need much more information.  We are missing a lot of this story.  But really, you had better be seeking local legal advice and paid tax help from a professional.  Your mess is likely too much for this user forum.

[Opus 17]

Are you still legally married?

Did you file joint returns (married filing jointly)?

Are you saying that you filed joint returns for 7 years and never reported or paid tax on your SE income?  How did you not know you were not paying taxes?

[Critter-3]

I agree ... failure to file correctly especially over several years is a willful offence and the penalties & interest are accruing daily.   Seek local professional assistance to get you back on the right path ... I suggest at least an enrolled agent  or better yet a tax attorney since this may involve some legal actions. 

[Opus 17]

If we understand your situation correctly:

Both you and your spouse are in deep trouble.  You are jointly and equally liable for any errors or omissions on a joint return.  You don't even have the luxury of claiming that your spouse filed behind your back, since you knew your self-employment income was not being reported.

You need to take yourself and your spouse to a tax specialist and prepare revised tax returns for all 7 years, to calculate the tax you should have paid and to estimate the penalties and interest.  Then, the tax specialist can contact the IRS and offer a compromise to file corrected returns for all those years and pay a compromise amount of tax and penalties, which the IRS may accept because it is better for them for taxpayers to voluntarily comply than to have to investigate and sue.  

Note that the statute of limitations (which is normally 3 years or 6 years depending on the amount of tax owed) never runs out in the case of deliberate fraud, which this seems to be.  

[Opus 17]

And the reason I asked if you were still married, is that if you are having thoughts of getting your (now-ex) wife in trouble, the fact that these were joint returns means the trouble is equally on your head.  So see a professional.  Also, if this is a divorce-type situation make sure your attorney is fully aware of all the facts.  You will need to make sure that your divorce agreement spells out in specific detail how you will share or split responsibility for the tax and penalties. 

[Anonymous]

it is a crime for your spouse to file a joint return without your approval. in this case you can file form 3949-A to report her to IRS.

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f3949a.pdf

however, if she filed as married filing separate all she needed to do was to report all her income and provide your name and social security number.  You are on the hook for non-filing in all those years. 

you may want to contact a tax pro who can assist you and then maybe a divorce attorney. 

as an alternative

You are asking from TT Live, for which you paid extra. Please contact a rep.
https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/4124827-how-do-i-connect-with-a-tax-expert-in-turbotax-live

[Opus 17]

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@Anonymous wrote:

it is a crime for your spouse to file a joint return without your approval. in this case you can file form 3949-A to report her to IRS.

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f3949a.pdf

however, if she filed as married filing separate all she needed to do was to report all her income and provide your name and social security number.  You are on the hook for non-filing in all those years. 

you may want to contact a tax pro who can assist you and then maybe a divorce attorney. 

as an alternative

You are asking from TT Live, for which you paid extra. Please contact a rep.
https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/4124827-how-do-i-connect-with-a-tax-expert-in-turbotax-live

---

The wife could not have been filing separately if the reason to file without the spouse's self-employment income was to claim EIC.  EIC is disallowed for MFS.  It can only have been joint returns, or head of household.  (If the wife filed HOH with only her own income, then potentially the husband will not be on the hook for fraud charges if he immediately files MFS returns.  But that's too much speculation for me, he needs an enrolled agent or attorney or both as mentioned above.)

I don't think the taxpayer could get away with reporting the wife for filing a fraudulent MFJ return without approval if this has been going on for 7 years, and he clearly knew it was happening.  Maybe the first year if he had reported it right away.