A refund on a joint return can be taken for the debt of a spouse.
You can still file a joint return which is usually the
better filing method & include the Injured Spouse form (8379). Form
8379 is filed by one spouse (the injured spouse) on a jointly filed tax return
when the joint overpayment was (or is expected to be) applied (offset) to a
past-due obligation of the other spouse. By filing Form 8379, the injured
spouse may be able to get back his or her share of the joint refund. If
you include the Injured Spouse Form with your return it can take the IRS 11 to
14 weeks to process your return.
- Federal Taxes (Personal for Home & Business)
- Other Tax Situations
- Other Tax Forms
- Miscellaneous Tax Forms, click Start
- Report an injured or innocent spouse claim
- Click Start
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Or:
In TurboTax, jump to the injured spouse entry area:
- In the TurboTax search box, enter injured spouse and press Enter,
Then click the Jump to injured spouse link.
- On the Innocent or Injured Spouse screen, answer Yes.
- On the Innocent and Injured Spouse Relief screen, leave the years for innocent spouse boxes empty and click Continue..
- On the following screens, answer the interviews for injured spouse information.
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If you live in a community property state (Arizona, California, Idaho,
Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.), the injured
spouse relief may be different than in other states, see the following under
Community Property Laws Disregarded:
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p555/ar02.html#d0e928
