In a nutshell:
- A married person can not be claimed as a dependent on any tax return. Period.
- If you are legally married on Dec 31 of the tax year, your only filing choices are MFJ or MFS. Period.
- If you have a qualifying dependent *and* you and your spouse have not lived together for one single night after Jun 30 of the tax year, then you can file as Head of Household (HoH).
MFJ is the best filing status.
HoH is the next best status.
MFS is the worst filing status.
The "single" filing status is not an available option to you, as being incarcerated is not considered an "extenuating circumstance" that would qualify you for that.
