No, generally when a couple file separately vs jointly the combined tax liability, federal and state, is higher filing separately vs than filing a joint return. However, this general statement does not apply in all cases. When comparing the two methods you were correct to include your NY state return for an accurate comparison.
Disadvantages of Married Filing Separately
(in addition to various amounts normally being half of MFJ amount)
Lost Credits
•Earned income credit.
•Credit for the elderly or the disabled.1
•Child and dependent care credit.2
•Adoption credit.2
Lost Education Benefits
•Education credits.
•Student loan interest deduction.
•Tuition and fees deduction.
•U.S. savings bond interest exclusion.
Standard Deduction
If one spouse itemizes deductions, the other must also itemize (that is, cannot claim the standard deduction).
Taxable Social Security
A greater percentage of social security benefits may be taxable.
IRAs
•Traditional IRA deduction and Roth IRA contributions phased out at $10,000 of modified AGI.1
•Spousal IRA rules do not apply.
Passive Losses
•Rental real estate loss allowance is limited to $12,500 per spouse ($0 if spouses lived together at any time during the year), with lower phase-out thresholds.
•One spouse’s passive income cannot be offset by the other spouse’s passive loss.
AMT Exemption
In addition to the exemption phasing out, some high-income taxpayers must add an amount back to AMTI.
Filing Requirement
Regardless of the age of the taxpayer, if gross income is at least $5, a tax return must be filed.
1 Unless spouses lived apart for the entire year.
2 Unless spouses lived apart for the last six months of the year.
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