Husband works full time and I am on SSDI and don’t need to file. Should he file married filing separately or do I have to file even though I’m not taxable.

[LilacKitty]

Hi 

I am trying to figure out how to file. My husband works full time and I am on SSDI I don’t have to file. Can he file married filing separately or do we have to file jointly even though I’m not taxed and don’t need to file? Thanks so much! ❤️

[xmasbaby0]

Do not file separately or all of your Social Security will be taxable.  File a joint return with your spouse and enter all of the combined income on that same tax return.

If you were legally married at the end of 2023 your filing choices are married filing jointly or married filing separately.

Married Filing Jointly is usually better, even if one spouse had little or no income. When you file a joint return, you and your spouse will get the married filing jointly standard deduction of $27,700 (+$1500 for each spouse 65 or older)  You are eligible for more credits including education credits, earned income credit, child and dependent care credit, and a larger income limit to receive the child tax credit. 

If you choose to file married filing separately, both spouses have to file the same way—either you both itemize or you both use standard deduction. Your tax rate will be higher than on a joint return.

 Some of the special rules for filing separately include: you cannot get earned income credit, education credits, adoption credits, or deductions for student loan interest. A higher percent of your Social Security benefits may be taxable. Your limit for SALT (state and local taxes and sales tax) will be only $5000 per spouse. In many cases you will not be able to take the child and dependent care credit. The amount you can contribute to a retirement account will be affected. If you live in a community property state, you will be required to provide additional information regarding your spouse’s income. ( Community property states:  AZ, CA, ID, LA, NV, NM, TX, WA, WI)

 If  you are using online TurboTax to prepare your returns, you will need to prepare two separate returns and pay twice since with online, you get one return per fee.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1894449-married-filing-jointly-vs-married-filing-separately

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1901162-married-filing-separately-in-community-property-states

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1894449-is-it-better-for-a-married-couple-to-file-jointly-or-separ...

[MinhT1]

You should file jointly even if you don't have any income.

 For a joint return for tax year 2022, the Standard Deduction is $27,700 while on a Single status return, the Standard Deduction is only $13,850.   By including you on the return as his spouse, you both will have a higher Standard Deduction.  This will help you to pay less taxes.

[Opus 17 · Accepted solution]

Married couples are always allowed to file jointly, even if one spouse is retired or on disability.  If you file jointly, your disability may be partially taxed, depending on your spouse's income and overall tax situation, but if your spouse files as married filing separately, you must also file and your SSDI automatically becomes taxable.  Joint filing also almost always results in lower tax or a larger refund, since some credits and deductions are disallowed or reduced when filing separately.