topic filing electronically - married filing jointly - deceased spouse in Get your taxes done using TurboTax

filing electronically - married filing jointly - deceased spouse

joehoch — Mon, 23 Feb 2026 14:41:22 GMT

Husband died in 2022 (TurboTax knows this). Spouse is surviving. Attempting to e-file "Married Filing Jointly". (Apparently husband is Primary in TurboTax). E-file was rejected because Social Security Administration locked husband's SSN.

So how do I e-file successfully? Please don't tell me to file by mail. It takes the IRS a year or more to process mailed in taxes.

Re: filing electronically - married filing jointly - deceased spouse

CatinaT1 — Fri, 17 Mar 2023 14:20:59 GMT

Unfortunately, since the IRS has his SSN locked, your only option is to file by mail. There is no way to e-file with his SSN on the return.

They do this to avoid fraud, but I understand the frustration it causes. Sorry for your loss.

Re: filing electronically - married filing jointly - deceased spouse

joehoch — Fri, 17 Mar 2023 15:51:59 GMT

Thank you Catina for the fast response and kind words.

Re: filing electronically - married filing jointly - deceased spouse

fanfare — Fri, 17 Mar 2023 17:58:24 GMT

The IRS backlog for paper tax returns is way down from 18 months ago.

@joehoch