accidentqally file single but married

[teknotix]

got married and the end of last year accidentally filed single but married. do i have to amend my taxes for my wife to be able to file married filling separate or can she file single too.

[DoninGA]

When you are legally married and living together you can only file your tax return as either Married Filing Jointly or Married Filing Separately.  There is no such filing status as Married Filing Single.

Amend your tax return and change your filing status to Married Filing Jointly.  Then your spouse can enter their information on the joint tax return.

Before starting to amend the tax return, wait for the tax refund to be received or the taxes due to be paid and processed by the IRS.

See this TurboTax support FAQ for amending a current year tax return - https://ttlc.intuit.com/turbotax-support/en-us/help-article/tax-return/amend-federal-tax-return-curr...

[DianeW777]

First and foremost you must confirm your return was accepted. 

Next, if you are saying you filed Married Filing Separately, then you do not need to amend. You must amend your tax return if you actually used the Single filing status which is not allowed for you or your wife.  You can attempt to ament to see if the tax return has a balance due or refund.  It's possible you may owe money back. 

If you amend to file jointly, then your wife will just be added to your return and does not need to file separately. 

The amended form will be ready later in the year. By using the link, Tax Forms Availability, you can continue to check to see when it's ready. If you decide you do need to amend use the steps in the link below.

• How do I amend my federal tax return for this year?

Be sure to check your state rules as well.

[Bsch4477]

I assume you filed married separately. If so, she must also file married separately. But married jointly is almost a better filing status. For that you would amend your return to file jointly. She would not have to do anything since she would be included in your joint filing.