How do I know how much of the taxes we paid are mine vs my spouse's?

[BridgetP]

Married and filed jointly

[Critter-3]

The TT program doesn't have that "split" function ... when you file a joint return everything is included on the one return. 

[BridgetP]

Right, so how would I go about parsing that out is the question.

[rjs]

All amounts on a joint tax return are combined totals. The tax is calculated on your combined income, not separately for each spouse. The tax cannot be attributed to one spouse or the other. You didn't each pay part of the tax. The two of you together paid the total tax.

You didn't say why you want to determine how much tax each of you paid. What are you trying to do? If it's just an exercise out of curiosity, you can divide up the tax in any way that you both agree on. For example, you could divide up the total tax in proportion to your individual incomes. But if you have any joint income, such as from jointly owned investments, you would have to decide how to handle that.

[BridgetP]

I made significantly more than my husband did last year. We do not have a joint bank account, and we have no joint income- i prefer to keep my money separate from his. We split all the bills. I am the one who pays the bills, and he gives me money towards the bills based on his own expenses. I have paid all the taxes for 2022. I think he probably owes some part of that total amount, and I want to make sure that I do not charge too much or too little. 

[Critter-3 · Accepted solution]

If you were to calculate the returns as married filing separately  then you would have a rough idea of how much each of you owed in taxes however this is not an exact science. 

How can we compare married filing jointly with married filing separately?

If you already created a joint return in the TurboTax CD/Download software, there's a quick way to see how filing separately affects your federal return.

Note: This won't work in TurboTax Online.

1. Open your return and select Forms in the top right corner of the window.
2. Click Open Form and type What-If Worksheet (it may appear as What-If Wks).
3. Check the MFJ vs. MFS box at the top.
4. Scroll down to Balance Due (Refund).
   • The second column shows the federal outcome for a joint return, and the third and fourth columns, respectively, show the outcome for the taxpayer and spouse if filing separately.
   • Negative numbers are refunds, positive numbers are taxes due.

However, this doesn't give you the whole picture because it doesn't account for your state return. For a true apples to apples comparison, you'll need to prepare your returns both ways.

Related Information:

• How do I switch to Forms Mode in the TurboTax for Windows software?
• How do I switch to Forms Mode in the TurboTax for Mac software?
• How do I switch from filing jointly to filing separately?

 

[rjs]

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@BridgetP wrote:

I think he probably owes some part of that total amount,

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As far as the IRS and the tax law are concerned, you and your husband are equally responsible for paying the total amount of tax. There is nothing on the tax return that indicates that one or the other of you owes a certain portion of the total tax.

Since the tax return and the tax law are not going to tell you how to divide up the tax, you and your husband have to decide how to divide the total tax between you. You can use any method that you both agree on. You have been given two suggestions here for how to do it.

1. Divide the tax in proportion to your individual incomes. For example, if you made 60% of the total income, then you pay 60% of the total tax.

2. Figure out how much tax each of you would have paid if you had filed separate tax returns as married filing separately. But you will almost certainly find that the sum of the tax on the two separate returns adds up to more than the tax on your joint return. So you still have to do a proportional allocation. Divide the tax on the joint return that you filed in the same proportions as the tax on the dummy separate returns.

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@BridgetP wrote:

I have paid all the taxes for 2022.

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You probably did not pay all the tax. Your total tax is not the amount that you owed when you filed your tax return. Your total tax is the amount on Form 1040 line 24 in your joint tax return. Most of that tax should have been paid during the year, either by withholding or by estimated tax payments. If your husband had a job where he got a W-2, the tax that was withheld from his pay (shown in box 2 on his W-2) is tax that he paid.

[BridgetP]

Thank you very much!