How to file married w/1 child

[Anonymous]

I have 2 jobs. Sales and a waitress. My husband owns his own business. We have a child under 2 and he goes to daycare..(just a little background)

My husband received info that filing seperate would be a good idea. While ive been researching, I found the opposite. I found that i wouldnt be able to claim child tax credits or child depenent care credits. (the form i received about the child tax credit is i should get the remaining child tax credit of 1,800 dollars)

Should we be filing seperate or jointly?

[DoninGA]

You should be filing as Married Filing Jointly.

See this TurboTax support FAQ for filing jointly versus separately - https://ttlc.intuit.com/community/married/help/is-it-better-for-a-married-couple-to-file-jointly-or-...

[xmasbaby0]

File a joint return.   Your spouse's self-employment income and your income from both of your jobs should all go on the same return.   If spouse has self-employment income use online Self-Employed or any version of the CD/download to prepare the Schedule C for his business expenses.

You lose a lot of credits when you file separate returns.

If you were legally married at the end of 2021 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 $25,100 (+$1350 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.

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...