I am wondering if i can claim my wife as a dependant? and if so can they take my taxes for her student loans?

[brianyeoman1]

she made very little money less than 5 or 10 k

[DoninGA · Accepted solution]

You cannot claim a spouse as a dependent.  You would want to file as Married Filing Jointly even if one spouse has little or no income.  You will receive the highest standard deduction of $12,600 and you each receive a personal exemption of $4,050.

If your spouse has unpaid debt, such as student loans, then you can file a Form 8379 Injured Spouse Allocation with your tax return when filing as Married Filing Jointly.  This will prevent the IRS from seizing your portion of the tax refund.

See this TurboTax support FAQ on Form 8379 - https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1910698-how-do-i-file-form-8379-injured-spouse-allocation

[macuser_22]

And if you live in a community property state (Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, or Wisconsin) then the 8779 will not protect the community part of the refund - but filing separately in a community property state is even worse since you must allocate income between both spouses.