I filed head of household. Im getting divorced. Leans were held on debt he owed. Because we filed separate I do not qualify for the injured spouse form. What should I do?

[jacefaye]

I tried to file the injured spouse form but I don't qualify for that because we filed separate, but the money has already been deducted from my taxes. How can I resolve this so I can get this money back, and the debt is transferred to him?

[Opus 17]

That should not happen, unless these were debts incurred during the marriage.  What was the debt and when was it incurred?

[jacefaye]

It was. On the papers I got it was not specific and didn't tell me what all they were. There were 3 of them.  A total of 2k. On each paper it only had his social listed. One I know was school. My guess is property tax on his trucks and maybe state?

[Opus 17 · Accepted solution]

The "injured spouse" form only applies to debts that your spouse incurred before the marriage.  If you have tax debts from during your marriage when you filed joint returns, both taxpayers are jointly and separately liable for those debts. A truck loan is not a debt that can be collected through tax refunds, but student loans and other tax debts can be collected through tax refunds, and if you filed joint returns when you were married, you are both equally liable for those debts that occurred during the marriage.

There is a separate form called an "innocent spouse" form that asks the IRS to not make you responsible for marriage debts.  You generally have to allege that your spouse took on the debt without telling you or did something behind your back that makes you not responsible even though you were married.  And the innocent spouse form can't be filed until you have been legally divorced at least 12 months.  

In this case where you are not divorced yet and your refund was held for your spouse's debts, you will need to address that in the divorce settlement.  Consult your attorney.

[jacefaye]

Thank you. You made it so easy to understand.