If I’m married and my spouse doesn’t work. I have 5 children who are dependents. Can I file as head of household?

[VolvoGirl]

No you have to be Single or separated for 6 months.  

[ThomasM125]

You cannot file as head of household unless your spouse did not live with you for the last half of the year. However, filing married-joint should give you as good a result so it shouldn't be an issue.

[xmasbaby0]

File a joint return.

If you were legally married at the end of 2023 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 $27,700 (+$1500 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 since with online, you get one return per fee.

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...

[Opus 17]

Married filing jointly is better.  You can always file jointly with your spouse if you agree, even if one spouse doesn't work.  With HOH, you must be either single or living separately for at least 6 months, and the rates are higher than married filing jointly.

(HOH does not mean "head of the family", it is a special status for single parents, mostly due to divorce or separation.)

[bgrammar1]

My husband owes child support to his x wife. A lot ! That’s why I wanted to get all of the child tax credits.  That’s why I wanted to know if there were exceptions ?

[DawnC]

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has the power to seize income tax refunds when a taxpayer owes certain debts, such as unpaid taxes or overdue child support. Sometimes, a married couple's joint tax refund will be seized because of a debt for which only one spouse is responsible. When that happens, the other spouse is said to be "injured" and can file Form 8379 to get at least some of the refund.    

[xmasbaby0]

INJURED SPOUSE

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1910698-how-do-i-file-form-8379-injured-spouse-allocation

To use Form 8379 to report Injured Spouse:  Go to

Federal>Other Tax Situations>Other Tax Forms

On Miscellaneous tax forms, click start or update for Report an Innocent or Injured Spouse