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My husband is blind and I am head of household do I get a credit for him or claim him as a dependent

 
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3 Replies

My husband is blind and I am head of household do I get a credit for him or claim him as a dependent

No.  And you are not Head of Household.   If you are married you need to file a joint return.  You can file a joint return even if one spouse had little or no income.  A spouse is never claimed as a dependent.   When you file a joint return, your standard deduction for a married couple is $27,700 + and extra $1500 for each spouse that is legally blind or 65 or older.  That is much better than the standard deduction for head of household --- which is $20,800 + amounts for 65 or older and blind.

 

The only "credit" you get is the higher standard deduction for legal blindness.   Your total standard deduction will be shown on line 12 of your Form 1040.

**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**

My husband is blind and I am head of household do I get a credit for him or claim him as a dependent

Head of household is a special designation for single parents caring for children, it doesn't mean "head of the family".  And you never claim a spouse as a dependent.  File as married filing jointly, your spouse will get a slightly larger standard deduction for being blind. (If you have enough itemized deductions that you itemize instead, there is no additional tax benefit for being blind.)

My husband is blind and I am head of household do I get a credit for him or claim him as a dependent

Q. Do I get to claim him as a dependent?

A. No.  As the answer explained, a spouse cannot be a dependent.  But, by filing as Married Filing Jointly, you get a better tax benefits than having a dependent. You are not allowed to file as Head of Household.

 

Q. Do I get a credit for him?

A.  No. Or more exactly, probably no. As the other answer explained, you (the joint filers) do get a larger standard deduction for his blindness

There is a credit for the elderly or disabled (you don't have to be both). But because it has not been adjusted for inflation since 1983, very very few people qualify. If you qualify, TurboTax (TT) will automatically calculate it. It goes on Schedule 3, line 6d (2022-3). It is not a refundable credit. That is, you must have a tax liability to offset to get the credit. Very few people, with that little income have an actual tax to offset. 

 Having any social security income at all works against you. Essentially your potential credit is reduced by any tax you "shoulda paid” on the untaxed Social security income. If you have more than $5000 social security ($7500 Married Filing Jointly and both are elderly or disabled) or VA benefits you will not qualify for the credit.

If you think you qualify, and TT missed it, In TurboTax (TT), enter at:

Federal Taxes Tab

Deductions & Credits

-Scroll down to:

--Other deductions & Credits

  -Elderly or Disabled credit

See schedule R for detailed calculations. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040sr.pdf

 

A simplified  rule of thumb is:  if you have earned a  social security benefit, including SSDI, you won't qualify for the Credit for the Elderly and Disabled.

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