My taxes were 2000 dallors short due to a students loan from my wife before I even knew her name. How am I reasonable for this and how do I get it back

[CarolynB · Accepted solution]

Hi. If you filed a joint return and your wife's refund was offset for a student loan the IRS will take the entire refund. You can recover your portion of the refund by amending your return and filing an injured spouse claim. Here is how:

Form 8379 lets you (the "injured spouse") get back your portion of a jointly-filed refund if it's seized or offset to pay your spouse's debt.

You must file jointly to use this form. Also, filing an 8379 will delay your federal refund by up to 14 weeks.

To file this form in TurboTax:

1. Open your return.
   (To do this, sign in to TurboTax and click the orange Take me to my return button.)
2. In the search box, search for injured spouse and then click the "Jump to" link in the search results.
3. Answer Yes to Do you want to claim innocent or injured spouse relief? and carefully follow the onscreen instructions.

Note: Pay close attention to the screens, as some of them apply to innocent spouse relief, which is something else. Leave those questions blank if you only want to claim injured spouse relief.

If you've already filed and your return has been accepted, you will have to mail the form to the IRS using TurboTax to create the form.  

If you are using TurboTax Online, open your return and sign in.  On the Welcome home screen, select Taxes. On the Tax Timeline screen, select Amend (change) return. 

If you are using the CD/Download product, open your return. 

When your return is open, In the search box, search for injured spouse and then click the "Jump to" link in the search results. Answer Yes to Do you want to claim innocent or injured spouse relief? and carefully follow the onscreen instructions for Injured Spouse.