I am using the Deluxe version and it has set my filing status as Head of Household, but I need to file as Single and I cannot see how to change it to Single. How can I?

[LLaDue1980]

I have a dependent that I am claiming, but when I claim her I cannot claim Head of Household per a separation agreement.  
How do I change it to Single even though the program is showing Head of Household as my best option?

[DoninGA]

Click on My Info.  Edit your Filing Status

[LLaDue1980]

It doesn't allow me to just select another status, it runs me through all of the questions again that it asked initially.  Then it tells me again that HOH is the best option.

[DoninGA]

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@LLaDue1980 wrote:

It doesn't allow me to just select another status, it runs me through all of the questions again that it asked initially.  Then it tells me again that HOH is the best option.

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Then where asked if you paid more than one-half the cost to maintain your home answer No.  That will remove the HOH status and give you Single.

[macuser_22]

The IRS and tax law does not care about any separation agreement.    ONLY the parent that the child physically lived with more then half the year can claim HOH - no court can override Federal tax law.  You cannot "agree" to violate Federal law.    If the parent that did not live with the child is trying to claim the HOH status then that if a violation of Federal Tax law.

[Opus 17]

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@LLaDue1980 wrote:

It doesn't allow me to just select another status, it runs me through all of the questions again that it asked initially.  Then it tells me again that HOH is the best option.

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Either you are answering the questions wrong, or you have a misunderstanding about the tax laws.

If you have custody more than half the nights of the year, choose "7 months" or longer in Turbotax as your estimate of how long the child lived with you. Then you will be asked if the other parent is claiming the child due to a custody agreement.  If you say "yes", you will not claim the child as a dependent, but you will still qualify for HOH, because only the parent where the child lives more than half the nights of the year is entitled to that benefits.  It can't be waived, shared or transferred, even under a state court order.  (A state court can't order you to do something that is illegal under federal law.). If you are releasing the dependent claim, you must give the other parent a signed form 8332.

Similarly on the other side, if the other parent chooses "6 months" or less, for how long the child lived in their home, they can't claim the child without you giving them the release form 8332, and then they get the child tax credit but not HOH, or EIC, or the childcare credit, because those benefits can't be waived, shared or transferred.  The only way that a parent who has custody less than half the nights of the year can qualify for HOH is if they lie and say they had custody more than half the nights.  That's tax fraud, and no valid state court order can tell someone to break federal law.  

If you are the parent who has custody less than half the nights of the year, select "5 months" or less as your estimate, and indicate yes, you will receive a form 8332.  You will not qualify for HOH, but you will have to obtain a signed form 8332 from the other parent and mail it to the IRS within 3 days of e-filing.  Don't indicate the child lived with you all year. 

All the rules are here, look especially for sections marked "special rules for children of divorced or separated parents."

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p501.pdf

The rules are repeated here,

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p504.pdf

[Opus 17]

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@DoninGA wrote:

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@LLaDue1980 wrote:

It doesn't allow me to just select another status, it runs me through all of the questions again that it asked initially.  Then it tells me again that HOH is the best option.

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Then where asked if you paid more than one-half the cost to maintain your home answer No.  That will remove the HOH status and give you Single.

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It's not a cost issue, it's a custody issue.  The court doesn't have the authority to tell the taxpayer to waive HOH if they qualify. They are answering something else wrong or misunderstanding the laws.   

[Geneman]

I have the opposite issue. I meet HOH criteria but TTAX keeps putting me a single. 

[AmyC]

Once you enter the information showing that you have a child that: 

• lived with you the majority of the time, 
• you paid the majority of the cost and 
• supported the child. 

The program will pick up that you are head of household. Go back through your dependent's information and your information.

If you are still married, see  a slightly different set of rules. 

@Geneman