My husband and i file "married filing separately" do we both fill out the 1098 portion of taxes or only one of us

[xmasbaby0]

Are you in a community property state?

Community property states:  AZ, CA, ID, LA, NV, NM, TX, WA, WI

It sounds like you want to itemize deductions---so that means both of you have to itemize.   When you file MFS both spouses have to itemize or both spouses have to use standard deduction.   If you are in a community property state there are strict rules about dividing the  income, deductions and credits.   If you are not in a community property state then the two of you will just have to agree on how much of the mortgage interest ,etc. each of you uses---as long as it does not total to more than 100%.

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...

[Vanessa A]

Are you itemizing your returns?  If one does, you both have to as the other one cannot take the standard deduction. 

If you are both going to itemize, then you can split the 1098 between the 2 of you.  

Itemized expenses include mortgage interest,  charitable contributions, state and local taxes up to $10,000, medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of your AGI and casualty and losses in excess of 10% of you AGI with the first $100 not counting towards the loss.  Your health insurance and all medical expenses are only deductible for the amount that is over 7.5% of your AGI.  This means if your AGI is $50,000, then the amount that is over $3,750 is deductible.  

Then your total itemized expenses would need to be greater than your standard deduction below in order to benefit from your mortgage interest. 

The 2023 Standard Deductions are as follows:

• Married Filing Joint (MFJ)              $27,700
• Married Filing Separate (MFS)      $13,850
• Head of Household (HOH)             $20,800 
• Single                                                     $13,850                                

Blind or over 65 and MFJ or MFS add $1,500

Single or HOH if blind or over 65 add $1,850

Standard versus Itemized Deduction