Owe taxes when married filing jointly

[kjp90]

In the past we always did married filing separately. This time we've decided to do jointly and to my surprise according to the calculations we owe over $5k in taxes, how is this possible? When I submit our W2s separately, we each get a refund but when combined - balance suddenly changes. Am I missing something? Can I still file separately in this case, even though our W4s are marked married filing jointly?

[SweetieJean]

It is extremely rare that MF Separately is to your benefit, so I hope you have been doing them correctly. Are you in a Community Property State? Do you both itemize?

On the other hand, it is common for a married couple who both work (or an individual who has two jobs) to owe taxes, because of increasing Federal tax brackets.  Going forward, you can mark your W-4 forms as Married but Withhold at Higher Single Rate and/or elect to have a flat dollar amount withheld for taxes.  This may be helpful:

Should You and Your Spouse File Taxes Jointly or Separately? - TurboTax Tax Tips & Videos (intuit.co...

[kjp90]

Not in a community property state and standard deduction. Is it possible our W4 are submitted incorrectly? Can I still file married but separately in this case?

[AnnetteB6]

Yes, if the Married Filing Separately filing status is overall better for you both, then you can choose to file that way. 

It does not matter that your W-4s are showing Married Filing Joint.  That is only used to determine the amount of taxes that would be withheld from your paychecks, not the filing status that you must use when filing your tax return.

@kjp90