Filing status: the decision that changes everything else

Filing status sets your standard deduction, your bracket thresholds, and your eligibility for several credits. It is chosen once and it changes every number that follows.

The options

• Single: unmarried and not qualifying for another status.
• Married filing jointly: one combined return, generally the widest brackets.
• Married filing separately: separate returns, which can limit certain credits.
• Head of household: unmarried with a qualifying person and more than half the household costs paid.
• Qualifying surviving spouse: available for a limited period after a spouse's death.

Head of household is the most misused

Head of household requires that you were unmarried or considered unmarried, paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home, and had a qualifying person living with you for more than half the year. Each of those conditions has to be supportable — not assumed.

Documentation that supports the claim

• Lease, mortgage statement, or utility records in your name.
• School, medical, or childcare records showing the dependent's address.
• Records showing the share of household expenses you paid.

A preparer who asks these questions is not being difficult. Due diligence protects you as much as it protects the office.