What is the average tax return for a married couple

When filing married filing jointly, both spouses report their income, tax deductions , and tax credits on the same tax return. Both parties are responsible for each other's tax liability. Therefore, if you choose to file as married filing jointly your spouse will be responsible for any tax, penalties, and interest that arises from that joint tax return, even if you reported no income on the return. Tax Tip: However, if you do not believe you are responsible for some of your spouse's tax liability, penalties or interest, you should see if you qualify for Innocent Spouse Relief.

Furthermore, if one spouse is not responsible for the current or past debt's of the other spouse, then the spouse might be entitled to request his or her portion of the IRS tax refund back from the IRS in case the IRS has offset the tax refund to pay the spouse's debt.

Thus, consider the Injured Spouse option. There are many benefits to filing with the Married Filing Joint status. Some of these are:. For more information, see the tax rates and standard deduction for Married Filing Jointly. In most cases, it is more tax advantageous for a married couple to file a joint tax return than a married filing separate return.

However, this is not always the case. Also if there are unpaid taxes or child support, a refund could be offset or reduced by the IRS, regardless of which spouse is responsible for the debt. See the Tax Tip above about the Innocent Spouse or Injured Spouse you can file with your return if you are concerned about this. To find out the best filing status for you, calculate your refund or balance due by using the free eFile. Estimate your taxes with the Married Filing Joint filing status, then do a new calculation with the Married Filing Separate filing status.

When you prepare your Tax Return on eFile. If you are married, you and your spouse can agree to file a joint tax return. You can file a joint tax return with your spouse even if one of you had no income. You can use the Married Filing Jointly filing status if both of the following statements are true:.

If one spouse is a nonresident alien or dual-status alien married to a U. If a joint return is filed, the nonresident spouse will be treated as U. Legally married same-sex couples are required to file as either Married Filing Jointly or as Married Filing Separately, just as opposite-sex married couples are required to do.

Due to a Treasury Department ruling on August 29, , same-sex couples that have been legally married must file as Married Filing Jointly or as Married Filing Separately on their federal tax return s.

They must use one of these filing statuses on their federal returns regardless of the state where they reside, as long as they were legally wed in a state or the District of Columbia, a U. The content created by our editorial staff is objective, factual, and not influenced by our advertisers. We are compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and, services, or by you clicking on certain links posted on our site.

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While we strive to provide a wide range offers, Bankrate does not include information about every financial or credit product or service. Nearly There have been Of the refunds, more than million were direct-deposited.

Each year, taxes come out a little different. This is what the average tax refunds looked like over the past couple years. Your employer is responsible for collecting taxes from every paycheck and paying the IRS on your behalf. How much you pay in federal withholding depends on your earnings and how you fill out IRS Form W-4, which goes to your employer and includes your filing status and number of dependents.

The more dependents you claim, the more money you get to keep each pay period. In addition, taxes for Social Security and Medicare are withheld from your check. In , the FICA tax rate is the same as the past year at 7. There is a wage ceiling for Social Security taxes.

Gross income above that threshold is exempt. If you had too much money withheld from your pay, the IRS owes you a refund. Total Children Choose number of children up to four. For each child, choose an age range. Second Child Under 13 at home 13 —16 at home 17 —18 or in college.

Third Child Under 13 at home 13 —16 at home 17 —18 or in college. Fourth Child Under 13 at home 13 —16 at home 17 —18 or in college. Taxpayers may claim the child and dependent care tax credit for expenses incurred providing care for children under age 13 so parents can work. You Child care Expenses. Your Partner Child care Expenses.

You Wage and Salary All income from paid employment, including tips, bonuses, and the like. This calculator assumes no exclusions to wages and salary income such as contributions to k retirement plans. Long-Term Capital Gains and Dividends Capital gains from the sale of assets held for longer than one year and qualifying dividends.

Social Security Benefits All benefits for retirees, survivors, and dependents. Tax-Exempt Interest Interest on instruments such as municipal bonds that is exempt from the federal individual income tax. Other Taxable Income Income from all other taxable sources. Business Income Net income from a sole proprietorship, partnership, S corporation, limited liability company, or other business. We assume all business income is subject to self-employment taxes.