If you're still under your parents' roof, for example, you
may be a financial asset to them, helping them to pocket some more of their
hard-earned money as they claim you as a dependent.
But you probably will have
to finish some paperwork for Uncle Sam if you're on your own and working
full-time. Determining whether you must file a return is the first
step. In general, based on three factors, the IRS expects a return from an
individual:
- Your
Filing Status
- Your
Age
- Your
Income
Tax Filing status options
There are five basic filing status choices:
- Single
- Married
filing a joint return with your spouse
- Married
but each of you filing a separate return
- Head
of household; or
- Qualifying
widow or widower.
Your Filing Status
For divorced and legally separated taxpayers, the single
designation also applies. For windows or widowers who support a child, special
filing rules has been there.
Keep in mind that, whatever filing status fits your
situation, you select it based upon your status on Dec. 31 of the tax year.
The
IRS considers you as a single taxpayer, if you were single on the last day of
the year and married on the following New Year's Day, Jan. 1, for filing
purposes.
Age
Next, the IRS looks at your age. Any taxpayer who has income
must file a return in most cases. But for children younger than 14 who have
investment income special considerations are there.
And individuals age 65 or
older in the last part of a tax year are allowed to earn more income than
younger taxpayers before they have to file.
Income
And we get to the main reason behind our tax system when speaking
of income. The IRS considers your gross income for filing purposes; that is,
all income you received in the form of money (both wages and self-employment
payments), goods, property and services.
If you make over a certain level of gross income, you will
have to file a tax return. The IRS adjusts just how much money it takes to
reach that filing-amount level each year. The amounts also depend upon the age
and filing status data outlined above.
Basically, married couples filing jointly can earn more
money than single filers before they have to file a tax return.
Irrespective of how many jobs you had, how many W2 tax forms
you received, or how many states you lived in during the year, you only require
filing one federal income tax return for the year.
Moreover, even if you don't make adequate money for the IRS
to demand a return, it sometimes pays to send one in. For individuals who may
be eligible for certain tax credits this is the case that could mean money back
from the IRS.
if you had a job, didn't meet the earnings filing threshold,
but your employer withheld payroll taxes, the same is true. Filing a tax return
is the only way you can get the money, whether from credits or overpaid
withholding.
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