Many married taxpayers file a joint tax return to qualify for the tax benefits it entails. In cases, wherein one of the spouses improperly reports or omits an item, the other spouse doesn’t have to suffer the consequences. In such cases, the innocent spouse can seek IRS innocent spouse relief by filling out Form 8857. Although innocent spouse tax relief has many benefits, there are many misconceptions associated with it. If you are planning to file innocent spouse tax relief but need a better understanding, speak with the IRS attorneys at the Law Offices of Nemeth & Flores. Continuing the discussion, in this blog post, we burst five myths about the IRS Innocent Spouse tax relief. Read on.
Myth 1: Innocent Spouse Tax Relief is a lengthy procedure
Fact: The duration of the Innocent Spouse tax relief process is about 5 to 6 months, after which a final determination is made. During the processing time, the IRS asks for your tax information and contact the non-requesting spouse.
Myth 2: Taxpayers should wait to file Innocent Spouse Relief
Fact: Taxpayers need not wait to file their innocent spouse tax relief. You can file your current return and the IRS will not hold any refund that is due.
Myth 3: Both spouses cannot request relief
Fact: According to the IRS each spouse has right to file a Form 8857 to request innocent spouse tax relief from a number of liabilities such as tax, interest, and penalties.
Myth 4: Relief can be filed in cases of Tax Understatement
Fact: You may find many situations in which you owe tax that is actually owed by your spouse. You and your spouse, for instance, file a joint return that reports $10,000 of income, but you knew that your spouse was not reporting $5,000 of dividends. In such a case, you will not be eligible for innocent spouse relief if you were aware about the understatement.
Myth 5: Spouses can reapply for relief after being denied by the IRS
Fact: Spouses cannot re-apply for relief after being denied by the IRS. The only time you can re-apply for relief is if the relief was denied because you were considered still married at the time the request for relief was filed and you now want to separate the liability.
Wrap Up
If you want to learn more about IRS Innocent spouse tax relief, speak with the IRS tax attorneys at the Law Offices of Nick Nemeth. No matter the complexity of your problem, we are always ready to help. To schedule a no-obligation free consultation with Nick and learn how we can help you with IRS related tax problems, simply call (972) 426-2553 or fill out our contact form and we will get back to you, shortly.
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