Filing Status

A question that comes up all the time in our world is along the lines of “I’m getting divorced in December. Since I was married for 11 months of the year, wouldn’t I be filing as married in some fashion or the other?” The answer is no – all that matters for the filing of your own return is your status as of December 31^st of that year. Simply put, if you are single the entire year but get married on December 31^st, for tax purposes you are considered and entitled to be considered married for that year. If you are married the entire year and get divorced on December 31^st, then for that year, for tax purposes, you are not married.