Question about IRS, injured spouse.......?

File Form 8379 when you become aware that all or part of your share of an overpayment was, or is expected to be, applied (offset) against your spouse’s legally enforceable past-due obligations. You must file Form 8379 for each year you meet this condition and want your portion of any offset refunded.

She needs to send a completed form for each year she is requesting injured spouse treatment. There is a blank copy at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-access/f8379_accessible...

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Here is an exerpt from Final Audit Report - Injured Spouse Guidance, from Gordon C. Milbourn III /s/ Gordon C. Milbourn III, Acting Deputy Inspector General for Audit

The IRS does not provide taxpayers with consistent information necessary to ensure they can easily and correctly comply with injured spouse provisions.

For example, Form 8379 does not advise taxpayers that injured spouse claims can be filed for prior years or that there is a 6-year statute of limitations on filing these claims for a nontax debt and a 3-year statute of limitations on a tax debt.

IRS management agreed with our conclusion that the IRS could improve consistency of injured spouse information.

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As child support is a nontax debt, your mother could file for 2007 plus the past 5 years (total of 6 years.)

The current tax year only. Once the refund as been captured and paid over to the custodial parent, there is NO way that the government is going to go back to that parent and ask for the money back so that it can be paid to the Injured Spouse.

The normal 3-year rule for amended returns does NOT apply to Form 8379. It is NOT an amended return, only a division of the refund.

Normally the deadline for filing Form 8379 is the extended filing deadline of October 15th but I would NEVER recommend waiting that long. You SHOULD file the Form 8379 with the tax return although you can file it after-the-fact. At most, I'd file it within a month of 2 of the date the return was filed to make sure that you catch the money before it's sent to the custodial parent. Once that happens, it's lost to the injured spouse forever.

The IRS's current position is that, if a Form 8379 was not filed with the refund claim (in your mother's case, the original returns), the 8379 can be filed at any time. Better have Mom file those claims soon before someone at IRS realizes the error in their reasoning and their position reverts to the more clearly correct 6 year limitation on miscellaneous claims against the government.

P.S. Boston and Judy, where are you coming up with that short filing deadline?

you have gotten filed it electronically along with your return, yet that deliver has sailed. you need to mail interior the Injured important different form now. acquire it from the internet internet site and mail it. it will take everywhere from 6-12 weeks for the IRS to technique the form and mail you your refund.

It can only be filed for the current year. It can't be done for prior years.

And it isn't half unless they live in a community property state. The amount that would be refunded is the amount that's due to HER earnings and withholding.

Six years. It's not neccessarily half, by the way. It's a complicated formula and also depends on whether or not you live in a community property state.