Benefits of Filing as Head of Household for a Single Father

Discover the Requirements and Benefits of Filing Taxes with Head of Household Status as a Single Father

There are many terms used in everyday speech that have specific meanings in tax language. This can be confusing to taxpayers trying to file their taxes not only legally but in a manner that gives them the best advantage. In our last article, we talked about tax deductions for a single father. Today, we’ll look specifically at the Head of Household filing status and how it can benefit you.

One of those double meaning terms is “Head of Household”. As a tax term, this is one of five possible filing statuses permitted by the IRS on federal returns. In layman’s terms, this is the status designed for single parents or single people with a dependent such as an elderly relative. But, as is usual with tax law, there are specific requirements and exceptions to fit all possible situations.

The basic requirements to file as Head of Household are:

• You must be unmarried.
• You must provide more than half the cost of maintaining your household, and
• Your home must also be the home of a qualifying person for more than half the year.

A single father whose child lives with him full time generally meets all these requirements automatically. However, these three rules are loaded with more specific tax terms, which will all be discussed next.

First, what does “unmarried” mean? Anyone whose divorce is final, is legally separated, was never married or whose marriage has been annulled is considered unmarried for tax purposes. It is important to note that the taxpayer’s situation as of December 31 determines their filing status for the entire year. For example, if you lived with a spouse most of year but the divorce was final on December 31, you are considered unmarried for the entire year. Parents who are not divorced but are physically separated may also qualify as unmarried if they meet some additional rules:

• You were physically separated, living in different households, for the last six months of the year, and
• A dependent child lived with you for more than half of the year.

For example, if a wife moves out in April and a child stays with either parent, then that parent qualifies as unmarried. If the separation began at the end of July, then neither parent qualifies.

Next is maintaining a household. The taxpayer must pay over half the cost keeping up a home, including rent or mortgage, utilities, maintenance, taxes, insurance and groceries. Only one person can possibly pay more than half these costs. For example, in a household with a single father, his working mother and his own child, it must be determined which adult pays more than half.

Finally a qualifying person must live in the home for more than half the year, or at least 183 days. This qualifying person must meet a relationship test and must meet the complicated rules for the taxpayer to be able to claim them as a dependent. For a single father, the term “qualifying person” usually means a child by birth, marriage or adoption, a grandchild or direct descendant, sibling, niece or nephew, or foster child placed by an agency. In the case where the child lives with their mother full time and the father claims the child as a dependent using Form 8332, that child does not qualify the father to file as Head of Household.

The main advantages of using Head of Household, as opposed to the “Single” filing status, are:

• A larger standard deduction, meaning less of your gross income is taxable, and
• Wider tax brackets, meaning that the same or less tax is paid on the remaining income.

IRS Publication 17, chapter 2, and IRS Publication 501, pages 8-9, explain this subject in more detail with examples.