Brody and Bella married in 2023. They filed a joint return for the year, but the IRS offset their refund because Brody owes past-due child support for his two children from a previous marriage. Bella is not legally responsible for the children's support, and she would like to receive her portion of their tax refund. As the couple's tax preparer, what advice would you offer?

Question

Bella should request relief as an injured spouse.
Bella should request relief as an innocent spouse.
Brody should request relief as an injured spouse.
Brody should request relief as an innocent spouse.

Answer 1

In this situation, the correct advice would be for Bella to request relief as an injured spouse. The injured spouse claim allows her to protect her portion of the joint tax refund from being applied to Brody's past-due child support obligations.

Here's a brief explanation of each option for clarity:

1. Injured Spouse Relief: This is appropriate for Bella because she is not responsible for Brody's child support debt. By filing Form 8379 (Injured Spouse Allocation), she can claim her portion of the joint refund.

2. Innocent Spouse Relief: This provision typically applies when one spouse can demonstrate they were not aware of a tax liability or understatement of income attributable to the other spouse. It is not applicable in this situation since the issue is about debt (child support), not a tax liability.

3. Brody requesting relief as an injured spouse: This is not applicable, as Brody is the one with the child support obligation and cannot claim himself as an injured spouse.

4. Brody requesting relief as an innocent spouse: Again, this does not apply here since he is the one who owes the child support.

Hence, the best course of action for Bella would be to seek relief as an injured spouse.