These rules apply to all U.S. citizens, regardless of where they live, and resident aliens.

Were you (or your spouse if filing a joint return) age 65 or older at the end of 2007? If you were born on January 1, 1943, you are considered to be age 65 at the end of 2007.

Nonresident aliens and dual-status aliens.   These rules also apply if you were a nonresident alien or a dual-status alien and both of the following apply.

• You were married to a U.S. citizen or resident alien at the end of 2007.

• You elected to be taxed as a resident alien.

  See Pub. 519 for details.

  

Specific rules apply to determine if you are a resident alien, nonresident alien, or dual-status alien. Most nonresident aliens and dual-status aliens have different filing requirements and may have to file Form 1040NR or Form 1040NR-EZ. Pub. 519 discusses these requirements and other information to help aliens comply with U.S. tax law, including tax treaty benefits, and special rules for students and scholars.

File Form 1040EZ by April 15, 2008. If you file after this date, you may have to pay interest and penalties. See below.

If you were serving in, or in support of, the U.S. Armed Forces in a designated combat zone, qualified hazardous duty area, or a contingency operation, see Pub. 3.

You can get an automatic 6-month extension if, no later than the date your return is due, you file Form 4868. For details, see Form 4868.

However, even if you get an extension, the tax you owe is still due April 15, 2008. If you make a payment with your extension request, see the instructions for line 9 on page 15.

The IRS can charge you interest and penalties on the amount you owe.

If you file late, the penalty is usually 5% of the amount due for each month or part of a month your return is late, unless you have a reasonable explanation. If you do, attach it to your return. The penalty can be as much as 25% of the tax due. The penalty is 15% per month, up to a maximum of 75%, if the failure to file is fraudulent. We will charge you interest on the penalty from the due date of the return (including extensions). If your return is more than 60 days late, the minimum penalty will be $100 or the amount of any tax you owe, whichever is smaller.

If you pay your taxes late, the penalty is usually ½ of 1% of the unpaid amount for each month or part of a month the tax is not paid. The penalty can be as much as 25% of the unpaid amount. It applies to any unpaid tax on the return.

Yes. Other penalties can be imposed for negligence, substantial understatement of tax, reportable transaction understatements, filing an erroneous refund claim, and fraud. We will charge you interest on these penalties from the due date of the return (including extensions). Criminal penalties may be imposed for willful failure to file, tax evasion, or making a false statement. See Pub. 17 for details.

In addition to any other penalties, the law imposes a penalty of $5,000 for filing a frivolous return. A frivolous return is one that does not contain information needed to figure the correct tax or shows a substantially incorrect tax because you take a frivolous position or desire to delay or interfere with the tax laws. This includes altering or striking out the preprinted language above the space where you sign. For a list of positions identified as frivolous, see Notice 2007-30, 2007-14 I.R.B. 883, available at
www.irs.gov/irb/2007-14_IRB/ar20.html.

See the back cover.

You can use Form 1040EZ if all of the following apply.

If you do not meet all of the requirements, you must use Form 1040A or 1040. Use TeleTax topic 352 (see page 30) to find out which form to use.

Even if you can use Form 1040EZ, it may benefit you to use Form 1040A or 1040 instead. For example, you can claim the head of household filing status (which usually results in a lower tax than single) only on Form 1040A or 1040. You can claim the retirement savings contributions credit (saver's credit) only on Form 1040A or 1040. Use TeleTax topic 610 (see page 30). Also, you can itemize deductions only on Form 1040. It would benefit you to itemize deductions if they total more than your standard deduction, which is $5,350 for most single people and $10,700 for most married people filing a joint return. Use TeleTax topic 501 (see page 30). But if someone can claim you (or your spouse if married) as a dependent, your standard deduction is the amount entered on line E of the worksheet on page 2 of Form 1040EZ.

Married Filing Jointly

You can use this filing status if any of the following apply.

• You were married at the end of 2007, even if you did not live with your spouse at the end of 2007.

• Your spouse died in 2007 and you did not remarry in 2007.

• You were married at the end of 2007, and your spouse died in 2008 before filing a 2007 return.

For federal tax purposes, a marriage means only a legal union between a man and a woman as husband and wife. A husband and wife filing jointly report their combined income and deduct their combined allowable expenses on one return. A husband and wife can file a joint return even if only one had income or if they did not live together all year. However, both persons must sign the return. Once you file a joint return, you cannot choose to file separate returns for that year after the due date of the return.

Joint and several tax liability.   If you file a joint return, both you and your spouse are generally responsible for the tax and any interest or penalties due on the return. This means that if one spouse does not pay the tax due, the other may have to. However, see Innocent spouse relief on page 27.

Chart A—For Most People

IF your filing status is . . .	THEN file a return if your gross income* was at least . . .
Single	$8,750
Married filing jointly**	$17,500
*Gross income means all income you received in the form of money, goods, property, and services that is not exempt from tax, including any income from sources outside the United States (even if you can exclude part or all of it). **If you did not live with your spouse at the end of 2007 (or on the date your spouse died) and your gross income was at least $3,400, you must file a return.

Chart B—For Children and Other Dependents

If your parent (or someone else) can claim you as a dependent, use this chart to see if you must file a return.
In this chart, unearned income includes taxable interest, ordinary dividends, and capital gain distributions. Earned income includes wages, tips, and taxable scholarship and fellowship grants. Gross income is the total of your unearned and earned income.
	To find out if your parent (or someone else) can claim you as a dependent, see Pub. 501.
You must file a return if any of the following apply. Your unearned income was over $850. Your earned income was over $5,350. Your gross income was more than the larger of—
	$850, or Your earned income (up to $5,050) plus $300.

Chart C—Other Situations When You Must File

You must file a return using Form 1040A or 1040 if any of the following apply for 2007. You received any advance earned income credit payments from your employer. These payments are shown in box 9 of your Form W-2. You owe tax from the recapture of an education credit (see Form 8863). You claim a credit for excess social security and tier 1 RRTA tax withheld. You claim a credit for the retirement savings contributions credit (saver's credit) (see Form 8880).

You must file a return using Form 1040 if any of the following apply for 2007. You owe any special taxes, such as social security and Medicare tax on tips you did not report to your employer or on wages you received from an employer who did not withhold these taxes. You owe uncollected social security and Medicare or RRTA tax on tips you reported to your employer or on group-term life insurance. You had net earnings from self-employment of at least $400. You had wages of $108.28 or more from a church or qualified church-controlled organization that is exempt from employer social security and Medicare taxes. You owe tax on a qualified plan, including an individual retirement arrangement (IRA), or other tax-favored account. But if you are filing a return only because you owe this tax, you can file Form 5329 by itself.

Where To Report Certain Items From 2007 Forms W-2, 1098, and 1099

IRS e-file takes the guesswork out of preparing your return. You may also be eligible to use Free File to file your federal income tax return. Visit www.irs.gov/efile for details.

If any federal income tax withheld is shown on these forms, include the tax withheld on Form 1040EZ, line 7.

Form	Item and Box in Which It Should Appear		Where To Report on Form 1040EZ
W-2	Wages, tips, other compensation (box 1)		Line 1
	Allocated tips (box 8)		See page 9
	Advance EIC payment (box 9)		Must file Form 1040A or 1040
	Dependent care benefits (box 10)
	Adoption benefits (box 12, code T)		Must file Form 1040
	Employer contributions to a health savings account (box 12, code W)		Must file Form 1040 if required to file Form 8889 (see the instructions for Form 8889)
	Amount reported in box 12, code R or Z		Must file Form 1040
W-2G	Gambling winnings (box 1)		Must file Form 1040
1098-E	Student loan interest (box 1)		Must file Form 1040A or 1040 to deduct
1098-T	Qualified tuition and related expenses (box 1)		Must file Form 1040A or 1040, but first see the instructions on Form 1098-T
1099-C	Canceled debt (box 2)		Must file Form 1040 if taxable (see the instructions on Form 1099-C)
1099-DIV	Dividends and distributions		Must file Form 1040A or 1040
1099-G	Unemployment compensation (box 1)		Line 3. But if you repaid any unemployment compensation in 2007, see the instructions for line 3 on page 10
1099-INT	Interest income (box 1)		Line 2
	Interest on U.S. savings bonds and Treasury obligations (box 3)		See the instructions for line 2 beginning on page 9
	Early withdrawal penalty (box 2)		Must file Form 1040 to deduct
	Foreign tax paid (box 6)		Must file Form 1040 to deduct or take a credit for the tax
	Tax-exempt interest (box 8)		See the instructions for line 2 beginning on page 9
1099-LTC	Long-term care and accelerated death benefits		Must file Form 1040 if required to file Form 8853 (see the instructions for Form 8853)
1099-MISC	Miscellaneous income		Must file Form 1040
1099-OID	Original issue discount (box 1)		See the instructions on Form 1099-OID
	Other periodic interest (box 2)
	Early withdrawal penalty (box 3)		Must file Form 1040 to deduct
1099-Q	Qualified education program payments		Must file Form 1040
1099-R	Distributions from pensions, annuities, IRAs, etc.		Must file Form 1040A or 1040
1099-SA	Distributions from HSAs and MSAs*		Must file Form 1040
*This includes distributions from Archer and Medicare Advantage MSAs.

An incorrect or missing SSN can increase your tax or reduce your refund. To apply for an SSN, fill in Form SS-5 and return it, along with the appropriate evidence documents, to the Social Security Administration (SSA). You can get Form SS-5 online at www.socialsecurity.gov, from your local SSA office, or by calling the SSA at 1-800-772-1213. It usually takes about 2 weeks to get an SSN once the SSA has all the evidence and information it needs.

Check that your SSN on your Forms W-2 and 1099 agrees with your social security card. If not, see page 27 for more details.

IRS individual taxpayer identification numbers (ITINs) for aliens.   If you are a nonresident or resident alien and you do not have and are not eligible to get an SSN, you must apply for an ITIN. For details on how to do so, see Form W-7 and its instructions. It usually takes about 4-6 weeks to get an ITIN.

   If you already have an ITIN, enter it wherever your SSN is requested on your tax return.

  

An ITIN is for tax use only. It does not entitle you to social security benefits or change your employment or immigration status under U.S. law.

This fund helps pay for Presidential election campaigns. The fund reduces candidates' dependence on large contributions from individuals and groups and places candidates on an equal financial footing in the general election. If you want $3 to go to this fund, check the box. If you are filing a joint return, your spouse may also have $3 go to the fund. If you check a box, your tax or refund will not change.