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When joint filers can owe separate amounts
How to tell whether you owe separate amounts
When joint filers can owe separate amounts
You and your spouse may need to make separate payments even if you filed jointly, that is, together on the same tax return. We will issue “separate assessments” and notify each spouse separately of payments due in cases where you or your spouse’s debt was reduced, suspended or eliminated. This could happen for any of the following reasons:
- We granted you or your spouse innocent spouse relief for being unaware of some issue with your return
- One of you declared bankruptcy and their tax debt was cleared (“discharged”)
- We accepted an offer in compromise from one of you for less than what was owed
- We audited one of you and determined the amount we’d said was owed was wrong
- A tax court ruled one of you did not need to pay all or part of the debt
- One spouse appealed a collection decision or obtained a payment plan (for installment payments) in their name
Often a bankruptcy, offer in compromise, audit, appeal or court ruling would apply to both spouses, but not always, for instance, if you were recently divorced.
How to tell whether you owe separate amounts
Both spouses receive the same notice
We typically send the same balance due notice around the same time to both spouses filing together. As a couple you would owe only the amount appearing on one notice.
It’s a duplicate notice if:
- the amount due and everything else on the notice is the same except your names (and addresses if different), AND
- it contains the following statement:
We’re required to send a copy of this notice to both you and your spouse. Each copy contains the same information about your joint account. Please note: Only pay the amount due once.
If you can’t find this statement in your notice, see what to do in “Other situations” below.
Other situations
In situations such as the following:
- the amounts due on each notice are different
- the notice numbers you each received are different
you can confirm the correct balance due by:
- checking the online account for each spouse separately, or
- calling the toll-free number on your notice
How to pay a separate amount
Normally we credit payments to the spouse whose name is first on the tax return, the primary filer for married couples filing jointly. To make sure a payment gets credited to the other filer, you will need to take certain precautions:
- Do not use Direct Pay for these separate assessment payments
- Pay through Online Account under the name of the spouse who should receive credit for the payment. If that person does not have an IRS Online Account, they will need to create one.
- If you must pay by check, write all of the following items on the check:
- the words “MFT 31 separate assessment”
- the Social Security number (SSN) or individual taxpayer identification number (TIN) only of the person who should receive credit for the payment
- the tax year that the payment is for
- the applicable tax form (like “1040”) or IRS notice number if we sent you a notice