Expenses that qualify are tuition and fees required for enrollment or attendance at any college, vocational school, or other post-secondary educational institution eligible to participate in the student aid programs administered by the Department of Education. Qualified expenses do not include books, room and board, student activities, athletics (unless the course is part of the student's degree program), insurance, equipment, transportation, or other similar personal, living, or family expenses. The cost of books and equipment are generally not qualified expenses because eligible educational institutions usually do not require that fees for such books or equipment be paid to the institution as a condition of the student's enrollment or attendance at the institution.
If the child is a qualifying child of both parents, they may choose which one will claim the credit. If there are two qualifying children, each parent may claim the credit on the basis of one of the children or one parent may claim the credit with both children. If both actually claim the credit on the basis of the same child or children, the parent who is entitled to the credit is the parent with whom the child lived for the longest period of time during the tax year, or the parent with the higher adjusted gross income (AGI) if the child lived with each parent for the same amount of time during the year.
You do not qualify for the Child and Dependent Care Credit or the head of household filing status because you left your spouse on July 1, you have not lived apart for the last 6 months of the taxable year and are not considered unmarried. Your filing status for the year will either be married filing separately, or married filing jointly. If it is married filing separately, you will not qualify for the Earned Income Credit.
In general, a refund check should be issued within 6 to 8 weeks of filing a paper return. If you have elected on your paper return to receive a direct deposit, the refund should take 1 week less time to be issued. With e-file on the federal, your refund will be issued in half the time as when filing on paper (even faster if you choose direct deposit). Most refunds are issued within weeks. In many cases, you can receive your refund in about 14 days, particularly if you choose direct deposit. On your state return, it would be approximately 7-10 business days.
Only the person who paid more that half the cost of keeping up a home for the year would qualify for the head of household filing status. If both people paid exactly the same amount, neither would qualify for the head of household filing status.
If you are unable to file your individual tax return by the due date, you may get an automatic 6 month extension of time by filing Form 4868 before the due date, usually April 15. By filing this form, you can avoid a late filing penalty. However, this extension does not give you more time to pay the tax you owe. It is only an extension of time to file your return. If you need an extension of time to file, you need to estimate how much tax, if any; you'll owe, and include that payment with your Form 4868.
In certain circumstances, you do not need to claim the child as a dependent to qualify for head of household filing status, such as when the qualifying child is your unmarried child, grandchild, stepchild, or adopted child.
An individual must file a return if either their gross income or their adjusted gross income (AGI) was more than the amount defined by law. California residents must consider their total worldwide gross income to determine their filing requirement. Part-Year residents must file a return if they have any income taxable by California (which includes income from all sources while a resident and California source income while a nonresident), and their income from all sources is more than the filing requirement amounts for residents. Nonresidents must file a return if they have any California source income and their income from all sources is more than the filing requirement amounts for residents.
A final return must be filed for a person who died during the calendar year if a return normally would be required. The administrator or executor if one is appointed or beneficiary must file a return. Please print or type 'deceased' and the date of death next to the taxpayer's name at the top of the return. If you are a surviving spouse and no administrator or executor has been appointed, you may file a joint return if you did not remarry during the same year in which your spouse died. Write the words surviving spouse next to your name when you sign the return. You may also file a joint return with an administrator or executor acting in behalf of the deceased taxpayer. If you file a return and claim a refund that is owed to a deceased taxpayer, you are certifying under penalty of perjury that you are entitled to the refund as the deceased's surviving relative or sole beneficiary under the provisions of the California Probate Code or you are the legal representative of the deceased taxpayer's estate. If you are the legal representative then you must attach certified copies of the letters of administration or letters of testamentary. When filing the return you must also attach a copy of federal Form 1310, Statement of Person Claiming Refund Due a Deceased Taxpayer, or a copy of the death certificate.
Community property is anything acquired by the husband and wife during their marriage while they are domiciled in a community property state. Community property is all property that does not fall within the definition of separate property. The definition of separate property is as follows: Separate property is all property owned separately by the husband or wife before marriage. It is also property acquired separately after marriage by the husband or wife as a gift, devise, bequest or inheritance. Separate property may be acquired during marriage by purchase with separate funds, by exchanging the separate property, or in accordance with a pre- or post-nuptial agreement.
It's easy. You already have one. California law allows you an automatic six-month extension, so if you file your return by October 15, you will not be subject to a late filing penalty. Please note, this is not an extension of time to pay your tax. To avoid late payment penalties and interest you must pay the full amount of tax you owe by April 15. If you are paying your tax but not yet filing your return, include a completed Payment Voucher for Automatic Extension for Individuals (Form 3519) with your April 15th payment. If you owe, but cannot pay your taxes by April 15th, you should still file your return by October 15, (the extended due date). Although there are penalties for late payment of tax, the penalty for late filing of the return is usually higher. After your return is processed, the Franchise Tax Board will send you a bill that includes any penalties and interest. Note: The process for requesting an extension to file your federal return is different.
If you owe, but cannot pay your taxes by the due date, you should still file your return on time and pay as much as you can. Although there are penalties for late payment of tax, the penalty for late filing of the return is usually higher. After your return is processed, IRS or Franchise Tax Board will send you a bill including penalties and interest. Please be sure to include your social security number and tax year on your check or money order.
