You don’t want to pay more in taxes than you need to.  When filing your federal tax return, it is important for you to choose the right filing status.  Your filing status will determine your standard deduction, which will decide how much money you owe the IRS—or how much the IRS must refund to you.

First, you need to answer two questions:

1. What was your marital status on the last day of the year in question? (That will determine your filing status for the whole year.)
2. Does more than one filing status apply to you? Then choose the one that results in the least taxes owed.

You have five filing status options to choose from:

1. Single.  This applies to anyone who is:
   a.    Unmarried
   b.    Divorced
   c.    Legally separated (according to the laws of your state)
2. Married Filing Jointly.  If you are married, you and your wife or husband may file a joint return together.  (If your spouse died during the year, you may still file a joint return with that spouse in the year he or she died.)
3. Married Filing Separately.  If you are married, you and your wife or husband may choose to each file a separate return.
4. Head of Household.  If you are unmarried and you have paid more than half the cost of providing a home for yourself and a qualifying person, you may qualify for this tax status.
5. Qualifying Widow(er).  You may be able to choose this filing status for the first two years following the year a spouse died, provided you have a dependent child, and you meet certain other conditions.

You can find more information about how to choose the right filing status in Publication 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information.  This publication is available on the IRS website at IRS.gov.