Innocent Spouse Relief

Innocent spouse relief applies when your spouse left income off a joint return or claimed improper deductions or credits, and you didn't know and had no reason to know. Separation of liability splits an understatement between you and your former spouse based on who it belongs to, and is available if you're divorced, legally separated, widowed, or haven't lived together for 12 months. Equitable relief is a fairness standard that can also cover tax that was correctly reported but never paid, for example when a spouse kept the money meant for the IRS.

Texas is a community property state, so even if you filed separately, half of your spouse's income during the marriage may be treated as yours. Separate rules let a Texas spouse ask to be relieved of tax on community income that belonged to the other spouse, if you didn't know about it and it would be unfair to hold you responsible. Many people in Texas don't know this option exists.

Relief is decided on the facts: what you knew, who controlled the finances, whether you benefited from the money, and whether there was abuse or financial control in the marriage. We gather the documents that show this, prepare Form 8857 and a written statement, and handle the IRS's follow-up questions. Your former spouse is generally notified and allowed to respond, and we prepare you for that too.