Community property divorce

[LVS]

I am trying to complete a tax return for a, wife who divorced on December 23, 2014. She and her husband were Wisconsin (community property) residents all of 2014. I did the couples 2013 MFJ return.
The husband has already filed his 2014 return as a single tax payer for all of 2014. He refuses to give his tax information to us to complete the form 8958.
Anyone have any experience with this situation?
I am thinking either call the IRS and hope for someone to answer and give reliable information.
Or file her tax return with her income and attach a statement that the spouse refuses to share necessary tax information with spouse for 2014.

[S T]

Form 8958 is for married separate/RDP returns and allocation subject to community property state

You state that divorce was final 12/23/2014 - so would not 2014 return be for husband, single, and spouse, single?

Based on your post would the filing status effective as of 12/31 of the calendar year be Single for both parties?

Just some thoughts and maybe some research for you to review

Sandy

[Jiggers]

Yes, you file single because that is what they are at 12/31/14. However, depending on the state's community property laws, such as here in Texas, all income up to the date of the divorce, or separation, is split 50 - 50, including any withholding.

A real pain.

Charge a healthy fee for that!

[LVS]

Yes, you file single because that is what they are at 12/31/14. However, depending on the state's community property laws, such as here in Texas, all income up to the date of the divorce, or separation, is split 50 - 50, including any withholding.

A real pain.

Charge a healthy fee for that!

Thanks for the replies, and she will file as single.
The filing status is not my question.
The former spouse won't give his information to complete columns B and C of the 8958?

[Lion]

Was the exchange of information addressed in the divorce decree? Have her contact her lawyer. He needs to nudge the opposing lawyer to get his client in compliance. A little threat of being drug back into court to had his info to the judge and to pay both parties legal costs....

Her lawyer missed doing this? He should, for free, work on this for her.

[Maribeth]

You also need to know when the couple split. I don't know about Wisconsin law, but Washington law indicates that there is no community income AFTER the couple have split. If they were apart all year, then there is no income to split. She will report her income and he has reported his.

If they were still together during part of 2014, then you do need the split income. However, I have had a situation such as yours. All we could do was report her income, disclose that none of his income was on the return and file it. If I recall correctly, it was electronically filed and went through just fine. There was never any question about the return from the IRS. The community property split allocation sheet had zeros for his portion.

hth

[Roland Slugg]

If the divorce agreement doesn't cover this ... and it probably doesn't ... and the xW can't get the needed info from her xH (through the lawyers, of course), then if she were my client, I would do the following: Report on her return the income reported to her on forms that contain her SSN ... W-2s, 1099s, K-1s. Also report on her return the income from any business she may have owned. If she itemizes, some of her deductions will be difficult to determine unless she has the records, so do your best with that. As for any dependent children, the exemption issue may have been covered in the divorce papers, but if it wasn't, just apply the prescribed rules for children of divorced parents.

[LVS]

[QUOTE=Maribeth;170628]You also need to know when the couple split. I don't know about Wisconsin law, but Washington law indicates that there is no community income AFTER the couple have split. If they were apart all year, then there is no income to split. She will report her income and he has reported his.

If they were still together during part of 2014, then you do need the split income. However, I have had a situation such as yours. All we could do was report her income, disclose that none of his income was on the return and file it. If I recall correctly, it was electronically filed and went through just fine. There was never any question about the return from the IRS. The community property split allocation sheet had zeros for his portion.]

Thanks, Maribeth
That is how the IRS and WI DOR advised me to file the return.
They separated in July 2014 and divorce was final December 23, 2014. I have tried to convince her spouse and his tax preparer that community income needs to be split for the time they were married, but they won't listen.
I hope the IRS follows up on his incorrect return, when his name and social number with 1/2 of her income hits the IRS database.