Filing status and dependents: two answers that change your refund

The five filing statuses

• Single: unmarried, divorced or legally separated, with no qualifying person.
• Married filing jointly: married couples combine income on one return. Usually the lowest tax.
• Married filing separately: each spouse files alone. Sometimes useful, but many credits, including the EITC in most cases, aren't allowed.
• Head of household: unmarried, you paid more than half the cost of keeping up your home, and a qualifying person lived with you more than half the year.
• Qualifying surviving spouse: for up to two years after a spouse's death, if you have a dependent child living with you.

Who counts as a dependent?

Qualifying child: your child, stepchild, foster child, sibling, or a descendant of one of them, who is under 19 (under 24 if a full-time student, or any age if permanently disabled), lived with you more than half the year, and didn't provide more than half of their own support.

Qualifying relative: a relative (such as a parent) or someone who lived with you all year as a member of your household, whose income is under the yearly limit, and for whom you provided more than half of their total support.

Why it matters

Head of household has lower tax rates and a larger standard deduction than single. Dependents can open the door to the Child Tax Credit, the Credit for Other Dependents, the EITC and the child care credit. Getting these right is one of the biggest ways to protect your refund.