What does income tax season mean for divorcing couples?

Getting everything in order to file income taxes can be a hectic time for Minnesota families. Yet tax season can be made more complicated if a couple is going through a divorce. Though this can be a stressful time of year for couples, there are a few ways they can find their way through divorce and income tax filings.

A wide-variety of disagreements can come up during the divorce process, but tax season is an important time for divorcing couples to come together to make financial decisions that are mutually beneficial. When sitting down with your respective legal representatives and spouse it may be a wise idea to bring the discussion of income tax filings to the fore.

One of the first questions a couple might ask is whether to file jointly or separately. Federal laws indicate that couples should file according to their marital status as of December 31^st of the filing year. Couples may consider delaying a divorce finalization until after the first of the year in order to take advantage of tax benefits for one additional year. Otherwise, couples can decide to file separately, if that suits them better.

Another concern for divorcing couples is how to claim children and support payments. Generally, custodial parents will claim any children for a tax deduction and child support payments issued to the custodial parent do not affect tax filings. On the other hand, alimony payments are usually tax deductible for the payer and taxable for those receiving payments, unless an agreement indicates otherwise.

Asset division is usually one of the more complicated aspects of a divorce settlement and can also affect income tax filings. Once a divorce is finalized, it is clear who is in control of assets and should include them in income taxes, but this is not always quite as certain when a couple is going through divorce. Any property or assets involved are filed according existing agreements or court orders.

Above all, it may be best to seek the advice of a divorce professional with financial knowledge. This may be particularly true in high asset divorce cases. Filing taxes is complicated enough, so receiving informed legal and financial assistance might be the best decision you'll make in the divorce process.

Source: The Huffington Post, "Top 4 Tax Tips For Divorcing Couples," Bari Zell Weinberger, Feb. 24, 2012