J.K. Lasser's Your Income Tax 2013: For Preparing Your 2012 Tax Return

1.11 Qualifying Widow(er) Status If Your Spouse Died in 2011 or 2010

If your spouse died in either 2011 or 2010 and you meet the following three requirements, your 2012 filing status is qualifying widow or widower, which allows you to use joint return rates on an individual return:

1. You did not remarry before 2013 (if you did remarry, you may file a 2012 joint return with your new spouse).

2. You may claim as your dependent (21.1) in 2012 a child, stepchild, or adopted child who lived with you during 2012 and you paid over half the cost of maintaining your home. The child must live with you for the entire year, not counting temporary absences such as to attend school or take a vacation. A foster child is not considered your child for purposes of these rules.

3. You were entitled to file jointly in the year of your spouse’s death, even if you did not do so.

If you meet all these tests and do not itemize deductions (Schedule A, Form 1040), use the standard deduction for married couples filing jointly (13.1). To figure your regular income tax liability, you generally use the IRS Tax Table or Tax Computation Worksheet (22.2) for qualifying widows or widowers, the same one used by married couples filing jointly.

Spouse’s death before 2010.

If your spouse died before 2010 and you did not remarry before 2013, you may be able to use head of household rates for 2012 if you qualify under the rules discussed in 1.12.