Need help my husband is dead but they say his taxes have to be paid....
@shaggin (71659)
United States
February 5, 2012 12:49pm CST
Ok so my father in law just called and said that the tax lady said that even though my husband is dead he still worked 3 months out of the year so they need a total sum of how much he made and I guess someone has to file his taxes. Now what I'm confused about it if hes dead and he was divorced who would file his taxes. It doesnt make sense to me.
Last year he filed his taxes seperately although we were married... we werent living together. In order for him to get the child tax credit he was supposed to have the kids for half of the year but he didnt have them for more then 50 days even. So instead of having his taxes done overtown he had his uncle in florida do them and he was able to get the child income tax credit and got a lot of money back. He offered me half the money but I refused I didnt want anything to do with that money.
Since we werent living together and we were each reponsible for our own bills all his medical expenses were his responsibility. After he died I didnt have to pay any of his bills. It seems that his taxes should be the same way.
He probably only made about $4000 in the year he was alive because of it being only 3 months that he worked. With as much work as he missed he might have not even made that.
Does anyone have any advice or knowledge on this. I am totally lost on what I am supposed to do.
2 people like this
4 responses
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
9 Feb 12
The person that is responsible to do his taxes would be his executor of estate, or the person that was responsible for taking care of all of his bills and distributing his assests to the rightful heirs.
With that said, I would think that it would be his father that would be responsible for doing them.
If, however, his father refuses to do them, then you could do them or you could turn your cheek and pretend that you don't know anything about it.
2 people like this
@shaggin (71659)
• United States
13 Feb 12
It must have been a typo because no we were never divorced we hadnt even started the filing or anything for a divorce because neither one of us wanted to pay for it lol. We were still fully married but didnt live together. So legally I am totally responsible to file his taxes this year. I really dont want to have to do it but theres nothing I can do about it.
1 person likes this
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
12 Feb 12
If you weren't through with the divorce that would be the case, but you said that you were divorced so in that situation the only thing that legally ties you together is the children.
You don't have to do his taxes unless you just want to because you were divorced and therefore not a surviving spouse.
2 people like this
@lampar (7584)
• United States
29 Feb 12
I have the best solution for you, take the tax collector to your husband grave, show the fat lady where he is laying, ask her spit out the amount your husband owe her while still alive, then collect from him. Tell her to arrest him if he refuse to pay his fair share to IRS. You are just an Ex-wife that can't force him to pay anymore. 
@Tina30219 (81539)
• Onaway, Michigan
5 Feb 12
I think it may be your job to file it because legally you we're still married. II would talk to the tax lady that your father in law talked to about it she would no more.
@shaggin (71659)
• United States
7 Feb 12
I was going to have my husbands cousin do my taxes since he was the one in charge of doing my husbands the past bunch of years. Since he was familiar with them I thought it would be better for him to do mine as well. But since his cousin I think put him down under single when he should have been listed as married filing seperately I dont want him to do my taxes and possibly mess mine up. So I've decided to just go to the local tax place and have them do my taxes this year. I'm really nervous that his taxes being done wrong last year will cause me to have to pay a lot of money.
1 person likes this
@Orson_Kart (6095)
• United Kingdom
7 Feb 12
In the UK your debts die with you and your next of kin should not have to pick up the bill. I do hope this is also the case in the US. If not then I can't help you. Sorry! 
1 person likes this
@shaggin (71659)
• United States
8 Feb 12
Wow that is interesting and an awesome thing that the UK does. That isnt the way it works here at all. If you have debts and you die someone has to pay them. With his medical bills they wrote them off and I didnt have to pay anything because we didnt live together and there was no money left in his account to pay for his bills. But with his taxes I found that they do have to be paid. The surviving spouse is held responsible. If we had been divorced his father would have had to pay them. So I am responsible even though we hadent lived together in 12 months. Seems so weird but it is true.
1 person likes this
