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Filing Requirement Charts(p6) |
| Chart A and B users—if you have to file a return, you may be able to file Form 1040EZ. See Checklist for Using Form 1040EZ, earlier. |
| IF your filing status is . . . | AND your gross income* was at least . . . | THEN . . . |
| Single | $ 9,750 | File a return |
| Married filing jointly** | $19,500 | File a return |
| *Gross income
means all income you received in the form of money, goods, property, and
services that is not exempt from tax, including any income from sources outside
the United States or from the sale of your main home (even if you can exclude
part or all of it). **If you did not live with your spouse at the end of 2012 (or on the date your spouse died) and your gross income was at least $3,800, you must file a return. | ||
| If your parent (or someone else) can claim you as a dependent, use this chart. |
| To find out if your parent (or someone else) can claim you as a dependent, see Pub. 501. | |
| File a return if any of the following apply. |
| ||
| 1 Unearned income
includes taxable interest, ordinary dividends, and capital gain distributions.
It also includes unemployment compensation, taxable social security benefits,
pensions, annuities, and distributions of unearned income from a trust. 2 Earned income includes salaries, wages, tips, professional fees, and taxable scholarship or fellowship grants. 3 Gross income is the total of your unearned and earned income. | |||
| You must file a return using Form 1040A or 1040 if any of the following apply for 2012. | |
| • | You owe tax from the recapture of an education credit (see Form 8863). |
| • | You claim a credit for excess social security and tier 1 RRTA tax withheld. |
| • | You claim a credit for the retirement savings contributions credit (saver's credit) (see Form 8880). |
| You must file a return using Form 1040 if any of the following apply for 2012. | |
| • | You owe any special taxes, such as social security and Medicare tax on tips you did not report to your employer or on wages you received from an employer who did not withhold these taxes. |
| • | You owe write-in taxes, including uncollected social security and Medicare or RRTA tax on tips you reported to your employer or on group-term life insurance. |
| • | You had net earnings from self-employment of at least $400. |
| • | You had wages of $108.28 or more from a church or qualified church-controlled organization that is exempt from employer social security and Medicare taxes. |
| • | You owe any recapture taxes, other than from the recapture of an education credit, including repayment of the first-time homebuyer credit (see Form 5405). |
| • | You owe additional tax on a qualified plan, including an individual retirement arrangement (IRA), or other tax-favored account. But if you are filing a return only because you owe this tax, you can file Form 5329 by itself. |
| • | You owe household employment taxes. But if you are filing a return only because you owe this tax, you can file Schedule H (Form 1040) by itself. |
| • | You (or your spouse if filing jointly) received Archer MSA, Medicare Advantage MSA, or health savings account distributions. |
IRS
e-file
takes the guesswork out of preparing your return. You may also be eligible to
use Free File to file your federal income tax return. Visit
www.irs.gov/efile or see
Options for e-filing
your returns, later, for details.
| Part 1 | Items That Can Be Reported on Form 1040EZ | If any federal income tax withheld is shown on the forms in Part 1, include the tax withheld on Form 1040EZ, line 7. |
|---|---|---|
| Form | Item and Box in Which It Should Appear | Where To Report on Form 1040EZ |
| W-2 | Wages, tips, other compensation (box 1) | Line 1 |
| Allocated tips (box 8) | See the instructions for Form 1040EZ, line1 | |
| 1099-G | Unemployment compensation (box 1) | Line 3 |
| 1099-INT | Interest income (box 1) | Line 2 |
| Interest on U.S. savings bonds and Treasury obligations (box 3) | See the instructions for Form 1040EZ, line 2 | |
| Tax-exempt interest (box 8) | See the instructions for Form 1040EZ, line 2 | |
| 1099-OID | Original issue discount (box 1)
Other periodic interest (box 2) | See the instructions on Form 1099-OID See the instructions on Form 1099-OID |
| Part 2 | Items That May Require Filing Another Form | |
| Form | Items That May Require Filing Another Form | Other Form |
| W-2 | Dependent care benefits (box 10) Adoption benefits (box 12, code T) | Must file Form 1040A or 1040 Must file Form 1040 |
| Employer contributions to a health savings account (box 12, code W) | Must file Form 1040 if required to file Form 8889 (see the instructions for Form 8889) | |
| Amount reported in box 12, code R or Z | Must file Form 1040 | |
| W-2G | Gambling winnings (box 1) | Must file Form 1040 |
| 1097-BTC | Bond tax credit | Must file Form 1040 |
| 1098-E | Student loan interest (box 1) | Must file Form 1040A or 1040 to deduct |
| 1098-T | Qualified tuition and related expenses (box 1) | Must file Form 1040A or 1040 to claim, but first see the instructions on Form 1098-T |
| 1099-C | Canceled debt (box 2) | Generally must file Form 1040 (see Pub. 4681) |
| 1099-DIV | Dividends and distributions | Must file Form 1040A or 1040 |
| 1099-INT | Interest on U.S. savings bonds and Treasury
obligations (box 3) | See the instructions for Form 1040EZ, line 2 |
| Early withdrawal penalty (box 2) | Must file Form 1040 to deduct | |
| Foreign tax paid (box 6) | Must file Form 1040 to deduct or take a credit for the tax | |
| 1099-LTC | Long-term care and accelerated death benefits | Must file Form 1040 if required to file Form 8853 (see the instructions for Form 8853) |
| 1099-MISC | Miscellaneous income | Must file Form 1040 |
| 1099-OID | Early withdrawal penalty (box 3) | Must file Form 1040 to deduct |
| 1099-Q | Qualified education program payments | Must file Form 1040 |
| 1099-R | Distributions from pensions, annuities, IRAs, etc. | Must file Form 1040A or 1040 |
| 1099-SA | Distributions from HSAs and MSAs* | Must file Form 1040 |
| * This includes distributions from Archer and Medicare Advantage MSAs. | ||
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