Part 1 - Filing Basics

1. You must have lived in the house you maintained to claim head of household. This is true unless this house is for:                                                                  

A. A child
B. A parent
C. An aunt
D. A cousin

2. You must provide over half of the cost of keeping up a home for a child, parent, or other qualifying relative to file as "Head of Household." 

True False

3. If you are married, you could be considered unmarried for Head of Household purposes.                                                                                                  

True False

4. To qualify for Head of Household, one must have maintained a home mainly for   

A. A child or a parent
B. An aunt or a cousin
C. Only a parent
D. Only a child

5. If a taxpayer is married, he must file jointly.      

True False

6. What are the five Filing Status' for tax year 2008 in the order that you see them on tax forms?

A. Single, Married filing jointly, Married filing separately, Head of household, and Qualifying Widow(er).    
B. Single, Married filing separately, Married Filing jointly, Head of household, and Qualifying Widow(er).
C. Single, Head of household, Married filing jointly, Married filing separately, and Qualifying Widow(er).
D. Single, Married filing jointly, Married filing separately, Qualifying widow(er) and Head of household.

7. A person who is single, is living alone, and has no dependents can file as Head of Household.                                   

True False

8. Esteban and his wife have been separated since May. They are not yet divorced. She has one child living with her. Esteban also has a child living with him. Of the following choices, what is the filing status that would not be possible for neither Esteban nor his wife?           

A. Single
B. Married filing jointly
C. Married filing separate
D. Head of Household

9. Jose is the only person maintaining a household for his father. He paid for all his father's upkeep. To claim him as a dependent, his father must be a resident of which of the following countries?                                

A. United States
B. Mexico
C. Canada
D. Any of the above

10. In order for a dependent to qualify you for the Head of Household filing status, the dependent that you claim can                       

A. Be your child who lived with you for at least 6 months of the year.
B. Be your parent who does not need to live with you any part of the year. 
C. Be your aunt who lived with you for at least 6 months of the year.
D. Any of the above

11. Which of the following does NOT meet the requirements to claim the Head of Household filing status?                              

A. Your spouse did NOT live in your home during the last 6 months of the tax year.
B. You paid more than half of the cost of keeping up your home for the entire year.
C. You are unmarried or considered unmarried on the last day of the year.
D. Your home was the main home for your foster child for only 5 months of the tax year.

12. For Head of Household purposes, if your parent is your qualifying relative and he or she does not live with you, you must pay more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year.                      

True False

13. For tax year 2008, please identify the 'Standard Deduction' amount for Married Filing Jointly:                                                      

A. $ 3,500 Federal.
B. $ 5,450 Federal.
C. $ 8,000 Federal.
D. $ 10,900 Federal.

14. If you and your spouse file separately, and your spouse itemizes her deductions, you must                                                           

A. Itemize your deductions also
B. Use the standard deduction instead
C. Tell her that she can't itemize because you are claiming the standard deduction
D. Split income between the two

15. If your spouse died in 2008, you can use the _______ filing status for tax year 2008, because it is more advantageous to do so.  

A. Single
B. Married Filing Jointly
C. Married Filing Separate
D. Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child.
                 

16. If you were married on or before December 31, 2008,  what can your filing status be for tax year 2008?  

A. Single
B. Married Filing Jointly
C. Married Filing Separate
D. Both B and C are correct

17. Hector was widowed before January 1, 2008. He did not remarry in tax year 2008, and he did not have a child living with him. What is the only filing status that Hector can use?    

A. Single
B. Married Filing Jointly
C. Married Filing Separate
D. Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child.

18. To qualify for 'Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child' filing status, you must   

A. Have a qualifying child living with you
B. Have not remarried by the end of the year
C. Have paid more than half of the cost of keeping up a home for your child
D. All of the above

19.  Henry wants to claim his aunt on his return. His aunt lives in Mexico and does not qualify for a social security number. How does Henry claim an exemption for her if she doesn't have a valid social security number?   

A. He can obtain an individual taxpayer identification number from the IRS.
B. He can get her a fake number.
C. He can write "Applied For" in the social security number column.
D. Since she lives in Mexico a number is not required.

20. What is the Head of Household standard deduction amount for tax year 2008?  (for most people).                                         

A. $3,500 Federal.
B. $5,450 Federal.
C. $10,900 Federal.
D. $8,000 Federal.

21. If at the end of the tax year, you are married and living together, you can file   

A. Married filing separate
B. Married filing jointly
C. Single
D. Both A and B are correct

22. If a husband and his wife file Married Filing Separate, they generally,

A. Split their wages in half
B. Both sign each other's return
C. Both report only their own income, exemptions, credits and deductions on their individual returns.
D. File as Head of Household although they did not live apart at any time during the year.

23. Mary's spouse, Joseph, died in an auto accident in 2007. Mary had not remarried and she supported their 5-year-old son all year. She qualifies to use the 'Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child' filing status on her Federal return for the tax year 2008.  

True False

24. One of the requirements to be able to file under the 'Qualifying widow(er) With Dependent Child' filing status is that    

A. You use 'Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child' filing status in the year your spouse died.
B. You use 'Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child' filing status for next 2 years that does not include the year of spouse's death
C. You use 'Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child' for third year of spouse's death
D. You use 'Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child' even if you remarry in that year.

25. If your child is considered temporarily absent from home. You can still claim him as living with you if he is away because of   

A. Illness
B. Education or business
C. Vacation or military service
D. Any of the above

26. If your filing status is Married Filing Separate, you CANNOT take the earned income credit.   

True False

27. Once you file a joint return, you CANNOT choose to file separate returns for that year after the due date of the return.   

True False

28. If you or your spouse (or both of you) filed a separate return, you generally can change to a joint return any time within 3 years from the due date of the separate return or returns.

True False

29. You are considered married for Head of Household purposes if your spouse was a nonresident alien at any time during the year and you do not choose to treat your non-resident spouse as a resident alien.

True False

30. What is the 'Standard Deduction' amount for a single dependent who earned $4,000 from his/her job in tax year 2008?      

A. $4,000 Federal.
B. $900 Federal.
C. $4,300 Federal.
D. $5,450 Federal.

31. One of the following does not meet the test that is required to be a qualifying child for Head of Household filing status.

A. The child must be your son, daughter, stepchild, foster child, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendant of any of them.
B. The child must be (a). under the age of 19 at the end of the year, (b). Under the age of 24 at the end of the year and full-time student, or (c). any age if permanently and totally disabled.   
C. The child provided more than half of his or her own support for the year.
D. The child must have lived with you for more than half of the year.

32. What is/are the exemption amounts for tax year 2008?   

A. Federal exemption amount is $3,500.
B. Personal exemption amount is $99 and spousal exemption amount is also $99.
C. Dependent exemption amount is $5,450.
D. All of the above are correct.

33. What are two types of exemptions?   

A. Business and Investment exemptions.
B. Personal exemptions and exemptions for dependents.
C. Joint return and Gross Income exemptions.
D. Single and Married exemptions.

34. If you are a U.S. citizen or resident alien, whether you must file a federal income tax return depends on    

A. Your gross income.
B. Your filing status.
C. Your age and whether you are dependent or not.
D. All of the above.

35. You may have to pay a penalty if you are required to file a tax return but fail to do so. If you willfully fail to file a tax return, you may be subject to criminal prosecution.

True False

36. If your parent (or someone else) can claim you as a dependent, and you were not age 65 or older or blind, you must file a return if

A. Your unearned income was more than $900.
B. Your earned income was more than $5,450.
C. Your gross income was more than the larger of $900 or your earned income (up to $5,150) plus $300.
D. Any of the above.

37. For 2008, you must file a return if       

A. You owe any special taxes, such as Alternative minimum tax, additional tax on qualified plans, and social security or Medicare tax on tips you did not report to your employer.
B. You received any advanced earned income credit (EIC) payments from your employer.
C. You had net earnings from Self-employment of at least $400 or wages of $108.08 or more from a church or qualified church-controlled organization exempt from employer social security and Medicare taxes.
D. Any of the above.

38. To qualify for Head of Household status, you must pay more than half of the cost of keeping up a home for the year.

True False

39. Mirtha is an unmarried woman for tax year 2008. Her unmarried son lived with her all year and he was 18 years old at the end of the year. He did not provide more than half of his own support and does not meet the tests to be a qualifying child of anyone else. As a result, Mirtha's filing status can be

A. Single.
B. Married Filing Separately.
C. Head of Household.
D. Qualifying Widow(er) With Dependent Child.

40. You can claim an exemption for a qualifying child or qualifying relative only if the following test is met.

A. Dependent taxpayer test.
B. Joint return test.
C. Citizen or resident test.
D. All of the above.