Well, these answers about our newest tax law change are direct from the horse’s mouth, the IRS. “The following questions and answers provide information to individuals of the same sex and opposite sex who are in registered domestic partnerships, civil unions or other similar formal relationships that are not marriages under state law. These individuals are not considered as married or spouses for federal tax purposes. For convenience, these individuals are referred to as “registered domestic partners” in these questions and answers. Answers to Some of the Frequently Asked Questions for Registered Domestic Partners and Individuals in Civil Unions” “Can registered domestic partners file federal tax returns using a married filing jointly or married filing separately status?

No. Registered domestic partners may not file a federal return using a married filing separately or jointly filing status. Registered domestic partners are not married under state law. Therefore, these taxpayers are not married for federal tax purposes.

“Can a taxpayer use the head-of-household filing status if the taxpayer’s only dependent is his or her registered domestic partner?

“No… A taxpayer’s registered domestic partner is not one of the specified related individuals …. that qualifies the taxpayer to file as head of household, even if the registered domestic partner is the taxpayer’s dependent.

“If registered domestic partners have a child, which parent may claim the child as a dependent?

“If a child is a qualifying child … of both parents who are registered domestic partners, either parent, but not both, may claim a dependency deduction for the qualifying child. If both parents claim a dependency deduction for the child on their income tax returns, the IRS will treat the child as the qualifying child of the parent with whom the child resides for the longer period of time during the taxable year. If the child resides with each parent for the same amount of time during the taxable year, the IRS will treat the child as the qualifying child of the parent with the higher adjusted gross income.

“Can a registered domestic partner itemize deductions if his or her partner claims a standard deduction?

“Yes. A registered domestic partner may itemize or claim the standard deduction regardless of whether his or her partner itemizes or claims the standard deduction. Although the law prohibits a taxpayer from itemizing deductions if the taxpayer’s spouse claims the standard deduction …, this provision does not apply to registered domestic partners, because registered domestic partners are not spouses for federal tax purposes.”

There are more questions and some more answers to the questions that have surfaced around this issue.  Next week I’ll talk about something different and come back to more of these questions and answers in a future blog.