You may be eligible to use qualifying widow(er) with dependent child as your filing status for two years following the year your spouse died. For example, if your spouse died in 2007 and you have not remarried, you may be able to use this filing status for 2008 and 2009.
This filing status entitles you to use joint return tax rates and the highest standard deduction amount (if you do not itemize deductions). This status does not entitle you to file a joint return.
The following link from the Internal Revenue Service provides a list of qualifications for this tax-filing status: www.irs.gov/applications/wh/helpdocs/qw.html.
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