If you filed a joint tax return, you may be
entitled to part or all of the refund offset. This rule applies if your
spouse is solely responsible for the debt. To request your part of the
refund, file Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation.
The Department of Treasury's Bureau of Fiscal Service
(BFS), which issues IRS tax refunds, has been authorized by Congress to
conduct the Treasury Offset Program (TOP). Through this program, your refund
or overpayment may be reduced by BFS and offset to paypast-due child support,
Federal agency non-tax debts, state income tax
obligations, or certain
unemployment compensation debts owed to a state. Generally, these are debts
for (1) compensation that was paid due to fraud, or (2) for contributions
owing to a state fund that were not paid due to fraud.
You can contact the agency with which
you have a debt to determine if your debt was submitted for a tax refund
offset. If your debt was submitted for offset, BFS will take as much of your
refund as is needed to pay off the debt and send it to the agency you owe.
Any portion of your refund remaining after offset will be issued in a check
to you or direct deposited for you.
BFS will send you a notice if an offset occurs. The
notice will reflect the original refund amount, your offset amount, the
agency receiving the payment, and the address and telephone number of the
agency. BFS will notify the IRS of the amount taken from your refund.
Contact the agency shown on the notice if you believe you do not owe the
debt, or if you are disputing the amount taken from your refund. If a notice
is not received, contact BFS' TOP and let them know of this.
Contact the IRS only if your original refund amount shown on the
BFS offset notice differs from the refund amount shown on your tax return.
If you filed a joint return and you are not
responsible for the debt, but you are entitled to a portion of the refund,
you may request your portion of the refund by filing Form 8379, Injured
Spouse Allocation. You may file Form 8379 with your original joint tax
return ( Form 1040, Form 1040A, or Form 1040EZ ), with your amended joint
tax return ( Form 1040X), or by itself after you are notified of an offset.
If you file a Form 8379 with your joint return, write "INJURED SPOUSE" in
the top left corner of the first page of the joint return. The IRS will
process your Form 8379 before an offset occurs. If you file Form 8379 with
your original or amended joint tax return, it may take 11 weeks for
electronically filed returns or 14 weeks if you file a paper return, to
process your return.
If you file Form 8379 by itself, it must show both
spouses' social security numbers in the same order as they appeared on your
joint income tax return. You, the "injured" spouse, must sign the form.
Follow the instructions on Form 8379 carefully and be sure to attach the
required forms to avoid delays. Do not attach the previously filed joint tax
return to the Form 8379. Send Form 8379 to the Service Center where you
filed your original return and allow at least 8 weeks for the IRS to process
your Form 8379. The IRS will compute the injured spouse's share of the joint
return, and if you lived in a community property state during the tax year,
the IRS will divide the joint refund based upon state law. Not all debts are
subject to a tax refund offset. To determine if a debt is owed (other than
federal tax), and whether an offset will occur, contact BFS' TOP
for further instructions.
