Revised Innocent Spouse Form

Earlier today the Internal Revenue Service today announced a new redesigned Form 8857, which is a request form for Innocent Spouse Relief. The goal of the new form is to help reduce follow-up questions to the form and reduce the overall burden on taxpayers. When a taxpayer files a joint return, both spouses are jointly and individually responsible for the tax. Innocent Spouse relief provides an opportunity for a spouse to be relieved from the joint debt under certain circumstances. If a taxpayer believes that only his or her spouse or former spouse should be responsible for the tax, the taxpayer can request relief from the tax liability. According to IRS estimates, the new design will eliminate nearly 30,000 follow-up letters per year, which will result in a reduced burden, quicker responses to taxpayers, and less cost to the government. For more information check out the IRS’s website.