The general rule is that filing a joint income tax return makes you liable for any tax due based on the income of either spouse. Because of this when I first started practicing law, a divorce lawyer always told her clients not to file joint tax returns with spouses they were breaking up with. If the other party had secret income, which he or she failed to report on the tax return, the IRS could hold either spouse liable, when the missing income was discovered.
The Internal Revenue Code now contains what is known as innocent spouse relief, which offers some protection in this situation. The initial idea was to allow a spouse, who was unaware and had no reason to be aware of the unreported income, and who did not benefit from the omitted income, to avoid liability for the extra tax. The rule was then expanded to include an exception for the broader category covering situations such as health problems or economic hardship in which it would be inequitable to hold one spouse liable for taxes that the other spouse should be responsible for. Finally, a person filing a joint return can request in the case of deficiencies that the liability for the unpaid tax be calculated separately. This applies if the couple is no longer married or is legally separated.
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