If you didn’t receive your Economic Impact Payments (EIPs) and a 2018 or 2019 joint return was filed in your name without your consent, you may be eligible to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit (RRC) on your 2020 tax return. Since the issuance of the first round of EIP, our office has been working with the IRS Office of Chief Counsel and the IRS to establish procedures to help a victim of domestic violence where their spouse filed a joint return without the victim’s consent, and kept the EIP that was based on that joint return. On November 16, 2020, the IRS updated its procedures specific to EIP when a joint return election is invalid, and therefore there is an invalid return as to one of the spouses.

Economic Impact Payments

The IRS issued EIPs by looking at taxpayers’ recent federal income tax returns, either 2018 or 2019 for the first round of EIP, and 2019 for the second round. But what if the EIP was based on a return with married filing jointly filing status that was not valid? What if one spouse signed a married filing joint return under duress? What if one spouse never intended to file a joint return and the other spouse forged his or her signature? What if the individuals were not legally married? These are just some of the questions that may point to a conclusion that the joint election was invalid, and the return was invalid as to the victim; it’s an issue that often comes up with victims of domestic violence. When the IRS concludes that a joint election was invalid, the IRS follows Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) procedures, found in IRM 21.6.1.5.7, for changing the taxpayers’ accounts from “married filing jointly” status to single, married filing separately, or head of household.

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