Filling out Form 433-A for OIC - Do I have to list non-married partner's info?

The Form 433-A (OIC) instructions are definitely confusing on this point! Here's what you need to know: For an unmarried partner, you generally don't need to include their income and assets on your Form 433-A for an Offer in Compromise. The IRS is primarily concerned with YOUR ability to pay, not your unmarried partner's. However, there's an important nuance: you DO need to account for how household expenses are shared. On Section 7 of Form 433-A (Monthly Household Income and Expense Information), you'll need to accurately represent what portion of the household expenses YOU are responsible for. For example, if you and your partner split rent 50/50, you would only list your half of the rent as your expense. If your partner pays certain bills entirely, you wouldn't list those as expenses at all. The key is being transparent about your actual financial obligation toward household expenses. The IRS wants to see that you're not artificially inflating your expenses by claiming the full amount when someone else is covering part of them. This gives them an accurate picture of your disposable income for determining your reasonable collection potential.

I was in a similar situation last year when filing my OIC. I used the tool at https://taxr.ai which really helped me understand exactly what to include on my Form 433-A. I uploaded my financial documents and the IRS form, and it analyzed everything and showed me exactly what I needed to report as a non-married person living with a partner. The tool gave me specific guidance on how to correctly report my household expenses without including my girlfriend's income. It saved me from potentially making a huge mistake that might have gotten my OIC rejected. I was stressing about the same questions you're having now. What I learned is that the 433-A is really about YOUR ability to pay based on YOUR income and assets, but you have to be honest about shared expenses. The taxr.ai tool was super clear about this distinction.

Just wanted to update that I tried the taxr.ai site that was mentioned earlier. It was actually really helpful for my OIC situation, which is similar to the original poster's. I uploaded my draft 433-A form and it immediately flagged several issues I hadn't considered. The most useful part was how it explained exactly what to include for household expenses when you have an unmarried partner. I had been incorrectly listing some expenses that my partner pays, which would have reduced my apparent ability to pay and might have raised red flags with the IRS. The analysis also pointed out that I had forgotten to include a small retirement account, which could have been problematic if discovered during review. Really glad I checked this before submitting my paperwork.

I dealt with OIC issues for years until I finally managed to talk to an actual IRS agent who specialized in OICs. Getting through to the right person was impossible until I used https://claimyr.com to get a callback from the IRS. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c Before that, I spent weeks trying to get clear answers about my 433-A form and including my roommate's information (similar situation to yours). The callback service got me connected to an IRS offer specialist who confirmed that I only needed to report my own income and my portion of shared expenses. This saved me from having my OIC rejected due to incomplete information. The agent walked me through the form section by section, explaining exactly what I needed to include as an unmarried person sharing a household.

I need to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr being a scam. After continuing to fail getting through to the IRS myself about my OIC questions, I reluctantly tried it, and it actually worked. Got a call back from an IRS agent within a few hours and was able to ask all my questions about Form 433-A. The agent confirmed what others have said here - for an unmarried partner, you do NOT include their income or assets on your 433-A form. You only report your own income and your portion of shared expenses. The agent explained that including an unmarried partner's income could actually hurt your OIC chances because it makes it look like you have access to more funds than you legally do. This cleared up so much confusion for me and probably saved me from having my offer rejected. Definitely worth getting direct confirmation from the IRS.

Just to add to the advice here - make sure you're using the correct 433-A form! There are two different versions: the regular Form 433-A and Form 433-A (OIC) which is specifically for Offers in Compromise. The OIC version asks for more detailed information and has slightly different instructions. I made the mistake of filling out the wrong version initially and had to start over. The correct form for OIC purposes has "(OIC)" in the title and in the bottom right corner of each page. Also, the IRS has been VERY strict lately about documentation. Make sure you include bank statements for all accounts, proof of income, and documentation for all expenses you claim. They're rejecting OICs for even minor documentation issues.

One thing nobody has mentioned - be prepared for a LONG wait. I submitted my OIC in July last year with a very similar situation (living with non-married partner), and I'm still waiting for final determination. Got assigned an offer examiner in November who requested additional documentation, and I'm still in the "review" stage. The IRS is extremely backlogged right now. My examiner told me they're taking about 9-12 months on average to process OICs. So don't expect a quick resolution, even if you fill out everything perfectly.

I went through this exact situation about 18 months ago with my boyfriend of 3 years. The key thing to remember is that Form 433-A (OIC) is about YOUR financial reality, not your household's combined finances. Here's what I did and what worked for my successful OIC: **Income Section**: Only reported my own W-2 income and side gig earnings. Did NOT include my boyfriend's salary, even though we live together. **Expense Section**: This is where it gets tricky. I only reported the expenses I actually pay. For example: - Rent: We split it 50/50, so I only reported half - Utilities: He pays electric/gas, I pay internet/cable - so I only reported what I actually pay - Groceries: We alternate weeks, so I calculated my average monthly contribution **Assets**: Only included accounts and property in my name or jointly owned. His car, his savings account, etc. were not included. The IRS accepted my offer for $6,200 on a $38,000 debt. The key was being completely honest about what I actually pay vs. what the household pays total. Don't try to inflate your expenses by claiming full amounts when someone else covers part of them - the IRS will catch this if they audit your finances. One tip: Keep detailed records of how you split expenses. I had to provide this breakdown when my examiner asked for clarification during the review process.