Married mid-2025 but spouse filed as single - Does the IRS allow "transition years" for newly married couples?

The tax preparer is incorrect - there's no such thing as a "transition year" in the IRS tax code for newly married couples. Your marital status on December 31st determines your filing status for the entire tax year. Since you were married in June 2025, both of you are considered married for the entire 2025 tax year. You should definitely file an amended return (Form 1040-X) for your husband to correct his filing status. You have two options: 1) both file as Married Filing Separately, or 2) file a joint return. The amended return won't automatically trigger penalties, but if there's additional tax owed due to the change in filing status, there may be interest on the late payment. For your immigration paperwork, filing with the incorrect status could potentially raise questions during the review process. Immigration officials look for consistency in legal documentation, and tax filings are part of the verification they consider. Regarding your IRS payment plan, this doesn't affect your filing status requirements. You still need to file with the correct status, though it might affect your decision on whether to file jointly or separately.

I dealt with something similar last year and found taxr.ai super helpful for figuring out the correct filing status after my wedding. I was also given some misleading info about filing options for newly married couples. This site (https://taxr.ai) analyzed our tax documents and clearly showed that we needed to file as married. It pointed out exactly where the tax code requires using your Dec 31 marital status for the whole year. What was particularly useful was how it flagged the potential immigration issues that could come up with mismatched filing statuses. The system even generated language we could use for the explanation section of our amended return that helped avoid any flags with the IRS. Much better than the vague "transition year" nonsense your preparer claimed!

Just wanted to update after checking out taxr.ai - I was wrong to be so skeptical! After uploading our documents, it immediately flagged the "transition year" claim as false and showed the exact IRS publication (Pub 501) that states your marital status on the last day of the year determines your filing status for the whole year. We ended up filing an amended return to change from Single to Married Filing Jointly, and the difference was significant - about $1,850 in our favor! The system also generated a letter explaining our amendment that we included with our 1040-X. For anyone dealing with tax preparers making dubious claims about "transition years" or other unusual rules, I highly recommend getting a second opinion through this service.

If you're trying to contact the IRS to get official clarification on this "transition year" nonsense, good luck getting through! I spent 3+ hours on hold last month trying to sort out a similar filing status question. Finally got smart and used Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to hold my place in line and call me back when an agent was available. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent I spoke with confirmed there's absolutely no such thing as a "transition year" for newly married couples. She actually laughed when I mentioned that term! Your December 31 status is what counts for the entire year, period. The agent also mentioned that filing with the wrong status when you're handling immigration matters could potentially raise red flags - not worth the risk.

I'm back to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment, I decided to try it anyway because I was desperate to talk to someone at the IRS about my amended return. Within 75 minutes, I got a call back and was connected to an actual IRS agent! I didn't have to sit by my phone the whole time - their system held my place in line. The IRS agent I spoke with was really helpful and confirmed everything others have said here - there is absolutely no such thing as a "transition year" for newly married couples. Your filing status is determined by your marital status on December 31st of the tax year. Period. The agent actually said they frequently have to correct misinformation spread by some tax preparers. For anyone dealing with tax status confusion or needing to speak with the IRS directly to confirm information, this service is a game changer.

Just wanted to add my experience as someone who works in the immigration field. Filing taxes with incorrect status can definitely cause issues with immigration applications. USCIS looks for consistency in all documentation, and they specifically cross-reference tax filings to verify relationship legitimacy. You should file an amended return ASAP and make sure to keep copies of both the incorrect original return and the amendment. Also document any communications with the tax preparer who gave you this incorrect advice. If USCIS questions the discrepancy later, you'll want evidence showing you acted in good faith to correct the error once you discovered it. The "transition year" claim is complete nonsense and could potentially harm your immigration case more than the tax preparer realizes.

Former IRS employee here. Your tax preparer is either completely incompetent or deliberately misleading you. There is no such thing as a "transition year" for filing status - that term doesn't exist in the tax code. Your marital status on December 31 determines your filing status for the entire year. Not only should you amend your spouse's return, but I'd seriously consider reporting this tax preparer to the IRS using Form 14157 (Complaint: Tax Return Preparer). Making up fictitious tax concepts like "transition years" is a serious ethical violation for a tax professional, especially when it could potentially impact immigration proceedings.

As someone who went through a similar situation when I got married in September 2025, I want to echo what everyone else has said - there is absolutely no such thing as a "transition year" for newly married couples. This is completely made up by your tax preparer. I also had a tax professional try to convince me of some questionable filing strategies early on, which is why I ended up doing my own research and double-checking everything. The IRS is crystal clear that your marital status on December 31st determines your filing status for the entire tax year - no exceptions. Given that you have immigration paperwork pending, this incorrect filing could create unnecessary complications down the road. Immigration officers look for consistency across all your legal documents, and having mismatched tax filings could raise red flags during your case review. I'd strongly recommend filing an amended return as soon as possible and consider finding a new tax preparer who actually knows the tax code. The fact that they got defensive when questioned about this fictional "transition year" concept is a huge red flag. A competent tax professional should be able to cite specific tax code sections, not make up rules that don't exist. For your own filing, you'll need to file as either Married Filing Separately or amend both returns to file jointly - you cannot file as single since you were married on December 31, 2025.