Someone who has NO income is NOT required to file a tax return in the US.
If you are due a tax refund, you must file a return to claim it. Even if you did not earn income, there are tax credits and deductions you may be eligible to claim. If no federal tax is withheld from your paychecks, you might still be eligible for a refund if your tax credits and deductions exceed any taxes you owe.
The minimum income amount depends on your filing status and age. In 2023, for example, the minimum for Single filing status if under age 65 is $13,850. If your income is below that threshold, you generally do not need to file a federal tax return.
About filing your tax return
If you have income below the standard deduction threshold for 2024, which is $14,600 for single filers and $29,200 for those married filing jointly, you may not be required to file a return. However, you may want to file anyway.
In 2024, you don't need to file a tax return if all of the following are true for you: under age 65. Single filing status. don't have any special circumstances that require you to file (like self-employment income)
The lingering impacts of the pandemic, including changes in income sources, tax relief expirations, and new legislation, have all contributed to changes in tax liability. These factors might explain why you owe taxes in 2024.
Individuals who fall below the minimum may still have to file a tax return under certain circumstances; for instance, if you had $400 in self-employment earnings, you'll have to file and pay self-employment tax. If you have no income, however, you aren't obligated to file.
It's illegal. The law requires you to file every year that you have a filing requirement. The government can hit you with civil and even criminal penalties for failing to file your return.
Who Does Not Have to Pay Taxes? You generally don't have to pay taxes if your income is less than the standard deduction or the total of your itemized deductions, if you have a certain number of dependents, if you work abroad and are below the required thresholds, or if you're a qualifying non-profit organization.
Does a stay-at-home parent file taxes? As a stay-at-home parent, you can absolutely file taxes. Whether you are required to file a tax return depends on your income level. If you earn any income from freelance work, investment income, or a side business, you may need to report it, depending on how much you make.
What percentage of tax returns are audited? Your chance is actually very low — this year, 2022, the individual's odds of being audited by the IRS is around 0.4%.
Taxable income not only includes earnings from your job but can also include retirement and disability benefits. Even if your income is below the amount that requires you to file, you can still file a return to claim a refundable tax credit or get a tax refund.
Generally, if you earn less than the Standard Deduction for your applicable filing status, you don't need to file unless you have special tax circumstances. Not filing a return when you should can result in penalties and fines from the IRS. It is better to file a late tax return than to not file one at all.
You would not be required to file a tax return. But you might want to file a return, because even though you are not required to pay taxes on your Social Security, you may be able to get a refund of any money withheld from your paycheck for taxes.
Generally, you need to file if: Your income is over the filing requirement. You have over $400 in net earnings from self-employment (side jobs or other independent work) You had other situations that require you to file.
6 years - If you don't report income that you should have reported, and it's more than 25% of the gross income shown on the return, or it's attributable to foreign financial assets and is more than $5,000, the time to assess tax is 6 years from the date you filed the return.
That's not to say you still can't go to jail for it. The penalty is $25,000 for each year you failed to file. You can face criminal tax evasion charges for failing to file a tax return if it was due no more than six years ago. If convicted, you could be sent to jail for up to one year.
Your significant other earned less than $5,050 for 2024.
According to the IRS dependent rules, your boyfriend or girlfriend must have earned less than $5,050 for the 2024 tax year if you want to claim them as a dependent.
As of tax year 2022 forward, taxpayers do not need to have earned income to be eligible. However, you must otherwise meet CalEITC and YCTC requirements. To see if you qualify, how to apply, or claim prior tax years, visit the FTB page.
“The best strategy is breaking even, owing the IRS an amount you can easily pay, or getting a small refund,” Clare J. Fazackerley, CPA, CFP, told Finance Buzz. “You don't want to owe more than $1,000 because you'll have an underpayment penalty of 5% interest, which is more than you can make investing the money.
How do I get a 10,000 tax refund? You could end up with a $10,000 tax refund if you've paid significantly more tax payments than you owe at the end of the year.
It is important to note that even if a taxpayer has no income, they must still file a tax return if they have a dependent and wish to claim tax credits. Failure to do so could result in a loss of benefits.