Chart C – Other Situations When You Must File

There are other situations in which you have to file a tax return even if according to the general rules you would not normally need to file.  These situations are as follows: 

1. You owe any special taxes, such as the following:
   • Social security and Medicare tax on tips you did not report to your employer
   • Uncollected social security and Medicare tax on tips you reported to your employer or on group-term life insurance
   • Alternative minimum tax (a special tax that applies on certain “tax preference” items, or amounts that received special tax treatment)
   • Recapture taxes (taxes on money you got back, or recaptured, after having previously taken a tax deduction or credit)
   • Tax on a qualified plan, including an IRA or other tax-favored account.  But if you are filing a return only because you owe this tax, you can file Form 5329 by itself
2. You received a payment from your employer during the year for advance earned income credit.  This payment would be reported in box 9 of the W-2 form you receive from your employer.
3. Self-employed persons must file a return if their net earnings are at least $400, regardless of the other filing requirements.  This is because of the self-employment tax (the equivalent of the Social Security and Medicare tax) they must pay.
4. You had wages of $108.28 or more from a church or qualified church-controlled organization that is exempt from employer social security and Medicare taxes.

Filing in Order to Claim a Refund or a Tax Credit

Even if you are not required to file a tax return, there are cases in which it may be to your advantage to file anyway:

• If you worked and had federal income tax withheld from your pay, you may be entitled to a refund if too much tax was withheld.
• You may qualify for certain tax credits that could result in a refund:
  • Earned income credit
  • Additional child tax credit
  • Health coverage tax credit