Form 1040 (US Individual Income Tax Return) offers five tax filing statuses for US federal tax purposes. Taxpayers can only select one filing status on the return; however, some are eligible for more than one filing status.

The five filing statuses are the following:

Head of Household (HOH) Filing Status

HOH tax status is generally available to unmarried individuals who have a qualifying dependent. 

Taxpayers can qualify for HOH status if they meet the following requirements under Section 2(b) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC)1:

  • The taxpayer is unmarried on the last day of the tax year, 
  • The taxpayer paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year, and
  • The taxpayer had a qualifying person living in their home for more than half the year (temporary absences are ok).

HOH status is typically available to single parents with a child living in the home. In general, HOH is more beneficial because it provides a greater standard deduction over the single filing status, and the HOH tax tables provide lower effective tax rates. 

What is a Qualifying Person for HOH Status
  • A qualifying child who is unmarried and the taxpayer can claim the child as a dependent; 
  • A qualifying child who is married and the taxpayer can claim the child as a dependent;  
  • The taxpayer’s father or mother and the taxpayer can claim them as a dependent; or
  • A qualifying relative of the taxpayer who lived with the taxpayer for more than half of the year, and the taxpayer can claim the relative as a dependent.

IRS Publication 501 (Dependents, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information) provides additional information on the HOH filing status and who is a Qualifying Person. 

Example HOH Filing Status

Jane and John divorced on November 1, 2023. They have one daughter, Emily, who is five years old. Jane has primary custody of Emily, and Emily lives with Jane for most of the year.

Jane is working on her Form 1040 tax return for the 2024 tax year. Jane is unmarried at the end of 2024 and provides more than half the cost of keeping up the home for the year. Emily spent 260 days living at Jane’s house during 2024. Jane can choose either Single or HOH filing status on her tax return. HOH filing status is preferable for 2024 because Jane’s standard deduction is $21,900 versus $14,600 for single filers. The tax table for HOH filers also provides the lower effective tax rates versus the Single filer tax tables.  

The IRS provides an interactive assistant to help taxpayers determine what tax filing status is available. 

  1. IRC Section 2(b) ↩︎