 Qualifying surviving spouse, you can check the qualifying surviving spouse box at the top of form 1040 or 1040 SR and use joint return tax rates for 2022 if all of the following apply. So you got the qualifying surviving spouse used to be qualifying widow, widower type of situation. So once again, you've got either married or not married. If you're married, then you would be filing married filing joint married filing separate. If you're not married head of household or single single being worse head of household being better and then possibly you've got this other one, which would be the qualifying surviving spouse, which would be better still, although a tragic situation, because you'd get a better tap for taxes, it would be a better situation than even head of household because you're basically getting the rates kind of like you were still married. Now remember if someone if a spouse dies, then you would expect the year of death would still be filed married filing joint because the person the spouse that died is still going to have income in that year. So you would expect they would still of course need to file a tax return their final tax return in that year typically married filing joints that kind of makes sense. So it's the years after death where you're saying okay, should the surviving spouse now be filing single or as a qualifying widow or surviving spouse. So number one, your spouse died in 2020 or 2021 and you didn't remarry before the end of 2022. Number two, you have a child or stepchild, not a foster child whom you can claim as a dependent or could claim as a dependent except that for 2022 a the child has gross income of 4,400 or more. So meaning they still might allow you to qualify for a qualifying surviving spouse even in essence if not a dependent because they don't meet the dependent requirement and this case the income requirement in that case or be the child filed a joint return. So meaning they would have qualified as a dependent but they filed a joint return because they got married so therefore they wouldn't be dependent on your return but possibly still allow you to qualify for the filing status of qualifying surviving spouse. In spouse C, you could be claimed as a dependent on someone else's return. So if the child isn't claimed as your dependent enter the child's name in the entry space below the filing status checkbox. So in other words, if you're if you're filing for a qualifying surviving spouse situation, you would expect normally they would be a dependent. That would be the qualification a qualifying factor to allow you to check that box and have the benefits related to the qualifying surviving spouse versus single filing. But if you don't have a dependent because it's one of these weird situations, then you're going to still need to provide the dependent information even though it's not going to be like the as a normal dependent so that you can tell the IRS that that's the factor that's the rule allowing you to qualify. So three, this child lived in your home for all of 2022 for all of 2022. So if the child didn't live with you for the required time, you can see the exception to time lived with you later. Number four, you paid over half the cost of keeping up your home and number five, you could have filed a joint return with your spouse. The year your spouse died, even if you didn't actually do so, meaning when they died, you probably filed a married filing joint return at the year of death, or possibly you could have done so. And if you didn't, then you may filed a married filing separate return. So if your spouse died in 2022, you can't file as a qualifying surviving spouse instead see instruction for married filing jointly earlier. So in other words, if they died in the year of 2022, the year in question here, then you might your first thought might be, well, if I'm thinking about their married at the end of the year, then they're married. You would think, well, if they, if there was a death in 2022 before the end of the year, then they would know, then you'd have to account for that at the point of death, but note it's different. And it makes sense that it's different when someone dies, a spouse dies because the spouse that died is still going to have income. So you would think that you would still need to file like married filing joint so that you can have a joint return, you know, claiming the income, you know, in the year of the death. And then this qualifying surviving spouse thing possibly after the year of death.