Innocent spouse relief
Innocent spouse relief frees a spouse from tax on a joint return that was understated because of the other spouse's errors. The requesting spouse must show they did not know, and had no reason to know, of the understatement.
There are three forms: innocent spouse relief, separation of liability and equitable relief, all claimed on Form 8857. Innocent spouse and separation of liability must generally be requested within two years of the first IRS collection activity against the requesting spouse.
Example. Ana signed a joint return on which her husband left out $40,000 of side income kept in an account she could not see. She can file Form 8857 to ask for relief from the extra tax.
By Binod Raj Singh, CPA (licensed in Montana) · Updated for the 2026-2027 exam windows · Last updated 2026-11-05