Who can file as head of household?

In order to file as head of household, a taxpayer must meet three qualifications. The first is that the person is either unmarried or considered unmarried on the last day of the tax year. The taxpayer must also pay more than half of the household costs for the tax year.

The third qualification is that the household must have a qualifying person for at least half of the tax year. If the qualifying person is a dependent child, this child must live in the home. A taxpayer can also claim a dependent parent without the parent living in the home.