S. 2129

119 S2129 IS: Survivors Assistance for Fear-free and Easy Tax Filing Act of 2025
 U.S. Senate
 2025-06-18
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  II
  119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
  S. 2129
  IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
  June 18, 2025
  Mr. Fetterman  (for himself,  Mr. Cornyn ,  Ms. Cortez
  Masto , and  Ms. Ernst )
  introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
  Committee on
  Finance
  A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow certain abused or
  abandoned spouses to file as unmarried or heads of households.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Survivors Assistance for Fear-free and Easy Tax Filing Act of 2025   or the   SAFE Tax Filing Act of 2025  .
2.
Certain married individuals treated as unmarried
(a)
In general
Subsection (b) of  section 7703  of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended—
(1)
by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) as subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), and by moving such subparagraphs and the flush text following such subparagraphs 2 ems to the right,
(2)
by striking  , if—  and inserting “—
(1)
In general
If—
  , and
(3)
by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
(2)
Domestic abuse or spousal abandonment
(A)
In general
In the case of an individual who—
(i)
is living apart from the individual's spouse as of the last day of the taxable year,
(ii)
is a survivor of domestic abuse committed by the individual's spouse or of spousal abandonment by the individual's current spouse, and
(iii)
indicates on the return of tax, in accordance with relevant instructions, that the individual is described in clauses (i) and (ii),
  at the
  election of the individual, such individual shall not be
  considered as married.
(B)
Election
An election for purposes of subparagraph (A) shall be effective only for the taxable year for which made.
(C)
Definitions
For purposes of this paragraph—
(i)
Domestic abuse
The term  domestic abuse  includes physical, psychological, sexual, emotional, or economic abuse, including efforts to control, isolate, humiliate, or intimidate the survivor, or to undermine the survivor’s ability to reason independently. All the facts and circumstances shall be considered in determining whether an individual is a survivor of domestic abuse. Depending on the facts and circumstances, abuse of the survivor’s child or another family member living in the household may constitute abuse of the survivor.
(ii)
Spousal abandonment
An individual is a survivor of spousal abandonment at a given time if, taking into account all facts and circumstances, the individual is unable to locate the individual's spouse after reasonable diligence.
(3)
No effect on spouse
The treatment of the individual described in paragraph (1)(A) or (2)(A), whichever the case may be, shall not affect the treatment of the individual's spouse as married.
  .
(b)
Due diligence requirements for tax return preparers
Subsection (g) of  section 6695  of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended—
(1)
by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3),
(2)
by striking  or  at the end of paragraph (1), and
(3)
by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph:
(2)
eligibility to elect under section 7703(b)(2) to be treated as not married, or
  .
(c)
Effective date
The amendments made by this section shall apply to taxable years ending after the date of the enactment of this Act.