203: Request for Injured Spouse Protection from Application of Joint Overpayment Against Spouse's Delinquencies or Debts (2024)
Arizona · Arizona DOR · Used for tax years 2024
Arizona Form 203 requests protection of an injured spouse’s share of a 2024 joint income tax overpayment from being applied to the other spouse’s past-due debts. It allocates Arizona income tax withholding and estimated tax payments between spouses.
Who files this form
Use Form 203 to request protection of your share of a 2024 joint income tax overpayment from being applied to your spouse’s past-due debts. The form’s eligibility questions require all of the following:
- You and your spouse are filing an Arizona joint income tax return for 2024.
- You have Arizona income with Arizona income tax withheld and reported on your own Form W-2 or Form 1099 for the year for which you are requesting protection.
- Your spouse owes past-due state tax, child support, spousal maintenance, or other obligations ordered by a court or owed to an Arizona state agency.
- You are not legally obligated to pay that past-due amount.
- Your 2024 joint return reports payments, such as Arizona income tax withholding or Arizona estimated tax payments.
If you do not meet these conditions, the form directs you to stop and not file it.
What you'll need
Have these records and details available to complete Form 203:
- Your 2024 Arizona joint income tax return, including the names and Social Security numbers in the order shown on that return.
- Your own Form W-2 or Form 1099 showing Arizona income and Arizona income tax withheld.
- The Arizona withholding and estimated tax payment amounts reported on the joint return, and the amounts allocated to each spouse.
- Your current home address. A daytime phone number is optional.
The injured spouse must sign and date Form 203. The form also includes signature and identifying-information fields for a paid preparer.
How to file
Include Form 203 with your 2024 Arizona joint income tax return when you file the return.
- Enter your names and Social Security numbers exactly as shown on the joint return, keeping the same person first. Check the box identifying the injured spouse and the box for an original or amended return.
- Answer Part 1, lines 4 through 8, to determine whether you qualify.
- If you qualify, complete Part 2. Enter Arizona income tax withheld on line 9 and estimated tax payments on line 10. For each line, the joint-return amount in column (a) must equal columns (b) and (c) combined.
- Add lines 9 and 10 in each column to complete line 11. Divide line 11, column (b), by line 11, column (a), for line 12. Subtract line 12 from 1.000 for line 13.
- Have the injured spouse sign and date the form.
The supplied form text does not give a mailing address or e-filing instructions.
Common mistakes
- Filing Form 203 without the joint return. The form says you must include it with your 2024 Arizona joint income tax return when that return is filed.
- Continuing after a “Stop” answer. Part 1 tells you not to file if you fail any of its eligibility checks, including if you are legally obligated to pay the debt.
- Changing the order of the names. The name and Social Security number shown first on the 2024 return must also appear first on Form 203.
Questions people ask
Can I request protection if we are not filing a joint return?
No. Form 203 requires an Arizona joint income tax return for 2024.
Can I qualify if I am legally responsible for my spouse’s past-due amount?
No. Line 7 says you are not an injured spouse if you are legally obligated to pay that amount.
What types of my spouse’s debts does the form ask about?
It asks about past-due state tax, child support, spousal maintenance, and other obligations ordered by a court or owed to an Arizona state agency.
Who signs Form 203?
The injured spouse signs and dates the form. There is also a signature and date section for a paid preparer.