Do both spouses have to sign Form 8822?

Yes, if your last tax return was a joint return. The form requires the signatures of both spouses, and both names and Social Security numbers go on it. The form says so directly above the signature line.

When does only one spouse need to sign?

When you are establishing a separate residence from the spouse you last filed with. You check the box on line 1, only your address changes, and your spouse does not sign. This is the only exception on the form.

Who signs Form 8822 after a divorce or separation?

If you have separated and are changing only your own address, check the line 1 box and sign alone. Each former spouse can file their own Form 8822 for their own new address.

Do I need my spouse’s SSN on Form 8822?

On a joint Form 8822, yes — both spouses’ names and Social Security numbers are required, the same way the IRS has them from your joint return.

Do both spouses sign Form 8822?

Yes — if your last tax return was a joint return, both spouses must sign Form 8822, and both names and Social Security numbers go on it. The form states this right above the signature line. The one exception: if you’re moving to a residence separate from the spouse you filed with, you check the box on line 1 and sign alone.

The joint-return rule

Because the IRS keeps your address from your most recent return, a joint filing carries a joint address — so it takes both of you to change it. On Form 8822 itself (the official PDF from irs.gov), the line directly above the signatures says that if the change is for a joint return, the signatures of both spouses are required. The IRS says the same in Topic 157: for a joint address change, give the names, SSNs, and signatures of both spouses.

Both names — yours and your spouse’s, as on the joint return.
Both SSNs — line 3 takes your SSN, line 4 your spouse’s.
Both signatures — each spouse signs and dates the form.

The one exception: a separate residence

Form 8822 has a single box on line 1 for exactly this case: you and the spouse you filed jointly with are now establishing separate residences. Check that box, enter only your new address, and only your address changes — so your spouse does not need to sign. This is the only situation where one signature is enough on a return that was joint.

After a divorce or separation

If you’ve split up since the joint return, you have two clean options. Use the line 1 separate-residence box and file for your own new address alone — or each former spouse files their own Form 8822 for their own address. You don’t need your ex to sign your form when you’re only changing where you live.

Filed single, head of household, or any non-joint return last time? Then you sign alone — one name, one SSN, one signature. See the line-by-line walkthrough in our plain-English Form 8822 instructions, or the full overview of how to change your address with the IRS.

Our guided filler handles all of this for you. Answer plain-English questions and it applies the joint-signature rule and the separate-residence box automatically, puts each spouse’s name and SSN in the right line, and gives you a signature line for each person who needs to sign. Takes about a minute.

Fill in my Form 8822

Free to fill and download — mail it yourself if you’d rather. $9.99 first-class / $14.99 certified if we mail it. One-time, no account.

Sources: Form 8822 (Rev. Feb 2021); IRS Topic 157; About Form 8822. We’re a private filing service, not the IRS.