Congratulations On Your Marriage! Here Are Your New Tax Obligations & Potential Benefits
Whether you're engaged to be married or have just gotten married, once the honeymoon is over, it's time to settle back into your daily routines. However, things have changed a fair bit since you were engaged, as one of life's two certainties just got a whole lot more complicated, but also beneficial: taxes. Let's explore how marriage changes your tax obligations and what potential benefits you and your new spouse could receive.
How Your Tax Status Changes
If you were married after the tax filing deadline, which was April 15, 2025, but before December 31, 2025, you are now eligible to file your taxes as "Married, Filing Jointly". This records both of your taxable incomes, credits, and deductions as a single family unit. Not only will this simplify your life by not having two sets of tax returns to keep track of, but it could also lead to lucrative tax benefits.
You Become Equally Responsible For Taxes Or Penalties Owed
If you file your taxes jointly, you are both responsible for any taxes owing or any penalties associated with the late filing of your tax return. However, on the plus side, you can reap the rewards of filing jointly, and possibly owe less in taxes than you would if you filed separately.
You Could Possibly Receive Four Tax Benefits
When you file jointly, you become eligible for four tax benefits, possibly five, should you have a child or other dependents. These benefits are: Earned Income Tax Credit, Child & Dependent Care Credit, American Opportunity Tax Credit, Lifetime Learning Credit, and the Saver's Tax Credit. Let's go over each of these benefits in more detail below.
Earned Income Tax Credit
The earned income tax credit is a credit designed for low- to middle-income earners and their spouses. To qualify for the earned income tax credit as a married couple, your annual gross income cannot exceed $25,511. If you have investments that earn you an income, you cannot earn more than $11,950 from those investments in 2025, lest you will not qualify for the EITC.
Child & Dependent Care Credit
Obviously, one must have children in order to qualify for the Child & Dependent Care Credit, but if you do quality for the CDCC, your family unit could be eligible for several credits, including for daycare, babysitters, day camps, before-and-after-school programs, nursery school, or preschool. To be eligible for these credits, you must have earned income that you then used to pay for these services. You'll likely receive between 25% and 30% back from the overall cost of the various things you're eligible for.
American Opportunity Tax Credit
If you're married and still in school, then the American Opportunity Tax Credit is for you! Designed to help offset the cost of post-secondary education, this credit is for a maximum amount of $2,500 per year. These credits are only for qualified tuition expenses, like books and other course materials. If you're married, your MAGI cannot exceed $160,000 per year. Whereas, if you file separately, your MAGI cannot exceed $80,000.
tretty GmbH Bike & Scooter Sharing, Pexels
Lifetime Learning Credit
If your new husband or wife is currently in school or is going back to school, they may be eligible for the Lifetime Learning Credit, which is geared towards helping students ease the financial burden of schooling by paying for up to $2,000 per tax return of money off your education. The lifetime learning credit only applies to those in school at an IRS-recognized institution, or those taking higher education courses to improve job skills.
Lifetime Learning Credit (Cont'd)
Another illustration of why filing jointly gives you more flexibility: As a single person, your income cannot exceed $90,000 to be eligible, whereas the income threshold is double that for those filing as a married couple.
Saver's Tax Credit
If you or your spouse are heavy savers—for example, pumping a lot of money into their Roth IRA or other retirement accounts—then the saver's tax credit is the perfect opportunity for you to save some money. To be eligible, you must contribute to either your 401(k), 403(b), SIMPLE, SEP, or governmental 457 Plans.
Saver's Tax Credit (Cont'd)
You or your spouse could receive between 10% and 50% back of the contributions you've made to the above-mentioned retirement accounts, depending on your annual income. If your annual income is under $41,000 when filing jointly, you'll receive 50% back. If it's between $41,000 and $44,000, you'll receive a 20% return on your contributions. If your AGI is between $47,000 and $73,000, you'll receive 10% of your contributions.
The Major Benefits To Filing Jointly
Now that you know what tax credits you could be eligible for, what are some of the major benefits to filing jointly, other than to possibly receive the above tax credits?
If You Earn Significantly More Or Less Than Your Spouse, You Could Fall Into A Lower Tax Bracket
If you earn about the same money, then this will not apply to you, but if you and your spouse are at vastly different income levels, then it's possible that your AGI will be low enough to qualify your family unit to be in a lower tax bracket, saving you money in the long run.
If You're The Generous Sort, You Could Give Away Twice As Much When You're Married
If you're into the "give generously" part of Dave Ramsey's seven "Baby Steps", then being a married couple could allow you to give away more as a tax-exempt gift. In 2025, a single person could give away $18,000 per person, per recipient, without triggering gift taxes. But if you're married, each spouse can give their children $18,000 each without being charged taxes.
Photo By: Kaboompics.com, Pexels
If You're A High-Income Married Couple—Delay Paying Taxes On Your Estate
In 2024, married couples could gift a maximum of $13 million per person over their lifetimes to beneficiaries, without having to pay any federal or gift taxes. That's a huge inheritance. However, if you're a high net worth couple, you could possibly delay paying estate taxes by claiming an estate tax marriage deduction, which permits individuals to transfer an unlimited amount of assets to their spouse during their lifetimes, or after they die.
Spousal IRA Contributions
If you're taking some time off work to pursue education or for health-related reasons, you could allow your spouse to make a tax-deductible contribution to a spousal IRA of up to $7,000 per year. This allows your spouse to fund your collective retirement, even though you're not working at the moment or are a stay-at-home parent.
Flexible Spending Accounts To Keep You Healthier For Longer
Known as a flexible spending account, or FSA, this is a bank account intended to be used for health emergencies. They're funded by your pre-tax dollars through payroll deductions and can be used for medical expenses that your work insurance won't cover. You can contribute up to $3,300 per person, so that's a total of $6,600 for a married couple. Unfortunately, you're not able to put the $6,600 toward a single medical expense.
When To File Separately
One of the options when you file your taxes is to file as "Married, Filing Separately". This can be useful if your spouse has large, unreimbursed medical bills and doesn't have the corresponding income level. Medical bills are only a deductible on your taxes if they exceed a certain percentage of your income.
If You're A Student, MFS May Be Your Best Choice
Additionally, if you're a student with a large amount of student loans, your best option may well be to file as MFS on your taxes. If you're enrolled in an income-driven repayment scheme, your monthly IDR payments may be lower, as your spouse's higher income isn't considered as part of IDR.
You're A Business Owner & Your Spouse Isn't Involved
If you own a small business in which your spouse isn't involved, then filing MFS is a great way to keep your business expenses and accounting separate from your personal household income.
How Did You Benefit From Filing Jointly This Year?
Tell us how you benefited from jointly filing your taxes as a married couple this year. Was "Married, Filing Separately" the route you chose? Which was more beneficial? Let us know your tax-time stories in the comments below.
You May Also Like:
Money Saving "Tricks" That Can Actually End Up Costing You Money
The 4% Rule, How Much Do You Really Need To Retire?
A Guide To Protecting Your Elderly Loved Ones From Financial Abuse
