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Going to get married soon, should I do it on Dec 31 or Jan 1?

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5

I know that there is a tax advantage to having a child on December 31st at 11:59 as opposed to January 1st at 12:01. Does the same hold true for marriage? If it matters I make ~$130,000/yr and have a rental property and a home, and my girlfriend is in school so is making -$40,000/yr and has effectively no assets.

united-states taxes

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

SamSam

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• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Do you mean she is making -$40k as in has expenditure of $40k? Or ~$40k as in earning roughly 40k?
  
  – perennial_noob
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @perennial_noob or has school loans of $40K?
  
  – RonJohn
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

5

I know that there is a tax advantage to having a child on December 31st at 11:59 as opposed to January 1st at 12:01. Does the same hold true for marriage? If it matters I make ~$130,000/yr and have a rental property and a home, and my girlfriend is in school so is making -$40,000/yr and has effectively no assets.

united-states taxes

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

SamSam

28022 silver badges1111 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Do you mean she is making -$40k as in has expenditure of $40k? Or ~$40k as in earning roughly 40k?
  
  – perennial_noob
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @perennial_noob or has school loans of $40K?
  
  – RonJohn
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

I know that there is a tax advantage to having a child on December 31st at 11:59 as opposed to January 1st at 12:01. Does the same hold true for marriage? If it matters I make ~$130,000/yr and have a rental property and a home, and my girlfriend is in school so is making -$40,000/yr and has effectively no assets.

united-states taxes

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

SamSam

28022 silver badges1111 bronze badges

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

SamSam

28022 silver badges1111 bronze badges

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

SamSam

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asked 9 hours ago

SamSam

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asked 9 hours ago

SamSam

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3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

4

Generally there are tax benefits from filing as a married couple, specifically if one spouse has a very different salary. It can pull you into a lower tax bracket overall since everything (brackets, deductions, etc.) is roughly doubled, so one spouse gets the benefit of any "unused" margin that the other would not get to use as an individual.

That said...

To butcher JoeTaxpayer's catchphrase - "Don't let the tax tail wag the marriage dog". Marriage is a serious institution (at least it is for me). Don't rush into it just to get a little bit of a tax break.

share|improve this answer

edited 8 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

D StanleyD Stanley

60k1010 gold badges174174 silver badges180180 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  2
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Marriage doubles many tax benefits on the way in and halves EVERYTHING on the way out :->O
  
  – Bob Baerker
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  5
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Pretty sure choosing Dec 31 isn't rushing things any more than choosing Jan 1 :)
  
  – chepner
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  My wife and I got married two months "early" just for health insurance reasons.
  
  – stannius
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  5
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  My suggestion is to wait until Jan 9th+ since the New Years Eve timing makes everything wedding-related more expensive! Saving ~$20k on wedding plans can easily outweigh any $5k tax advantages.
  
  – JasonInVegas
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

2

It's easy to get a rough but practical answer for this yourself. As an exercise, do your taxes now, estimating income or other factors through the end of the year, as if you were both single. Then do the same, but married filing jointly. Compare the results.

I was married last year (for the 2nd time) and did this comparison "for fun" (it didn't impact our choice of date - I was just curious about the difference). We ended up with an advantage of owing roughly 4% of our AGI less than if we had not been married and had filed individually. That's a significant amount of money! Of course, your mileage may vary, but since filing status is determined based on your standing as of December 31, and marriage generally results in a tax benefit, getting married on the 31st means you can file as married for that tax year and take advantage of those benefits, for the entire tax year.

share|improve this answer

answered 8 hours ago

dwizumdwizum

1,96077 silver badges1111 bronze badges

add a comment | 

1

Certainly run the numbers both ways to get a rough idea. Would you hit the SALT limit of $10K on your own? If yes my guess is that you're better off not being married this year since you'll be able to itemize, but maybe not once you're married due to the SALT limit staying at $10K for both single or married.

share|improve this answer

answered 7 hours ago

TTTTTT

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add a comment | 

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4

Generally there are tax benefits from filing as a married couple, specifically if one spouse has a very different salary. It can pull you into a lower tax bracket overall since everything (brackets, deductions, etc.) is roughly doubled, so one spouse gets the benefit of any "unused" margin that the other would not get to use as an individual.

That said...

To butcher JoeTaxpayer's catchphrase - "Don't let the tax tail wag the marriage dog". Marriage is a serious institution (at least it is for me). Don't rush into it just to get a little bit of a tax break.

share|improve this answer

edited 8 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

D StanleyD Stanley

60k1010 gold badges174174 silver badges180180 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  2
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Marriage doubles many tax benefits on the way in and halves EVERYTHING on the way out :->O
  
  – Bob Baerker
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  5
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Pretty sure choosing Dec 31 isn't rushing things any more than choosing Jan 1 :)
  
  – chepner
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  My wife and I got married two months "early" just for health insurance reasons.
  
  – stannius
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  5
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  My suggestion is to wait until Jan 9th+ since the New Years Eve timing makes everything wedding-related more expensive! Saving ~$20k on wedding plans can easily outweigh any $5k tax advantages.
  
  – JasonInVegas
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

4

Generally there are tax benefits from filing as a married couple, specifically if one spouse has a very different salary. It can pull you into a lower tax bracket overall since everything (brackets, deductions, etc.) is roughly doubled, so one spouse gets the benefit of any "unused" margin that the other would not get to use as an individual.

That said...

To butcher JoeTaxpayer's catchphrase - "Don't let the tax tail wag the marriage dog". Marriage is a serious institution (at least it is for me). Don't rush into it just to get a little bit of a tax break.

share|improve this answer

edited 8 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

D StanleyD Stanley

60k1010 gold badges174174 silver badges180180 bronze badges

• 
  
  
  

  
  2
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Marriage doubles many tax benefits on the way in and halves EVERYTHING on the way out :->O
  
  – Bob Baerker
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  5
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Pretty sure choosing Dec 31 isn't rushing things any more than choosing Jan 1 :)
  
  – chepner
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  My wife and I got married two months "early" just for health insurance reasons.
  
  – stannius
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  5
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  My suggestion is to wait until Jan 9th+ since the New Years Eve timing makes everything wedding-related more expensive! Saving ~$20k on wedding plans can easily outweigh any $5k tax advantages.
  
  – JasonInVegas
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

Generally there are tax benefits from filing as a married couple, specifically if one spouse has a very different salary. It can pull you into a lower tax bracket overall since everything (brackets, deductions, etc.) is roughly doubled, so one spouse gets the benefit of any "unused" margin that the other would not get to use as an individual.

That said...

To butcher JoeTaxpayer's catchphrase - "Don't let the tax tail wag the marriage dog". Marriage is a serious institution (at least it is for me). Don't rush into it just to get a little bit of a tax break.

share|improve this answer

edited 8 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

D StanleyD Stanley

60k1010 gold badges174174 silver badges180180 bronze badges

share|improve this answer

edited 8 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

D StanleyD Stanley

60k1010 gold badges174174 silver badges180180 bronze badges

answered 9 hours ago

D StanleyD Stanley

60k1010 gold badges174174 silver badges180180 bronze badges

answered 9 hours ago

D StanleyD Stanley

60k1010 gold badges174174 silver badges180180 bronze badges

2

It's easy to get a rough but practical answer for this yourself. As an exercise, do your taxes now, estimating income or other factors through the end of the year, as if you were both single. Then do the same, but married filing jointly. Compare the results.

I was married last year (for the 2nd time) and did this comparison "for fun" (it didn't impact our choice of date - I was just curious about the difference). We ended up with an advantage of owing roughly 4% of our AGI less than if we had not been married and had filed individually. That's a significant amount of money! Of course, your mileage may vary, but since filing status is determined based on your standing as of December 31, and marriage generally results in a tax benefit, getting married on the 31st means you can file as married for that tax year and take advantage of those benefits, for the entire tax year.

share|improve this answer

answered 8 hours ago

dwizumdwizum

1,96077 silver badges1111 bronze badges

add a comment | 

2

It's easy to get a rough but practical answer for this yourself. As an exercise, do your taxes now, estimating income or other factors through the end of the year, as if you were both single. Then do the same, but married filing jointly. Compare the results.

I was married last year (for the 2nd time) and did this comparison "for fun" (it didn't impact our choice of date - I was just curious about the difference). We ended up with an advantage of owing roughly 4% of our AGI less than if we had not been married and had filed individually. That's a significant amount of money! Of course, your mileage may vary, but since filing status is determined based on your standing as of December 31, and marriage generally results in a tax benefit, getting married on the 31st means you can file as married for that tax year and take advantage of those benefits, for the entire tax year.

share|improve this answer

answered 8 hours ago

dwizumdwizum

1,96077 silver badges1111 bronze badges

add a comment | 

It's easy to get a rough but practical answer for this yourself. As an exercise, do your taxes now, estimating income or other factors through the end of the year, as if you were both single. Then do the same, but married filing jointly. Compare the results.

I was married last year (for the 2nd time) and did this comparison "for fun" (it didn't impact our choice of date - I was just curious about the difference). We ended up with an advantage of owing roughly 4% of our AGI less than if we had not been married and had filed individually. That's a significant amount of money! Of course, your mileage may vary, but since filing status is determined based on your standing as of December 31, and marriage generally results in a tax benefit, getting married on the 31st means you can file as married for that tax year and take advantage of those benefits, for the entire tax year.

share|improve this answer

answered 8 hours ago

dwizumdwizum

1,96077 silver badges1111 bronze badges

share|improve this answer

answered 8 hours ago

dwizumdwizum

1,96077 silver badges1111 bronze badges

answered 8 hours ago

dwizumdwizum

1,96077 silver badges1111 bronze badges

answered 8 hours ago

dwizumdwizum

1,96077 silver badges1111 bronze badges

1

Certainly run the numbers both ways to get a rough idea. Would you hit the SALT limit of $10K on your own? If yes my guess is that you're better off not being married this year since you'll be able to itemize, but maybe not once you're married due to the SALT limit staying at $10K for both single or married.

share|improve this answer

answered 7 hours ago

TTTTTT

31.2k44 gold badges6363 silver badges100100 bronze badges

add a comment | 

1

Certainly run the numbers both ways to get a rough idea. Would you hit the SALT limit of $10K on your own? If yes my guess is that you're better off not being married this year since you'll be able to itemize, but maybe not once you're married due to the SALT limit staying at $10K for both single or married.

share|improve this answer

answered 7 hours ago

TTTTTT

31.2k44 gold badges6363 silver badges100100 bronze badges

add a comment | 

Certainly run the numbers both ways to get a rough idea. Would you hit the SALT limit of $10K on your own? If yes my guess is that you're better off not being married this year since you'll be able to itemize, but maybe not once you're married due to the SALT limit staying at $10K for both single or married.

share|improve this answer

answered 7 hours ago

TTTTTT

31.2k44 gold badges6363 silver badges100100 bronze badges

share|improve this answer

answered 7 hours ago

TTTTTT

31.2k44 gold badges6363 silver badges100100 bronze badges

answered 7 hours ago

TTTTTT

31.2k44 gold badges6363 silver badges100100 bronze badges

answered 7 hours ago

TTTTTT

31.2k44 gold badges6363 silver badges100100 bronze badges