Congratulations! You’re married and ready to start a beautiful and exciting life with your best friend, but before the fun begins, we recommend viewing our tax checklist for when you and your spouse are ready to file your first joint taxes together. It is no secret that filing your taxes can be a daunting and confusing task, which is why we’ve come up with a handful of must-have to-do tasks that you and your partner should address before tax season. Read below to learn more!
Changing Your Name & Address
These may seem like obvious things to do after you get married, but they can be especially easy to forget if you are moving into a new home together or trying to use your social security card with your last name before marriage. It’s important to change your name as soon as you have been awarded your marriage license, that way you can change your social security card and have your now married name match what you will be using to file your joint taxes.
The same goes for your address. Be sure to notify the IRS and U.S. Postal Service if you have recently moved or are just moving in together. This will update your current address on file and avoid any issues when filing your joint taxes.
Updating Your Filing Status
You can now mark your taxes from Single to Married on your tax form! When filing jointly on your tax form, many married couples are generally eligible for a “marriage bonus” along with both of your tax deductions and credits, not to mention a much lower tax rate than if you both decided to file separately. To make sure that you and your spouse are choosing the best possible filing status for your 2020 taxes, contact JLW Tax & Bookkeeping Service today, and we will help guide you in the right direction.
Changing Your Withholdings
After updating the essential information such as your last name and address once you are married, one of the first things you should do is change your withholdings with your employer. As a married couple your tax liability will most likely change due to the additional income being added from your spouse’s paycheck. Depending on whether both you and your spouse are working and how much income you receive as one household, the rate of taxes will change and affect how much will be deducted at the end of the year.
Consider Itemizing Deductions
Once you are married and choose to file your taxes jointly, you and your spouse should consider claiming itemized deductions over the standard deduction given for your tax bracket and status. While itemizing your deductions takes longer to complete and is a little more in depth, it gives married couples the ability to have eligible products, contributions, or services subtracted from your overall tax bill. For more information on what services or products you are able to deduct from your 2020 taxes, call JLW Tax & Bookkeeping Service today, and we will help you every step of the way.
