Getting married is an exciting milestone. Along with merging households and planning your future together, there’s another big task to tackle - filing taxes as newlyweds.
While it may not sound romantic, understanding how marriage affects your taxes can help you avoid surprises and set the stage for a smooth financial journey.
Let’s explore what you need to know, including the latest 2025 updates, and how AMG Finance can help make the process simple and error-free.
How Marriage Affects Your Tax Filing Status
Once you say “I do” you can’t file as single anymore. If you’re legally married on December 31, the IRS considers you married for the whole year. That means you’ll need to choose:
Married Filing Jointly (MFJ): Most couples benefit here. You combine incomes, get a bigger standard deduction ($30,000 in 2025), and may qualify for more credits.
Married Filing Separately (MFS): Rarely the better choice, but sometimes helpful if one spouse has high medical bills or legal concerns. You’ll give up a lot of credits and deductions, though.
Bottom line: You can’t each claim single status on your taxes. The good news is that most couples find one of the married-filing options (usually jointly) works to their advantage.
Married Filing Jointly vs. Separately: Pros and Cons
It works out better for most couples to file jointly, but it’s worth understanding both options.
Here’s a breakdown of the pros and cons:
Married Filing Jointly (MFJ)
Pros: In most cases, you’ll pay less tax overall. Joint brackets are nearly double those of single filers, which helps avoid the “marriage penalty.” You also get one large standard deduction together (for 2025 it’s $30,000 MFJ vs. $15,000 if single). Combining incomes can even shift some of a higher earner’s income into a lower bracket, creating a “marriage bonus.”
Cons: Both spouses are jointly responsible for the return and any tax due, so you’ll want to be comfortable with that shared responsibility.
Married Filing Separately (MFS)
Pros: In certain special situations, filing separately can save money. For instance, if one spouse has substantial medical expenses, separate filing might allow a larger medical deduction because the deduction threshold (7.5% of income) would apply to just that spouse’s income. Some couples also choose MFS if one spouse has concerns about the other’s tax situation or liabilities.
Cons: Separate filing usually comes at a cost. Many credits and deductions are reduced or completely disallowed if you file MFS. For example, if you file separately, you generally cannot claim the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Child and Dependent Care Credit (unless you meet very specific separation criteria). You also cannot claim education credits like the American Opportunity Credit or Lifetime Learning Credit, and you cannot deduct student loan interest if married filing separately. Additionally, if one spouse itemizes deductions, the other must also itemize. One can’t take the standard while the other itemizes. These rules make separate filing far less beneficial for most couples. In fact, the IRS notes that using MFS rarely lowers a couple’s tax bill.
Overall, joint filing is usually the best choice due to lower tax rates and full access to credits. Separate filing might help in rarer cases (like high medical bills or certain legal situations), but you’ll give up many tax benefits.
It’s wise to calculate both ways or consult a tax professional if you think you have a special circumstance.
Updating Names and Addresses: Notify the IRS and SSA
There’s lots of paperwork that comes with marriage. A quick checklist for post-wedding name/address changes:
Social Security (Name Change): If either of you changed your name, submit Form SS-5 to SSA to update your name in their records. This ensures your tax return name matches your Social Security record. A mismatch could delay any tax refund.
IRS (Address Change): If you moved, notify the IRS with Form 8822 so they have your current address on file. This way, any IRS notices or refund checks will go to the right place.
USPS (Mail Forwarding): Update your address with the postal service to forward mail to your new home. This covers any tax documents (like W-2s or 1099s) that might be sent to your old address.
Taking care of these updates will help ensure your first tax season as a married couple goes smoothly, with no hiccups due to a name or address mismatch.
Double-Check Your Withholding After Marriage
Marriage often changes your combined income, which can affect how much tax your employer should withhold from your paychecks. Here’s what to do:
Complete a new W-4 form within 10 days of marriage.
Use the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator tool to adjust for both incomes, deductions, and credits.
Consider checking the “Married, but withhold at higher Single rate” box if you and your spouse earn similar incomes to prevent underpayment.
Also note: couples with combined incomes over $250,000 face an extra 0.9% Medicare tax. Employers may not automatically catch this if neither spouse individually hits $200,000, so updating withholding or making estimated payments can help you avoid surprises.
In summary, take time to adjust your withholding after the wedding. Fill out a new W-4 for each employer and use available tools to get it right. This way, you pay in the correct amount during the year and avoid a big tax bill (or penalty) at filing time. It’s much nicer to get a small refund or break-even than to owe thousands in April.
Combining Incomes – Marriage Bonuses and Penalties
When you tie the knot, the IRS now looks at your combined household income, which can affect your tax bracket. Sometimes couples discover that together they owe less tax than they did separately – other times it can be more. These effects are commonly called the “marriage bonus” and “marriage penalty.”
Marriage Bonus: If one spouse earns much more than the other, joint filing can lower the higher earner’s taxable income by pulling more of it into lower brackets.
Marriage Penalty: If both spouses earn high, similar incomes, your combined income may push more money into higher brackets, reducing deductions and credits.
Common Deductions and Credits Newlyweds Overlook
Marriage can open the door to tax breaks you might not have used before. A few to check:
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC): This is a valuable credit for low- to moderate-income workers. Income limits for married couples are higher than singles, but you must file jointly.
Student Loan Interest Deduction: If either you or your spouse has student loans, you can deduct up to $2,500 of student loan interest paid in a year. This deduction is taken “above the line” (you can claim it even if you don’t itemize). You’re only eligible for the student loan interest deduction if you file a joint return – it’s not allowed if you are married filing separately.
Education Credits (AOTC & LLC): If one of you is a student or you’re paying for higher education, you might qualify for the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) or the Lifetime Learning Credit (LLC). The AOTC can be worth up to $2,500 per student for undergraduate tuition, and the LLC can provide up to $2,000 for continued education. It’s only available if you file jointly.
Spousal IRA Contributions: If one spouse has little or no income (for example, one spouse is not working or is a stay-at-home parent), the non-working spouse can still contribute to an IRA based on the working spouse’s income. As long as you file a joint return, you can contribute to an IRA for each of you, potentially doubling your retirement contribution and deduction. A non-working spouse can contribute up to $7,000 ($8,000 if 50+) as long as the working spouse has enough income and you file jointly.
These credits and deductions can add up quickly. Don’t leave them behind.
Other items to review include your eligibility for the Saver’s Credit (if your joint income is moderate and you contribute to a retirement plan, you might get a credit), and deductions like charitable contributions or mortgage interest if you bought a home together – be sure not to overlook anything new in your situation.
Special Considerations for Blended Families and Dependents
If you or your spouse have children or dependents, here’s what to know.
First, decide who will claim each dependent on the tax return. If you file jointly, this is easy: the joint return will list all dependents you both support. There’s no “either/or” issue on a joint return. The children are simply dependents of both of you. If you’re filing separately (which, as discussed, is usually not ideal tax-wise), generally only one spouse can claim a given child. Typically, it would be the parent with whom the child lived more during the year, or as specified by any divorce decree or agreement with the child’s other parent.
Next, ensure you take advantage of tax credits for families:
Child Tax Credit (CTC): This credit is worth up to $2,000 per qualifying child under age 17, and up to $1,400 of it can be refundable (meaning you get it back as a refund if your tax is zero).
Child and Dependent Care Credit: If you pay for childcare (daycare, after-school care, etc.) so that both you and your spouse can work or look for work, you may qualify for this credit. Married couples must file jointly to claim the child and dependent care credit in most cases. The credit allows you to claim a portion of up to $3,000 of care expenses for one child or $6,000 for two or more children. The exact credit percentage depends on your income.
Dependents in College or Other Dependents: If you have older children in college (who are still your dependents) or perhaps you’re also supporting an elderly parent, make sure to claim any education credits (like AOTC/LLC mentioned above) and the Credit for Other Dependents (a $500 nonrefundable credit for dependents who don’t qualify for the child tax credit).
Tax Law Changes That Happened in 2025 That Affect Married Couples
Here’re new tax laws that happened in 2025:
Standard Deduction Increase: The standard deduction got a bump. Married couples filing jointly can take a standard deduction of $30,000, which is an $800 increase from the previous year (2024). Single filers (and married filing separately) have a $15,000 standard deduction for 2025, and Heads of Household get $22,500. This higher standard deduction means many couples won’t need to itemize deductions, since $30,000 is a substantial amount of income that’s tax-free right off the bat.
Tax Rates and Brackets Extended: The seven brackets (10%–37%) remain, with thresholds adjusted for inflation. Congress also made the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act rates permanent in July 2025.
New Deductions for Certain Income (Tip and Overtime Income): Workers with qualified tips or mandatory overtime can deduct up to $25,000 in income, but only if filing jointly. These phase out above $300,000.
Inflation Adjustments:
The tax bracket thresholds have shifted slightly upward, which can help ensure you don’t move into a higher bracket just due to raises that match inflation.
The income ceiling for the 0% capital gains rate rose to $48,350 for singles and $96,700 for joint filers.
Contribution limits for retirement plans increased (401(k) limit is $23,500 in 2025, up from $22,500).
The estate tax exemption for wealthy families also inched up to $13.99 million per individual (nearly $27.98 million for a married couple), though this is still set to potentially drop by half after 2025 if no further laws change it.
Expiration of Other Provisions: One thing on the horizon – some temporary credits that were expanded in 2021 (like a one-year boost to the Child Tax Credit and Child Care Credit) have long expired, and the rules are back to their pre-2021 norms (e.g., $2,000 CTC, up to $1,400 refundable, as described earlier). There’s talk in Washington about changing family credits, but nothing concrete for 2025 beyond maintaining the current rules. Keep an ear out for any late tax law changes, but as of now, 2025’s tax rules for married couples are mostly stable and similar to 2024, with the inflation tweaks and new deductions noted above.
Start Your Marriage on a Strong Financial Footing
Taxes aren’t the most romantic part of marriage, but they’re an important one. The earlier you plan, the smoother filing season will be, and the more money you’ll keep in your household budget.
If you’re a newlywed (or about to be one) and want to make your tax filing smooth, contact AMG Finance. You can find a local AMG Finance branch in your area or give us a call to set up an appointment.
Whether you’re filing jointly for the first time or figuring out deductions together, we’ll help you get it right and keep more money in your pocket.
