I’m 30 and earned $232k in 2024. My fiancé makes $95k, so together we’re at nearly $340k. We’re planning to get married in 2025 but wondering if it makes sense to legally marry before the end of this year so we can file taxes jointly for 2024.
How can I figure out how much we’d save? Would it be worth it? Also, would my paycheck change immediately in 2025 since my withholdings would be adjusted?
We live in California but are thinking about doing something simple in Vegas if we decide to go ahead with this.
Based on your info, you’d save about $11,500 in federal taxes if you got married this year. Your paycheck only changes if you file a new W-4 with your employer.
Try using Free Tax USA. They’ve already opened up for 2024 (you can’t file yet, obviously), but you can plug in your numbers and switch between single and married filing statuses to compare. Just focus on the total tax owed, not the refund amount.
Getting married just for tax savings shouldn’t be the main reason, but if you’re already planning to, doing it before year-end could give you a nice refund. Your filing status is based on your marital status on December 31. Withholdings only change when you submit a new W-4 to your employer.
@Sai
Thanks for clarifying. We’re already happily getting married in July next year, but I just wanted to see if it’d be worth filing jointly for 2024.
Another thing to consider is employer benefits. Some jobs offer subsidies for spouses or family plans, so you might save extra by getting married earlier and joining one of your plans.
Ari said:
I’m not a lawyer, but filing jointly isn’t always the best option. You should check with a CPA before deciding.
Why wouldn’t it be better in their case?
The tax brackets for married filing jointly are better than filing single. In their case, the higher earner would benefit from a lower bracket, and the lower earner wouldn’t lose much. It’s worth running the numbers to confirm.
Ari said:
I’m not a lawyer, but filing jointly isn’t always the best option. You should check with a CPA before deciding.
Why wouldn’t it be better in their case?
Joint filing means joint responsibility. If one of you gets audited, both of you are on the hook for any issues. I’ve seen this happen where one spouse’s mistake caused problems for both. Also, if one of you has debts like back taxes or loans, a joint refund could be seized. Filing separately protects each person’s finances.