Congratulations on your nuptials! All of us at Barker Business wish you the best of everything in your new life together¾ including your new tax status as joint taxpayers. Please allow us to help you start off on a lifetime of happiness with some great tax advice especially for newlyweds.

Here are a few simple steps that can save you money and help keep tax issues from interrupting your newly wedded bliss.

Among those tax-related changes that you should think about now are notification of change of name and address. Later, as filing season approaches, you should carefully consider the right tax return form and filing status to use. These simple tax-related decisions can help both of you save money and even prevent problems with missing a refund check. In order to assist you in making these important tax-related decisions, you should consider following the recommendations below.

USE YOUR CORRECT NAME

REPORT YOUR CHANGE OF ADDRESS

  • If either or both of you are changing your address, you should notify the IRS as well as the U.S. Postal Service to be sure you receive any tax refunds or IRS correspondence. All you have to do to notify the IRS of this change is obtain a Form 8822, "Change of Address Form," from us, which you can then file with the IRS center where you filed your most recent return. You should also remember to let your employer(s) know about any changes to your name or address so you and/or your new spouse can receive your paycheck(s) and W-2(s).
  • SELECT THE RIGHT FORM

  • Choosing the right individual income tax form can help save you money. As newly married taxpayers, you may find that you now have enough combined deductions to itemize on your tax return rather than just using the standard deduction, particularly if you are now buying a new home instead of renting. Deductions for medical care, mortgage interest, real estate taxes, state income taxes, charitable contributions, casualty losses and certain miscellaneous expenses, including preparation fees for your tax return, can reduce your taxes. If itemizing such deductions will save you money on your taxes, you should now use Form 1040 whereas you may have been able to use Form 1040EZ when you were single and just using the standard deduction.
  • CHOOSE THE BEST FILING STATUS

  • Because your marital status on December 31st of the year you are filing your tax return for will determine whether you are considered married, you will have to decide whether to file jointly or separately. In general, a joint return will allow you to combine your income and deductions on a single tax return, but both of you must sign the return and will be held jointly responsible for any tax due.

    On the other hand, filing separate returns will allow you to only be taxed on your own income after allowable deductions, and therefore, you will only be responsible for your own potential tax liability. However, if one of you itemizes deductions on their separate return, the other must also itemize. Figuring the tax both ways can determine which filing status will result in the lowest tax, but filing jointly will usually result in the lowest combined tax owed unless you have fairly equal incomes and deductions. We can help you choose the right filing status to help you both save the most money on your taxes.

  • We look forward to assisting you further with any of the above tax related decisions. Let us know how we can be help. Please call us today to set up an appointment to review these and any other concerns you may have.

    Very truly yours,

    Barker Business Services

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    Email address taxman2@barkertax.com
    telephone 207-794-8563