IRS

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court changed the landscape of marriage in The United States of America forever when they legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 states. The decision was applauded by the majority of the country, and The White House even lit up in rainbow colors that night to celebrate the decision. Since then, many same-sex couples have happily been married in states that didn’t allow same-sex marriage in the past. While this was a huge step for the LGBT community, there have been some challenges for those getting their marriage certificates. These challenges include things like:

• County clerks not wanting to issue marriage certificates to same-sex couples because they felt it interfered with their religion.
• Some couples have had trouble getting wedding services because businesses did not want to serve gay couples.
• Couples have had issues with the IRS not wanting to give same-sex couples the benefits heterosexual couples have had for years.

The good news is it looks like same-sex couples aren’t going to have any more issues with the IRS regarding their marital status. The IRS has made it official: The definition of man and wife will be changed to include same-sex couples. This means same-sex couples will be able to file tax returns jointly, get their spouse’s death benefits, and claim their spouse as dependent if he or she is not working. While it isn’t a surprise the IRS has made this change considering the ruling back in June, it is an important step for the equal treatment of same-sex couples.

2013 Ruling

This isn’t the first time the IRS has ruled on this for same-sex couples. In 2013, a similar ruling was passed, however it only applied to the states that had legalized same-sex marriage. Since it is now legal throughout the entire country, a change was needed. Now couples who have been married in any state can get the same treatment. This is especially good news for any same-sex couple residing in one of the 13 states that had previously not recognized same-sex marriage.

Health Care

One way this ruling will make a huge difference for same-sex couples is with health care. Before the ruling, if you had married your spouse in a state but lived in another, you couldn’t get health care tax free on your spouse’s insurance plan. Now, you can. This is something that has been commonplace for heterosexual couples for years, and because health insurance is so important and now mandated, this is a huge relief for same-sex married couples.

Civil Union

While the law will apply to all married couples regardless of sexual orientation, those who are in a civil union or domestic partnership will not get the same benefits. They will still need to file their tax return as single until they are legally married, the same as any unmarried couple.

Response

Most people have felt this was inevitable after the Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriage. After all, if same-sex couples are going to have the right to be legally married to one another in any state, then they need to have the same benefits of heterosexual couples. Because of this, it’s no surprise the IRS changed their definition of marriage as well. Some people are surprised it took so long. There have been many couples who have suffered because they were not able to get the health insurance they needed or because they couldn’t get their spouse’s death benefits. Still, the same-sex marriage community will see this as a win, because not only is it good for them financially, it is also a step in the right direction for same-sex marriage equality.