Hello and

welcome to Moneygirls quick and dirty tips for a richer life.

Today's topic, marriage and taxes. A listener named Jason sent me this question.

This upcoming year I'm getting married. I always used to joke with my fiance that we'd never get married because of the tax penalty. Although

I was joking, there seems to be some truth to this. She's currently a low-income

earner with no significant deductions aside from an IRA,

and therefore she takes the standard deduction on her tax return.

Meanwhile, I'm a high-income earner with many deductions and therefore itemize on my tax return.

When we get married this year, will her non-itemized return severely hurt my itemized return when we file jointly.

What about filing married but separately? Will that help?

If not, is there anything we can do to protect ourselves?

First off, congratulations on your upcoming marriage, Jason.

You're smart to be thinking about the tax implications for you and your wife to be because

matrimony can change your tax bill for better or for worse.

The marriage penalty is, unfortunately, one of the more unromantic parts of the federal tax

rate schedules.

The marriage penalty arose in 1969 when Congress attempted to

adjust for a tax advantage that existed for married couples compared with

singles. As a result, some but but by no means all, married couples pay more tax than they would

if they were single.

But tax laws in more recent years have actually eliminated the marriage penalty for taxpayers and lower tax brackets.

So here's the good news.

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