16 Jan I’m getting married. Should we file together? Should I hire help?

Q. I’ve always done my own taxes but now I’m getting married in February. When should I hire an accountant and how can we decide if we should file together or married/separately?
— Tying the knot

A. The answer to your questions depends on the details and your comfort level.

But let’s discuss the issues you need to consider.

Bernie Kiely, a certified financial planner and certified public accountant with Kiely Capital Management in Morristown, prepares lots of different kinds of tax returns, including for people who have simple ones with a single W2 and some bank interest.

“One would think that someone with those simple taxes could prepare their own tax return,” Kiely said. “But, most people with simple tax returns are simply afraid to prepare their own tax return.”

He said it’s not uncommon for people to graduate from high school and then college without having any exposure to the tax code. They simply don’t know the basics of federal income taxes so they don’t even know where to start, he said.

Once you get married, your tax situation can become more complicated.

“If so, then I would recommend hiring a professional tax preparer,” he said. “When interviewing a tax preparer, ask them what qualifies them to prepare others’ taxes. Also ask them if they would represent you in the event of an IRS audit.”

You ask how to decide if you should file married filing jointly or married filing separately.

Kiely said if you each file separately, you will pay much more in taxes.

That’s because each tax bracket is much larger when you file jointly, he said.

“For example, for someone who is married but filing separately, the lowest tax bracket, which is the 10% bracket, goes from $0 to $11,925, then you jump into the 12% bracket for incomes above $11,925. For a couple filing jointly, the 10% bracket goes from $0 to $23,850. That is double than the separate bracket.”

Kiely said the only time he recommended a married person file separately was when the marriage was on the rocks.

His client’s spouse was self-employed, and the client was concerned they “were playing very loose” with taxes.

“If they filed jointly, my client could be held jointly and severally liable for the tax return,” Kiely said. “This means (the client) could be held liable for (the spouse’s) unpaid taxes. So, (the client) filed separately.”

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This story was originally published in January 2025.

NJMoneyHelp.com presents certain general financial planning principles and advice, but should never be viewed as a substitute for obtaining advice from a personal professional advisor who understands your unique individual circumstances.