First things first, congratulations on your marriage and all the other big changes!
Your tax filing status is determined by your status on December 31st. So, assuming you live with your spouse all year and are married on December 31, 2024, your choices for filing your taxes for 2024 will be either Married Filing Jointly or Married Filing Separately.
Typically, it is more financially beneficial to file Jointly but some people choose to file separately for certain reasons (ie maybe one spouse owes back child support or back taxes and so they decide to keep their tax situations separate) even though doing so will make the parties ineligible for certain credits and other tax complications may arise. In your case, you stated you own a home together – that may allow you to itemize deductions (assuming for purposes of this example that your State tax paid, RP tax paid, mortgage interest paid and other allowed deductions are high enough). If you were to file separately, usually both parties have to either itemize or both have to take the standard deduction, a limitation that sometimes makes filing separately not the best idea.
When tax time comes, you may want to run the numbers separately and jointly (basically prepare mock returns) and see what is best for you. You can also enter all of your info into our Tax Caster calculator to assist you to see the best way to go. (See below for links to our great calculators.)
I am giving you a link to an article regarding whether to file Jointly or Separately, see below. It gives more details for you to consider.
In terms of withholdings, you should each complete a new W4 and submit it to your employer. When you complete the form, there is a section wherein you can indicate that your spouse works and enter the salary so that this is accounted for and the proper amounts are withheld. At this point, we are almost at the end of the year so it wont make much difference for 2024 but you should do it. In terms of 2024, your tax return will be like a reconciliation report and whatever was withheld will be reflected and if it is not enough, you will owe. This can happen if the combination of your salaries pushes you into a higher tax bracket than the bracket withholdings were held at.
We also have a W4 calculator where you can enter your info and it will produce results for you as to how to proceed. It’s another great tool and I highly recommend you check it out. Then you will get answers with your actual numbers taken into consideration and can make the best decisions going forward. Link is below.
Good luck to you and I hope this helps!
Tax Caster: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/calculators/taxcaster/
W4 Calculator: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/calculators/w4/
MFJ v MFS Article: https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/marriage/should-you-and-your-spouse-file-taxes-jointly-or-separ...
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