My partner and I have been together around 10 years and have talked about marriage but, don't feel the need to get married for symbolic reasons, if that makes sense. With that being said, I have claimed them on my tax returns as a dependent because they do not have any income and we live together. I understand that I can claim my partner as a dependent but, I cannot claim them as one if we are married. What I want to know is, which tax scenario is better; continue to claim them as a dependent and we remain unmarried or we get a marriage license and file jointly? For reference my income is approx 38k and we don't own property or have dependents. Thx for any input!
