W-4 and Name Change

[jsloss24]

Hi everyone! I just got married on Sunday and am waiting on the courthouse to process our marriage license. It will probably be a month or more before my name change is fully processed by Social Security. Should I fill out a new W-4 for my employer now with my maiden name on it or should I wait to fill out the W-4 until my name change is official with Social Security so that I can put my married name on it? I'm not sure if there is any hurry to change my filing status to married filing jointly or if I can keep it as filing single since it is already basically October.

[DoninGA]

If you are legally married as of 12/31/2020 you will file your 2020 tax return as either Married Filing Jointly or Married Filing Separately.  You cannot file your 2020 tax return as Single if you are legally married. 

On your 2020 tax return, that is filed in 2021, you enter the name that is on your Social Security card, regardless if it is your maiden name or married name.

On the W-4 you can go ahead and change your name before receiving the Social Security card with your married name.

The name that is on your W-2 from your employer does not have to match the name on your tax return.  Only the Social Security numbers need to be the same on both forms.

[xmasbaby0]

When tax time for 2020 comes around...

If you were legally married at the end of 2020 your filing choices are married filing jointly or married filing separately.

Married Filing Jointly is usually better, even if one spouse had little or no income. When you file a joint return, you and your spouse will get the married filing jointly standard deduction of $24,800 (+$1300 for each spouse 65 or older)  You are eligible for more credits including education credits, earned income credit, child and dependent care credit, and a larger income limit to receive the child tax credit.

If you choose to file married filing separately, both spouses have to file the same way—either you both itemize or you both use standard deduction. Your tax rate will be higher than on a joint return. Some of the special rules for filing separately include: you cannot get earned income credit, education credits, adoption credits, or deductions for student loan interest. A higher percent of your Social Security benefits may be taxable. Your limit for SALT (state and local taxes and sales tax) will be only $5000 per spouse. In many cases you will not be able to take the child and dependent care credit. The amount you can contribute to a retirement account will be affected. If you live in a community property state, you will be required to provide additional information regarding your spouse’s income. ( Community property states:  AZ, CA, ID, LA, NV, NM, TX, WA, WI)

If  you are using online TurboTax to prepare your returns, you will need to prepare two separate returns and pay twice.

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1894449-married-filing-jointly-vs-married-filing-separately

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1901162-married-filing-separately-in-community-property-states

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/1894449-is-it-better-for-a-married-couple-to-file-jointly-or-separ...

To begin a new joint return on TurboTax:

You will not be able to merge two previous TT account to start your new joint return.  You can transfer ONE of your 2019 returns into a new return, so choose the most complicated one.  The other spouse’s information needs to be entered manually.

When you enter your own information in My Info, you have to answer the question "Were you married?"  If you click the button for Married, then a drop down will appear that asks, "Do you want to file this return together with your spouse?"  Then you choose yes to file a joint return.  You would then enter your spouse's information into Personal Info.  Whenever you are entering income information there should then be a spot for you and for your spouse's income information on the income screens.  Look carefully for them.

Best Wishes!

[Critter-3]

As a rule of thumb ... change your name with the SS administration FIRST  ... once that is done, using the marriage certificate & the newly minted SS card you can then get your DL, bank account and any other things changed over.   

As for the W-4 at work ... if the boss changes your name on the paycheck before you change it at the bank then the checks may not be negotiable ... check with your bank.   AND  read the 4 page W-4 worksheet carefully especially if you both work ... most times both of you cannot claim married without owing at the end of the year.   I highly recommend neither of you change the withholdings until you really do the math ... in my 25 years of experience only one of you can be on the married chart and the other ( usually the lower wage earner) should remain as single for withholding purposes and YES that is allowed and in most cases encouraged.  

[Opus 17]

Your tax return will be filed as if you were married for the entire year.  To estimate your new correct withholding, you can use the IRS estimator tool here,

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator

You will input information for both you and your spouse's jobs and other income.  You may need to modify one or both of your W-4s.  You should also run the estimator again in February, since the changes that are made for the last 3 months of 2020 might not be appropriate for a full year.