Married Same Sex Couples With Kids May See Higher Taxes ?

Now that same sex couples are required to file joint tax returns with the IRS, recent Supreme Court tax rulings on phasing out income tax credits for families may lead to higher taxes for married same sex spouses who have children. The June 26 strike down of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) ruled it unconstitutional to exclude state-sanctioned, same sex marriages from the federal definition of marriage. While the ruling will make it undoubtedly easier for same sex couples to file their taxes,

 it must be noted that with this ruling comes a host of tax and benefits changes that may spell the opposite of tax relief for married same sex couples. Before the ruling, married same sex couples had to calculate their taxes twice.

Many tax issues arise when couples have a small disparity between their salaries, as it looks like a married couple with close incomes will probably have to pay more as a married couple than they would as single people. If there is a wide disparity between incomes between spouses, it's likely they'll pay less total taxes as a married couple as they would single people.

Tax relief may also fall short when it comes to married same sex couples with children, thanks to the loss of the Earned Income Tax Credit. So-called marriage penalties can come into play when a couple's joint income pushes them into a range where they can no longer collect that credit or are ineligible for that credit. What's more, the phase-out threshold for married couples to collect the Child Tax Credit is less than twice that for unmarried individuals. Therefore, two single individuals might each quality for that credit, but receive a smaller credit or even become ineligible if married.

Married same sex couples in which one same sex spouse wants to adopt the other spouse's child may find themselves ineligible on the Adoption Tax Credit, as the credit isn't available when adopting a spouse's child. Same sex couples must also aware that they may also lose the Child and Dependent Care Credit if one spouse has no income.

Recent Supreme Court rulings and the June 26 strike down of DOMA will undoubtedly have much impact on credits and  issues for married same sex couples. Many may find themselves facing a stronger need to seek out help this year just to be sure that they are taking advantage of every deduction possible. As always, it's best to work with a qualified tax professional when navigating such issues.