How do we qualify for Filing Married Jointly with our Common Law Marriage for upcoming taxes?
My partner and I have been living together for almost 3 years in Colorado, which recognizes Common Law Marriage. We've been presenting ourselves as married to friends and family, have joint bank accounts, and share all our household expenses, but we've both been filing our taxes as "Single" every year. We recently found out that we could save a significant amount on our taxes if we file Married Jointly, especially since I make considerably more than my partner does. From what I understand, we could potentially save around $3,700 in taxes by filing jointly instead of separately. The thing is, we're a bit confused about how to actually qualify for this filing status under our Common Law Marriage. Do we need to get some kind of official documentation first? Is there a form we need to fill out or application we need to submit to make our Common Law Marriage "official" for tax purposes? Do we need to get a marriage license now, or is that not necessary with Common Law? We want to do this properly for our 2024 taxes (filing in 2025), but we're not sure what steps we need to take to be recognized as married by the IRS. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
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Philip Cowan
For tax purposes, if you're considered married under the laws of your state, you're married for federal tax purposes too. Since Colorado recognizes common law marriage, you don't need a marriage license to file jointly. To qualify for common law marriage in Colorado, you both need to: 1) cohabitate, 2) mutually agree that you're married, and 3) present yourselves to the community as married. Sounds like you're already doing these things! The IRS doesn't require any special documentation from common law couples. When you file, you'd simply select "married filing jointly" on your tax return. However, it can be helpful to have evidence of your marriage in case of an audit. This could include joint bank accounts, joint property ownership, using the same last name, naming each other as beneficiaries on insurance, or referring to each other as spouses in legal documents.
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Caesar Grant
•Thanks for the info! Quick question - how does this work if we want to buy a house together next year? Will we need to get some kind of official document proving our common law marriage for the mortgage company? Also, if one of us were to get hurt and end up in the hospital, would they recognize us as spouses without paperwork?
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Philip Cowan
•For buying a house, most mortgage lenders will recognize your common law marriage, but they may ask for documentation showing you present yourselves as married. Having joint accounts, insurance policies naming each other as spouses, or affidavits from people who know you as a married couple can help. For medical situations, I'd recommend having medical powers of attorney for each other. Even legally married couples benefit from these documents, but they're especially important for common law marriages where the relationship might not be immediately recognized in emergency situations. Healthcare facilities are much more familiar with marriage certificates than common law relationships.
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Lena Schultz
Hey there! I was in almost the exact same situation last year with my partner in Texas (another common law state). We were super confused about the whole thing until I found https://taxr.ai which honestly saved us so much headache. I uploaded our documents and details about our relationship, and they confirmed we qualified for common law marriage status for tax purposes. The tool explained that since we've been presenting ourselves as married (joint accounts, introducing each other as husband/wife), we could file jointly without any formal marriage license. They even helped identify which documents would best support our case if we ever got audited. Definitely check it out if you're worried about doing this correctly!
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Gemma Andrews
•Did you have to provide a lot of documentation to prove your common law marriage? I'm in a similar situation in Pennsylvania but we've only been living together for about a year and I'm wondering if that's long enough.
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Pedro Sawyer
•That sounds too good to be true honestly. Did you guys actually get audited or anything? I'm worried about claiming married status without an actual certificate and then getting in trouble with the IRS later.
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Lena Schultz
•You don't need to provide a ton of documentation upfront, but it's good to have evidence ready in case of questions. I uploaded our joint bank statements, insurance policies where we listed each other as spouses, and some affidavits from family. The tool helps you identify what would be most helpful for your specific situation. I totally get being skeptical - I was too! We haven't been audited, but the tool helped us understand exactly what the IRS looks for regarding common law marriages. What gave me peace of mind was learning that the IRS primarily cares about whether your state recognizes your marriage, not whether you have a certificate. The tool specifically flags if your situation has any audit risk factors.
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Gemma Andrews
Just wanted to update after using https://taxr.ai that person recommended! It was super helpful for my situation. I was worried about my common law claim since Pennsylvania actually doesn't recognize NEW common law marriages anymore (they stopped in 2005), but we'd been together since 2003. The tool clarified that since our relationship began before 2005, we're grandfathered in and CAN claim married filing jointly! It also flagged that we should keep records of how long we've been together since that cutoff date matters in our state. Saved me from potentially making a big mistake on our taxes. Now we're filing jointly and saving almost $2,900!
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Mae Bennett
If you're having trouble getting clear answers about your tax situation with common law marriage, I'd suggest trying https://claimyr.com to get through to an actual IRS agent. I spent WEEKS trying to get someone on the phone about my complicated common law situation (we lived in multiple states, some recognizing common law and some not). Claimyr got me connected to an IRS rep in about 20 minutes instead of the 3+ hours I was waiting before. The agent was able to review our specific situation and confirm we could file jointly based on our current residence in a common law state. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c It's worth it to get an official answer directly from the IRS rather than worrying about whether you're doing it right.
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Beatrice Marshall
•How exactly does this work? Do you still call the regular IRS number or do they have some special line? Seems like it would be against IRS rules to have some kind of priority service.
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Melina Haruko
•This sounds fake. There's literally no way to skip the IRS phone queue. If this actually worked, everyone would be using it and the wait times would still be terrible. You probably just got lucky with your timing when you called.
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Mae Bennett
•You still call the regular IRS number, but their system navigates the phone tree and holds your place in line. When an agent becomes available, you get a call back. It's completely legitimate - they're just using technology to make the process more efficient so you don't have to personally wait on hold. I totally understand the skepticism - I felt the same way! But it's not about "skipping" the queue or getting priority service. Everyone still waits their turn, but the system waits in line FOR you instead of you having to keep your phone tied up for hours. The IRS is actually fine with it since it reduces abandoned calls and helps them connect with taxpayers who need assistance.
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Melina Haruko
I need to apologize to Profile 5 who mentioned Claimyr. I was totally wrong and I'm actually shocked. After posting that skeptical comment, I decided to try it myself since I've been trying to reach the IRS about a similar common law marriage question for WEEKS. Got connected to an agent in about 30 minutes (would have been hours otherwise based on my previous attempts). The agent confirmed that since my partner and I live in Idaho (a common law state) and meet all the state requirements, we CAN file jointly despite never having a ceremony or license. They also told me to keep evidence of our relationship status (joint accounts, beneficiary designations, etc.) for at least 3 years in case of questions. Honestly, this was worth it just to get a definitive answer directly from the IRS rather than stressing about doing something wrong.
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Dallas Villalobos
Just want to add some clarification about common law marriage states since there seems to be some confusion. Only 8 states fully recognize common law marriage: Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas, and Utah. Plus DC. Some states (like Pennsylvania, Georgia, Ohio) used to recognize it but don't anymore (except for couples who were together before the cutoff date). New Hampshire only recognizes it for inheritance purposes. So double-check your state laws before filing jointly!
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Reina Salazar
•What about if you lived in different states? My partner and I lived in Texas (common law state) for 2 years where we considered ourselves married, but now we live in California which doesn't recognize common law marriage. Can we still file jointly?
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Dallas Villalobos
•Great question! If you established a valid common law marriage in Texas while living there, other states will generally recognize that marriage even if they don't allow new common law marriages to be formed. This concept is called "full faith and credit" - essentially, if you were legally married in one state, you're married in all states. So if you and your partner met all the requirements for common law marriage while living in Texas (presenting as married, agreeing to be married, etc.), then you can file jointly in California too. California won't let new common law marriages form there, but they'll recognize your existing Texas common law marriage. Just make sure you have some documentation from your time in Texas that shows you presented yourselves as married.
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Saanvi Krishnaswami
Does anyone know how common law marriage impacts claiming dependents? My partner has a kid from previous relationship and we've been living together in Colorado for 4 years. We consider ourselves married under common law but never filed jointly before. Would claiming married jointly change anything about claiming her kid as dependent?
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Demi Lagos
•If you file married jointly, you'd both become stepparent/parent to her child under tax rules. This could affect things depending on your income levels. When married filing jointly, the child's exemption/credit would benefit your combined return rather than just your partner's. Also, both your incomes would count toward things like Earned Income Credit calculations. Might be worth running the numbers both ways to see which is more beneficial.
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Mason Lopez
Just a heads up to the original poster - be aware that if you do file as married (common law or otherwise), you'll need to continue filing that way unless you legally separate or divorce. That's true even for common law marriages - you can't just go back to filing single next year if you decide the tax benefits aren't worth it! Common law divorce isn't really a thing in most places - you'd need to go through regular divorce proceedings just like formally married couples. So make sure you're ready for that commitment before changing your filing status!
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Madison Tipne
This is really helpful information! I'm actually in a similar situation in Colorado with my partner of 2.5 years. We've been hesitant to file jointly because we weren't sure if we'd need some kind of official paperwork first. One thing I'm curious about - if we start filing as married jointly this year, does that create any kind of official record of our common law marriage with the state? Or is it purely for federal tax purposes? I'm wondering if filing jointly would affect things like health insurance through employers, since some companies require proof of marriage for spousal coverage. Also, has anyone here ever been asked to provide documentation during an actual audit? I'd love to know what kinds of evidence the IRS typically looks for to verify common law marriage status.
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