IRS Recognizes All Married Gay Couples Across the Country

So much momentous, life-changing good news in one day, I can hardly take it all in, boys. After waiting all these many years for Change, now that it's arrived, it just seems unreal - am I waking or dreaming?

First, via Freedom to Marry:

Today, the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service announced how they will implement the June 2013 Supreme Court ruling declaring the central part of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional. The Treasury Department and the IRS announced that all legally married same-sex couples will be fully respected by all federal tax programs, including income tax, gift and estate taxes, deductions, exemptions, retirement accounts, and child tax credit.

The ruling will be applied to same-sex couples who married legally in any U.S. state or international country that has approved marriage for same-sex couples. All couples - no matter which state they live in (even if they live in a state that discriminates against their marriage) - will be respected for these federal tax programs.

Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew announced the decision today. He said:

Today’s ruling provides certainty and clear, coherent tax filing guidance for all legally married same-sex couples nationwide. It provides access to benefits, responsibilities and protections under federal tax law that all Americans deserve. This ruling also assures legally married same-sex couples that they can move freely throughout the country knowing that their federal filing status will not change.

Wonderful news and a great advance for equality and civil rights - but note that the ruling does not apply to couples in domestic partnerships or civil unions. Of course, every couple should seek professional advice on how best to make use of these new financial benefits.

What does this mean for you? Well for starters, bud, even if you aren't particularly well off, it means that if your husband dies and you inherit the house, you do not have to pay income tax on the value of it, or any part of his estate you inherit, if you guys were married. And that, fellas, is truly a big fucking deal.

For another thing here and now, if you have health insurance through your husband's employer's plan, it will no longer be counted as income to you, so you won't have to pay income tax on it any longer.

Evan Wolfson has compiled a comprehensive list of statements and policies from various federal agencies in the wake of the Windsor ruling here. At the time of this writing, it seems that Social Security for the near future will base benefits on whether a couple lives in a marriage-equality state or not, but that might change, so stay tuned.

See also these very helpful factsheets on Life after DOMA, and what it means for you in terms of bankruptcy, family and medical leave, federal student aid, and other pertinent issues.


Update, 4:45 p.m.:  More good news, via the Advocate:

The federal Department of Health and Human Services announced today that legally married same-sex couples on Medicare will be eligible for equal benefits and joint placement in nursing homes around the country.

In the wake of the Supreme Court's landmark ruling in June striking down a key section of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, HHS secretary Kathleen Sebelius said today's announcement is just the first in a series of changes forthcoming in how the department deals with married same-sex couples.

"Today, Medicare is ensuring that all beneficiaries will have equal access to coverage in a nursing home where their spouse lives, regardless of their sexual orientation," said Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator Marilyn Tavenner in a statement. "Prior to this, a beneficiary in a same-sex marriage enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan did not have equal access to such coverage and, as a result, could have faced time away from his or her spouse or higher costs because of the way that marriage was defined for this purpose." . . .

The new guidelines revise this standard, confirming that Medicare now applies equally to all married couples, regardless of where the couple resides. That's important for legally married gay and lesbian Medicare recipients who reside in a nursing home in a state that does not embrace marriage equality, since they will still be eligible for the same benefits as opposite-sex couples.

Update, Friday, 12:30 p.m.: Yesterday, a federal district judge in California struck down the provisions of Title 38 of the United States Code that limited veterans benefits to heterosexual couples. According to Freedom to Marry,

The judge wrote that there was no rational basis for the Department of Veterans Affairs to bar same-sex spouses from receiving these protections - that it is not related to the goal of gender equality, to any military purposes, or to the military's commitment to caring for veteran families. The judge explained that the definition of "spouse" in Title 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations is unconstitutional.

For now, the ruling is limited to married same-sex couples living in states with the freedom to marry. We await further clarification on how military families living in the 37 non-marriage states will be treated.

The case is Cooper-Harris v. United States, and here's a sweet video about the plaintiffs: