Same-Sex Marriage in Pennsylvania Creates Important Tax Advantages for LGBT Families, Marcum Experts Say
New York City, NY – Experts from the Philadelphia LGBT practice of Marcum LLP, the first national accounting firm with a practice dedicated to tax and estate planning for same-sex couples, advise that today’s court ruling overturning the ban on same-sex marriage in Pennsylvania opens up important planning opportunities for these families.
“Same-sex married couples will now receive equal treatment under state tax law, giving them the same benefits previously available only to traditional married couples in Pennsylvania,” said David H. Glusman, Partner-in-Charge of Marcum’s Philadelphia office and a member of the Firm’s national LGBT & Non-Traditional Family practice. “One of the most important benefits is access to tax-advantaged estate and gift planning, but perhaps even more significant are issues of child support and the deductibility of alimony, which will now apply as they would to any other married couples.
“The equitable tax treatment of same-sex married couples also will significantly reduce the cost of tax preparation. Since the federal government began recognizing same-sex marriages for tax purposes in June 2013, couples in non-recognition states necessarily have had to file their federal and state taxes using two different sets of calculations. The expense and effort of the duplicate effort has been voided in Pennsylvania by today’s ruling.
“With the addition of Pennsylvania, same-sex marriage is now permitted in all northeastern U.S. states, making tax compliance much easier for couples who work in one state and live in another. And as same-sex marriage is legalized in more and more states, more couples will be able to take advantage of tax and estate planning opportunities.”
Marcum LLP is the thought leader in the specialty area of tax compliance and consulting services for same-sex and other non-traditional families. The firm’s professionals have more than 20 years of experience in dealing with the complex tax and financial rules faced by the LGBT community, state-by-state and around the country.
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