The Supreme Court’s decision allowing legally married gay couples to access federal benefits opens up an entirely new area of financial planning for gay couples. Everything from estate planning to Social Security to income tax returns and retirement benefits will be affected by the rulings.
Financial planning will still be complicated by the fact that individual states may continue to ban same-sex marriages — and state benefits. That could result in a confusing array of income tax filings and legal issues for couples who marry elsewhere but choose, for work or family reasons, to live in a state that does not recognize their union.Still, the economic benefits of the decision will be far reaching. Here are just a few of the changes that will occur.