The Internal Revenue Service has just released guidance for recovering excess taxes paid by employers and taxpayers in light of the Windsor decision. Windsor was the decision in which the Supreme Court held that the federal government cannot treat same sex married couples differently than opposite sex married couples. See United
States v. Windsor,
570 U.S. ___, 133 S.Ct. 265 (2013). In Tax Notice 2013-61 the IRS provides special administrative procedures that can be used by
employers to claim refunds or make adjustments of overpayments of employment
taxes paid with respect to same-sex spouse benefits for 2013, and also a
special administrative procedure that can be used with respect to overpayments
of FICA taxes for years before 2013. It also informs taxpayers that they can file Form 1040X to make claims for overpayment of income taxes in past tax years. Note that not all married same sex couples will be better off. Tax savings will likely only benefit those couples in which one spouse earns significantly more income than the other.
