When it comes to choosing the best time to get married, you need to know what bonuses and penalties you are getting and when you are getting them. We have written extensively about taxes and marriage and helped you prepare for this year's tax deadline by answering some of the common questions new couples have about tax returns as a married couple.

Depending on how much you earn, your spouse may receive a marriage bonus or matrimonial penalty if you tie the knot. If you put your income in a joint tax return, you put your income in a higher tax bracket than you would be if you were filing as a single person. There is also a so-called "marriage tax penalty," and rarely can a joint filing put you in the highest tax bracket of those who register separately. It is also possible that your partner could face marital penalties if he or she pays more tax on income from being single than together, but there are no specific rules on how you could get this.

If your partner has since died the good news is that you can still backdated marriage tax compensation claims, if you don't know how, click on that link.