New Jersey began to recognize same-sex marriages in October 2013 based on a unanimous decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court. Marriage can have major financial implications — largely for the better — for the couple and their dependents. Just a look at how it affects employee benefits helps illustrate this point.
Employers who provide health insurance to employees, for example, previously had the option of not recognizing civil unions on matters of employee benefits. Also, if health insurance benefits were extended to same-sex partners in civil unions, it came with an added price tag: federal and state governments regarded it as extra income, requiring either the employer or the recipient couple (often both) to pay taxes on that benefit.
Interestingly, the U.S. Department of Labor has ruled that the state in which a same-sex couple works or resides really isn’t relevant anyway, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision supporting the constitutionality of gay marriage in June 2013. What matters is whether the couple is legally married in any one of the jurisdictions that allow same-sex marriages, which now include New Jersey. This means the following:
There are other employee benefits, such as inheritance transfers of retirement funds, that now are protected from federal and state taxation. Speak with an attorney if your employer is denying you these benefits.