Filed Taxes Jointly | featured news

Suppose that wife does not work in 2010, or that she works but has enough income tax withheld and remitted to taxing authorities to cover income tax on here income. Husband, on the other hand, has $400,000 of self-employment income in 2010. Having paid no estimated taxes, husband now owes $160,000 in Federal and State taxes on his income.

Forbes magazine's recent cover story "When Work Doesn't Pay For the Middle Class" illustrates many of the issues the middle class faces regarding the unintended interactions between work, marriage and taxes. We'd also like to point out that these unintended interactions pose serious problems for an often overlooked segment of our society--the working poor.