According to the United States' Government Accountability Office, there are slightly over one thousand federal laws that treat married people differently from single people.

These include:

Rights

• right to many of ex- or late spouse's benefits, including
  • Social Security pension
  • veteran's pensions, indemnity compensation for service-connected deaths, medical care, and nursing home care, right to burial in veterans' cemeteries, educational assistance, and housing
  • survivor benefits for federal employees
  • survivor benefits for spouses of longshoremen, harbor workers, railroad workers
  • additional benefits to spouses of coal miners who die of black lung disease
  • $100,000 to spouse of any public safety officer killed in the line of duty
  • continuation of employer-sponsored health benefits
  • renewal and termination rights to spouse's copyrights on death of spouse
  • continued water rights of spouse in some circumstances
• right to benefits while married
  • employment assistance and transitional services for spouses of members being separated from military service; continued commissary privileges
  • per diem payment to spouse for federal civil service employees when relocating
  • Indian Health Service care for spouses of Native Americans (in some circumstances)
• larger benefits under some programs if married, including
  • veteran's disability
  • Supplemental Security Income
  • disability payments for federal employees
  • Medicaid
• preferential hiring for spouses of veterans in government jobs
• tax free transfer of assets to spouse (including on death)
• joint filing of bankruptcy permitted
• special consideration to spouses of citizens and resident aliens
• exemption from "due-on-sale" clauses when transferring property to a spouse
• spouse's flower sales count towards meeting the eligibility for Fresh Cut Flowers and Fresh Cut Greens Promotion and Information Act
• threats against spouses of various federal employees is a federal crime
• right to continue living on land purchased from spouse by National Park Service when easement granted to spouse

Responsibilities

• spousal income and assets are counted in determining need in many forms of government assistance, including
  • veteran's medical and home care benefits
  • housing assistance
  • housing loans for veterans
  • child's education loans
  • educational loan repayment schedule
  • agricultural price supports and loans
  • eligibility for federal matching campaign funds
• ineligible for National Affordable Housing program if spouse ever purchased a home
• subject to conflict-of-interest rules for many government and government-related jobs
• ineligible to receive various survivor benefits upon remarriage

Ambiguous

There are some laws that either benefit or penalize married couples over single people, depending upon their own circumstances.

• marriage penalty/bonus
• someone working for their spouse cannot be defined as an "employee"
• someone cannot change beneficiaries in a retirement plan or from waiving the joint and survivor annuity form of retirement benefit, without the written consent of his or her spouse
• wages can be garnished at a maximum of 60% (instead of the normal 25% limit) if the garnishing is for alimony or child support

States

In addition, community-property states frequently have forms of ownership that allow a full basis step-up on one's own share of community property on the death of a spouse (in addition to the normal step-up on spouse's assets).

External resources

• General Accounting Office's report
• Tax Administration: Income Tax Treatment of Married and Single Individuals. GAO/GGD-96-175, September 3, 1996.