An article here on Odyssey called "Boyfriends Do Not Get Husband Privileges" recently got a lot of attention. I totally agree with this statement! It is becoming more and more socially acceptable to treat girlfriends/boyfriends/unmarried partners as if they are your spouse! However, here are some privileges that should not be granted to your significant other if they are not your legal spouse.

1. Letting them tell your employer that you're married so you can work together

Depending on the employer, you and your significant other (S.O.) may not be allowed to work together unless you're married. If they find out that you lied to HR about your relationship (if you told them that you were married, but you're not) in order to work together, they might fire you.

2. Letting them tell your landlord that you're married so you can live together

Some apartment buildings/landlords require couples to be married in order to live in their building. Like the previous situation, if you lie about your relationship, they might terminate your lease and then you wouldn't have anywhere to live.

3. Letting them tell the government that you're married so you can get a marital tax deduction and/or jointly file your federal taxes

A marital tax deduction is exactly what it sounds like: it is a tax deduction that you get if you are married. If you are not married, but you claim that you are married to get a deduction, that's tax fraud! Don't do it!

Sometimes filing taxes jointly with your spouse can get you more of a tax refund. Sometimes it can get you less of one. Regardless, you shouldn't file your taxes jointly if you aren't married, because it's (almost always) illegal! Again, you don't want to commit tax fraud! The penalty for these offenses can be up to 5 years in prison and/or a $250,000 fine, depending on how the court decides to charge you. Wow! That's a huge penalty for granting Spouse Privileges when you shouldn't.

It is very important that you understand that you have a responsibility to yourself to not overstep your bounds and grant these Spouse Privileges to someone who is simply a boyfriend or girlfriend or unmarried-partner. Do not act like your S.O. is your spouse unless they are!! Getting fired, evicted, fined, or arrested simply because you granted your S.O. Spouse Privileges is not worth it.

Wouldn't you rather save these things for marriage, so that when you do get married, you have something special saved just for your spouse? Trust me, you'll thank me when you're married and you haven't given everything away to someone you didn't end up with forever. Plus, you're less likely to be in jail for tax fraud.