8 things you should do after getting married

Congratulations on your big day! Your wedding was likely chock-full of excitement, from dancing and partying, to possibly going away on a tropical honeymoon to chill with your new spouse. After all the fun times have come and gone, it might be time to start thinking about some of the serious things and “chores” you need to get done after getting married. It definitely isn’t as fun as the actual wedding itself, but these are things that you will want to have complete sooner than later.

Here is a list of eight things you should do after getting married.

Figure out your financial situation.

You may have already chatted with your spouse about finances prior to get married, but after your vows have been exchanged it might be a good time to take action. Do you plan on combining accounts, or simply make alterations? Whatever the plan, you should make a trip to your bank to make your necessary alterations. Afterwards, notify any companies where you use direct deposit about the change so that you do not miss payments.

Thank your guests.

Before, during, and after your wedding, you might have received gifts from your attendees! You’ll want to show your appreciation for everyone who came to your wedding by writing up some thank-you notes. If you can’t think of anything creative to write, you can always purchase fill-in thank-you notes at your local card store or find a template to print off online.

Give your vendors a nice review.

You may be in the midst of sending out thank-you notes to your wedding attendees. In addition to this, you may want to send out a thanks to your wedding vendors. Think: your photographers, caterers, bands, etc. A great way to give them your thanks is to review them and give them positive feedback. This may even help them to acquire clients in the future, or even support engaged couples to plan their own wedding later down the road!

Close your registry.

Once the chaos has settled down, you may want to make a note of the gifts you received and the gifts that you did not get from your wedding registry. If there are items you got, but don’t need? Are there items you did not receive but may be useful? You can return or exchange any gifts that are duplicates or take advantage of the discounts you may have received from your registry completion to purchase gifts from retailers that you want. Oftentimes, registry discounts will have time limits, so be sure to do this as soon as you are able.

Get life insurance.

Getting married is considered one of those “life changing” or, in insurance terms, “insurance-qualifying” events. This means that if you have life insurance, it may be time to update it. If you do not, and you are now in a position where you are committed to a future with another person, it is probably about time to figure out your life insurance.

It sounds grisly, but life insurance is a financial “cushion” if you should abruptly lose your income or your partner’s income. This can be a result of a death, a debilitating illness, or a disability where you or your partner is no longer able to work. This is especially important, even if it is just the two of you living together – and even moreso if you have dependents.

Change your name.

This step may only apply if you are interested in changing your legal surname. If you do not wish to change your name after marriage, you may opt for an alternative last name, keep your existing one, or even hyphenate yours and your spouse’s.

In order to change your last name, you will need to acquire your original marriage license and go to a Social Security Administration website where you will need to fill out a form to confirm your identity before you can change your name officially. You may also want to change your name on your provincial ID or driver’s license after receiving your new Social Security card. After this, you can change your last name anywhere you’d like – including your passport, financial accounts, payroll, bank, place of work, etc. It is an arduous task but if you are planning to go ahead with a name change then it’s worth it!

Inform your employer.

You may not have chosen to change your name, but it may still be important to let your employer or human resources department know that you have gotten married. This is because there will likely need to be changes with your tax information, health insurance, documents, and so forth.

File your taxes.

After being married, you can file your taxes separately or you can choose to file them jointly. It makes sense in most scenarios for couples to file their taxes jointly. However, if one of you has accumulated many bills during the year, you may opt to file separately.

You should consult with a financial advisor to navigate how you plan to handle budgeting, debt, retirement, and IRS. It always helps to have a professional opinion!

A last note –

It is exciting to think about the future life that you and your partner plan to build together. If you have plans to purchase a condo or a home in the next couple of years, it might be time to check out your options for home insurance in addition to updating/purchasing life insurance for you and your new spouse! Panda7 helps shop around for affordable quotes for a variety of insurance products; apply for a quote with us today and see how easy it can be to get insurance.