After speaking with an ERO/EA/RTRP, who owns her own tax firm, I learned that some people have gotten in trouble for acting as if they were divorced, but in reality they continue to be together, only to be able to receive the resulting tax benefits. They can each file their taxes separately and receive more money each year, instead of filing them together. If they had children, the mother could claim them as dependents, and she would look like a single mother, and get more money just for that. Children of “single parents” can receive free lunch, tuition waivers, and many other things for school. There are many “loopholes” that people can go through to receive more money and help from the government. There are many factors that contribute to cohabitation versus marriage. Some are scared by the thought of committing to one person for the rest of their lives, and others don't want to end up in the situation of divorcing someone they love or losing all the things they've worked hard for. Each factor is not negative; some do it for financial benefits that simply come from cohabitation rather than marriage. While not everyone is OK with living together without being married, it is becoming more and more common