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United States tax guide 2026
The United States is the only major economy that taxes by citizenship: citizens and green-card holders owe federal tax on worldwide income wherever they live, softened abroad by a $132,900 foreign earned income exclusion and foreign tax credits. At home, seven federal brackets run from 10% to 37%, investment income enjoys preferential 0/15/20% rates, and the estate tax now ignores the first $15 million per person. States then add their own layer — from nothing in Texas or Florida to 13.3% in California.
- Rate range
- 10% – 37% federal (state income taxes add 0–13%+ and vary — figures shown are federal)
- Key allowance
- Standard deduction: $16,100 single / $32,200 married filing jointly (2026)
- Tax year
- Calendar year (fiscal years possible)
- Filing deadline
- 15 April (15 June if living abroad); 6-month extensions routine
Taxes covered
- Income tax37%
37% federal above $640,600 (single) / $768,700 (joint); state income taxes add 0–13%+ and vary — figures shown are federal.
- Dividend tax0% / 15% / 20%
Qualified dividends ride the capital gains scale — 0% to $49,450 (single), 15% to $545,500, 20% above — plus 3.8% investment surtax at high incomes.
- Capital gains tax0% / 15% / 20%
Long-term gains (assets held over 1 year) at 0/15/20% plus the 3.8% surtax; short-term gains at ordinary rates up to 37%.
- Crypto tax0% / 15% / 20% (long-term)
Digital assets are property: capital gains rates apply — 0/15/20% after a year, ordinary rates up to 37% within it.
- Social security7.65%
Employees pay 6.2% social security on wages to $184,500 plus 1.45% Medicare uncapped (+0.9% at high incomes); the self-employed pay both halves.
- Inheritance tax40% above $15M
No inheritance tax on heirs; a federal estate tax of up to 40% hits estates above the $15 million per-person exclusion, with full basis step-up for heirs.
- Withholding tax30%
The default on US-source passive income to non-residents is 30%, but treaties, the portfolio-interest exemption and bank-deposit rules zero out much of it.
Special regimes
- Citizenship-based taxation
US citizens and green-card holders file US returns for life, wherever they live — leaving the system means formal expatriation, with an exit tax on unrealised gains above $910,000 for the wealthy.
- Foreign earned income exclusion
Americans working abroad can exclude $132,900 of 2026 salary from US tax (plus a housing amount), or credit foreign taxes instead.
- Preferential investment rates
Qualified dividends and long-term gains are taxed at 0%, 15% or 20% instead of ordinary rates — plus a 3.8% investment surtax at higher incomes.
- $15 million estate exclusion
From 2026 each person can pass $15 million free of the 40% federal estate tax — $30 million per couple with portability — and heirs get a full step-up in asset basis.
- Temporary-visa foreign investors
Non-residents pay no US tax on most capital gains (real estate excepted), no tax on bank interest, and enjoy the 0% portfolio-interest rule on bonds.
Recent changes
- 2025-07The One Big Beautiful Bill Act made the 2018 rate structure permanent, set the estate exclusion at $15 million, raised the state-and-local-tax deduction cap to $40,400 (2026), and added deductions for tips ($25,000), overtime ($12,500/$25,000) and car-loan interest ($10,000).
- 2026-01New rules from 2026: a $1,000/$2,000 charitable deduction for non-itemizers, a 0.5%-of-income floor on itemized charitable gifts, a roughly 5.4% haircut on itemized deductions for top-bracket taxpayers, and a $6,000 bonus deduction for seniors (2025–2028).
- 2026-012026 inflation adjustments: standard deduction $16,100/$32,200, social security wage base $184,500, annual gift exclusion $19,000, foreign earned income exclusion $132,900.