Personal Exemptions
Updated on: Jun 26, 2018
An exemption is an amount you claim as a deduction against income to calculate your taxable income.
The new tax law reduces the personal exemption amount to zero ($0) for tax years for tax years 2018 through 2025.
Previous (2017)
You could claim an exemption for yourself, your spouse, and for each person you claim as a dependent on your tax return. In tax year 2017, you could claim $4,050 for each exemption. However, your exemptions were reduced if your adjusted gross income (AGI) was above a certain amount:
- $156,900 for married individuals filing separate tax returns;
- $261,500 for single individuals;
- $287,650 for heads of household; and
- $313,800 for married individuals filing joint tax returns or qualifying widow(er)s.
Change
 |
The amount you are entitled to claim for each exemption is zero ($0) for tax years 2018 through 2025. |
How will this affect me?
Scenario 1
Ben and Amelia file a joint tax return. They also have two children they claim as dependents. They expect their total AGI for 2018 to be approximately $120,000. While they may be entitled to claim four exemptions in 2018, each exemption is worth $0.