Tax Law and News

IRS Annual Inflation Adjustments for Tax Years 2018 and 2019

Written by Mike D'Avolio, CPA, JD
Modified Jul 23, 2020
4 min read

The following chart outlines year-over-year inflation adjustments on some higher impact provisions of the tax code. You can refer to these figures in planning for tax year 2019, and consider sharing with your individual and business tax clients.

	Tax year 2018	Tax year 2019
Standard deduction	Married filing jointly: $24,000 Single taxpayers and married individuals filing separately: $12,000 Heads of household: $18,000	Married filing jointly: $24,400 Single taxpayers and married individuals filing separately: $12,200 Heads of household: $18,350
Personal exemption	$0	$0
Tax rates and brackets	Top rate is 37 percent for individual single taxpayers with incomes greater than $500,000 ($600,000 for married couples filing jointly) 35 percent for incomes over $200,000 ($400,000 for married couples filing jointly) 32 percent for incomes over $157,500 ($315,000 for married couples filing jointly) 24 percent for incomes over $82,500 ($165,000 for married couples filing jointly) 22 percent for incomes over $38,700 ($77,400 for married couples filing jointly) 12 percent for incomes over $9,525 ($19,050 for married couples filing jointly) Lowest rate is 10 percent for incomes of single individuals with incomes of $9,525 or less ($19,050 for married couples filing jointly)	Top rate is 37 percent for individual single taxpayers with incomes greater than $510,300 ($612,350 for married couples filing jointly) 35 percent for incomes over $204,100 ($408,200 for married couples filing jointly) 32 percent for incomes over $160,725 ($321,450 for married couples filing jointly) 24 percent for incomes over $84,200 ($168,400 for married couples filing jointly) 22 percent for incomes over $39,475 ($78,950 for married couples filing jointly) 12 percent for incomes over $9,700 ($19,400 for married couples filing jointly) Lowest rate is 10 percent for incomes of single individuals with incomes of $9,700 or less ($19,400 for married couples filing jointly)
Alternative minimum tax exemption	$70,300, and begins to phase out at $500,000 $109,400 for married couples filing jointly, and begins to phase out at $1 million	$71,700, and begins to phase out at $510,300 $111,700 for married couples filing jointly, and begins to phase out at $1,020,600
Penalty for not maintaining minimum essential health coverage	$695	$0
Dollar limitation for employee salary reductions for contributions to health flexible spending arrangements	$2,650	$2,700
Adjusted gross income amount used by joint filers to determine the reduction in the Lifetime Learning Credit	$114,000	$116,000
Maximum credit allowed for adoptions	$13,810	$14,080
Foreign earned income exclusion	$103,900	$105,900
Basic exclusion amount for estates of decedents	Estates of decedents who die during 2018: $11,180,000	Estates of decedents who die during 2019: $11,400,000
Annual exclusion for gifts	$15,000	$15,000
Standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks)	54.5 cents/mile driven for business use 18 cents/mile driven for medical or moving purposes 14 cents/mile driven in service of charitable organizations	58 cents/mile driven for business use 20 cents/mile driven for medical or moving purposes 14 cents/mile driven in service of charitable organizations
Contribution limit for employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan	$18,500	$19,000
Catch-up contribution limit for employees age 50 and over who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan	$6,000	$6,000
Limit on annual contributions to an IRA	$5,500	$6,000
Catch-up contribution limit for individuals aged 50 and over (IRA)	$1,000	$1,000
If, during the year, either the taxpayer or their spouse was covered by a retirement plan at work, the deduction may be reduced or phased out until it is eliminated, depending on filing status and income	For single taxpayers covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is $63,000 to $73,000 For married couples filing jointly, where the spouse making the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is $101,000 to $121,000 For a married individual filing a separate return who is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is not subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment and remains $0 to $10,000	For single taxpayers covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is $64,000 to $74,000 For married couples filing jointly, where the spouse making the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is $103,000 to $123,000 For a married individual filing a separate return who is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is not subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment and remains $0 to $10,000
For an IRA contributor who is not covered by a workplace retirement plan and is married to someone who is covered, the deduction is phased out if the couple’s income is between:	$189,000 and $199,000	$193,000 and $203,000
Income phase-out range for taxpayers making contributions to a Roth IRA:	Singles and heads of household: $120,000 to $135,000 Married couples filing jointly: $189,000 to $199,000 Married individual filing a separate return who makes contributions to a Roth IRA and is not subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment: $0 to $10,000	Singles and heads of household: $122,000 to $137,000 Married couples filing jointly: $193,000 to $203,000 Married individual filing a separate return who makes contributions to a Roth IRA and is not subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment: $0 to $10,000
Income limit for the Saver’s Credit (also known as the Retirement Savings Contributions Credit) for low- and moderate-income workers	Married couples filing jointly: $63,000 Heads of household: $47,250 Singles and married individuals filing separately: $31,500	Married couples filing jointly: $64,000 Heads of household: $48,000 Singles and married individuals filing separately: $32,000

Resources

Editor’s note: Check out the complete archive of articles on IRS matters on the Intuit® Tax Pro Center.

Mike D’Avolio, CPA, JD, is a tax law specialist for Intuit® ProConnect™ Group, where he has worked since 1987. He monitors legislative and regulatory activity, serves as a government liaison, circulates information to employees and customers, analyzes and tests software, trains employees and customers, and serves as a public relations representative. More from Mike D'Avolio, CPA, JD

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