{"id":16164,"date":"2017-05-18T07:00:55","date_gmt":"2017-05-18T12:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/?p=16164"},"modified":"2022-04-05T16:27:34","modified_gmt":"2022-04-05T21:27:34","slug":"tax-changes-in-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/irs\/tax-law-and-policy\/tax-changes-in-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Tax Changes for 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whether you work at a\u00a0full-time job, part-time gig, or are unemployed, Americans have unique tax considerations. What’s more, IRS guidelines are modified from year to year, creating more worry for taxpayers who want to\u00a0stay abreast with current information.<\/p>\n

Maybe you worry\u00a0about the correct way to track and report your income and\u00a0expenses, or perhaps you wonder about the rules for deducting retirement savings accounts. Or maybe you\u2019re wondering about healthcare insurance<\/a> topics. Here are some tax changes in 2017 that will help you stay on top of things this upcoming tax season.<\/p>\n

For 2017, the IRS has instituted some changes that you should know about. These changes apply broadly to all American taxpayers:<\/em><\/p>\n

Standard Tax Rates<\/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\u00a0<\/strong><\/td>\n2017<\/strong><\/td>\n2016<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Personal Exemption<\/td>\n$4,050*<\/td>\n$4,050*<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Standard deduction \u2013 Single, or Married Filing Separate<\/td>\n$6,350<\/td>\n$6,300<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Standard deduction \u2013 Head of Household<\/td>\n$9,350<\/td>\n$9,300<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Standard deduction \u2013 Married Filing Joint<\/td>\n$12,700<\/td>\n$12,600<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Earned Income Credit \u2013 Maximum Amount<\/td>\n$6,318<\/td>\n$6,269<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
*Subject to phase out for Adjusted Gross Income starting at $261,500 ($314,000 for Married Filing Jointly)<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Personal Taxes<\/h2>\n

Health Insurance<\/strong><\/p>\n

For 2017, the amount used to calculate the penalty for not maintaining minimum essential health coverage is $695 or 2.5% of household income, whichever is higher.<\/p>\n

There are no changes to Marketplace Insurance<\/a>. Remember, if you are a small business owner, you may be able to deduct your health insurance and long-term care premiums as an \u201cabove the line\u201d deduction on your personal return, if you meet some conditions. This means that you are not limited by the 10% of AGI threshold for medical expenses. If you provide health insurance to employees, there is also a tax credit that you may be eligible for.<\/p>\n

Retirement Contributions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
TYPE<\/strong><\/td>\n2017<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Traditional* IRA or Roth** IRA<\/td>\n$5,500<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
– over 50 \u201ccatch up\u201d<\/td>\nAn additional $1,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
*May be tax deductible\u00a0<\/em><\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
**Not tax deductible, and subject to income limits<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Business-Related Expenses<\/h2>\n

The following are tax updates (effective Jan. 1, 2017) for business owners:<\/p>\n

Mileage<\/strong><\/p>\n

Standard mileage rate drops to 53.5 cents per mile, down from 54 cents for 2016.\u00a0 The rate for medical and moving mileage drops to 17 cents per mile, down from 19 cents.\u00a0 The charitable mileage rate remains at 14 cents per mile.<\/p>\n

Depreciation<\/strong><\/p>\n

Bonus depreciation has been extended through 2019.\u00a0 For 2017 (and 2015 and 2016), it remains at 50%.\u00a0 For 2018, it will drop to 40% and 30% in 2019.\u00a0 Bonus depreciation allows you to claim that percentage of the purchase cost in the year that the asset is put into service.\u00a0 This can allow you to have a lower taxable income that you might when using only regular depreciation.\u00a0 You\u2019ll continue to depreciate the rest of the cost on a normal schedule.<\/p>\n

Section 179 depreciation options have been made permanent, \u00a0at least for now, and indexed to inflation. For 2017, the limit is $500,000. If purchases exceed $2 million, there is a dollar-for-dollar phase out, and it is eliminated above $2.5 million.<\/p>\n

Tax Advice<\/h2>\n

A qualified tax professional can be a great help for anyone who needs to pay self-employment taxes<\/a>, or just needs an extra set of eyes on their taxes<\/a>.\u00a0 Navigating complicated topics like depreciation, the home office deduction<\/a>, health insurance reporting, or even retirement contributions can feel daunting, but with proper planning, things will be much more manageable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whether you work at a\u00a0full-time job, part-time gig, or are unemployed, Americans have unique tax considerations. What’s more, IRS guidelines are modified from year to year, creating more worry for taxpayers who want to\u00a0stay abreast with current information. Maybe you worry\u00a0about the correct way to track and report your income and\u00a0expenses, or perhaps you wonder […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":418,"featured_media":16165,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,59],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16164","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-irs","category-tax-law-and-policy"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"Tax Changes in 2017 You Need To Know About | H&R Block<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Mileage, depreciation and retirement contributions are just a few of the tax updates for 2017. 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