It’s time once again to check on the tax tables to see whether there have been adjustments. And for 2012, there are indeed some updates, although for this year, they have been pegged to inflation and not the result of policy. Given that this is a presidential election year, the government’s stance is probably to keep the status quo for now.
2012 Federal Tax Tables
2012 Tax Rates For Single Filer, Married Filing Jointly, Widow/Widower
| Marginal Tax Rate | Single Filers | Married Filing Jointly* |
| 10% | $0 – $8,700 | $0 – $17,400 |
| 15% | $8,700 – $35,350 | $17,400 – $70,700 |
| 25% | $35,350 – $85,650 | $70,700 – $142,700 |
| 28% | $85,650 – $178,650 | $142,700 – $217,450 |
| 33% | $178,650 – $388,350 | $217,450 – $388,350 |
| 35% | Over $388,350 | Over $388,350 |
| Standard Deduction | $5,950 | $11,900 |
*And Qualifying Widow or Widower
2012 Tax Rates: Married Filing Separately, Head of Household
| Marginal Tax Rate | Married Filing Separately | Head of Household |
| 10% | $0 – $8,700 | $0 – $12,400 |
| 15% | $8,700 – $35,350 | $12,400 – $47,350 |
| 25% | $35,350 – $71,350 | $47,350 – $122,300 |
| 28% | $71,350 – $108,725 | $122,300 – $198,050 |
| 33% | $108,725 – $194,175 | $198,050 – $388,350 |
| 35% | Over $194,175 | Over $388,350 |
| Standard Deduction | $5,950 | $8,700 |
This year, personal tax exemptions will increase by $100 from $3,700 to $3,800. We’ve also added the standard deductions to the tables above.
2011 Federal Tax Tables
Due to tax day falling on a holiday in 2011, we received bonus days to help us procrastinators get our taxes done. Tax Day for 2011 was pushed to April 18 due to a holiday scheduling change. Emancipation Day, commemorating the signing of the Compensated Emancipation Act by Abraham Lincoln was honored on April 15, Friday, which therefore delayed Tax Filing Day to April 18.
For your convenience, I’ve put together some handy tax information, detailing the tax rates and deductions based on filing status for 2011. Also, there have been some changes to the tax code, which I’ve listed and discussed below.
2011 Tax Rates For Single Filer, Married Filing Jointly, Widow/Widower
| Marginal Tax Rate | Single Filers | Married Filing Jointly* |
| 10% | $0 – $8,500 | $0 – $17,000 |
| 15% | $8,500 – $34,500 | $17,000 – $69,000 |
| 25% | $34,500 – $83,600 | $69,000 – $139,350 |
| 28% | $83,600 – $174,400 | $139,350-$212,300 |
| 33% | $174,400 – $379,150 | $212,300 – $379,150 |
| 35% | Over $379,150 | Over $379,150 |
| Standard Deduction | $5,800 | $11,600 |
*And Qualifying Widow or Widower
2011 Tax Rates: Married Filing Separately, Head of Household
| Marginal Tax Rate | Married Filing Separately | Head of Household |
| 10% | $0 – $8,500 | $0 – $12,150 |
| 15% | $8,500 – $34,500 | $12,150 – $46,250 |
| 25% | $34,500 – $69,675 | $46,250 – $119,400 |
| 28% | $69,675 – $106,150 | $119,400 – $193,350 |
| 33% | $106,150 – $189,575 | $193,350 – $379,150 |
| 35% | Over $189,575 | Over $379,150 |
| Standard Deduction | $5,800 | $8,500 |
2011 Standard Deductions
Tax exemptions increased as follows: personal exemptions are now $3,700. For single taxpayers and married taxpayers filing separately, it’s at $5,800. For married taxpayers filing jointly or qualifying widow/widower, it’s $11,600. For heads of household, it’s $8,500.
Provisions of The Tax Relief & Job Creation Act of 2010
Because of the December 17, 2010 signing of The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, there are a few adjustments in the tax code you should be aware of. Some noteworthy changes:
- Taxes on capital gains and dividends will hold steady for 2011 and 2012, at 15%. There was the possibility it would increase to 20%, but this did not happen.
- Foreign account holders need to make sure they are compliant or face stiff penalties.
- Some changes on the estate tax front for the heirs of those who died in 2010: either choose to get taxed according to special capital gains tax rates, or take an exemption of up to $5 million, with assets above that taxed at a maximum of 35%.
- Social security payroll tax will be shaved by 2% (from 6.2% to 4.2%) for the first $106,800.
- The child tax credit for low income taxpayers is increased from $500 to $1,000 maximum, until Dec. 31, 2012.
Created January 6, 2011. Updated January 9, 2012. Copyright © 2012 The Digerati Life. All Rights Reserved.
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for the tips. It is a reminder to pay attention to our finances or face paying more taxes. This one of the reasons for year end tax planning.
“Some changes on the estate tax front for the heirs of those who died in 2010: either choose to get taxed according to special capital gains tax rates, or take an exemption of up to $5 million, with assets above that taxed at a maximum of 35%.”
The actual heirs, or the estate? I hadn’t heard about this. If it’s the heirs, and it’s a 5M per heir exemption (rather than a 5M exemption for all of the estate’s heirs, pro-rated in some manner), you could distribute a pretty sizeable estate tax-free by giving 5M each to your heirs.
Whenever I read about tax regulations, conditions and so forth, my eyes cross. But here is a bit more of an explanation from one of my favorite tax bloggers, Kay Bell:
Tax is applied to the estate. Thanks for bringing up this clarification Kosmo!
“For taxpayers using the head of household filing status, the basic standard deduction has increased to $8,400 for 2010. For other taxpayers, the basis standard deduction is the same as in 2009.” According to the irs website.
Pretty good article. Along the lines of 2011 Tax Brackets, I have developed a nifty little “Tax Calculator” for Federal income taxes for 2011 that helps estimate what your taxes will be next year. It is good for planning. If you are interested, just click check out taxrates.biz and it will take you to my calculators.
Great tables TDL!
Thanks for stopping by, Brad. I’ll keep this page updated with tax changes going forward.
We pay our taxes in “brackets” because we use a marginal tax system, but how much tax do we really pay on average? Actually, our average tax rate is much lower than the highest marginal rate we pay. Check out this link to determine your average vs marginal tax rates.