What Deductions Can a Single Man Claim on Taxes?
- At the time of publication the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) allows single men and women to take a standard deduction of $5,800. By taking the standard deduction, you will not be able to itemize deductions for such things as state income tax, home mortgage interest and charitable contributions. In addition, your standard deduction will be less than the $11,600 that a married couple filing jointly can claim.
- A single man can claim the same itemized deductions as a married couple or a single woman. If you spend money on state taxes, car registration fees, medical expenses over 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income, home mortgage interest, charitable donations or a number of other items, you can list them on Schedule A and deduct them from your taxable income. However, because single men are less likely to own a home than married couples, you could have less to write off.
- As a single man, you can take a $3,700 personal exemption at the time of publication. An exemption is a dollar amount that you can subtract from your income, further reducing your taxes. Single women, married couples and families also get to claim one $3,700 personal exemption for every person in their household.
- More than deductions or exemptions, the largest impact on your total tax bill comes from your tax bracket. Tax brackets are ranges of income with a common tax percentage, which increases with income. At the time of publication your first $8,500 of income is subject to a 10-percent tax rate and the next $26,500 of income carries a 15 percent tax. Your tax rate increases to as high as 35 percent on income over $379,150 per year. People with different filing statuses typically can earn more income before the higher tax applies. Because of this, a single man earning a given amount will usually pay more tax than a married couple with the same earnings.
