The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) was signed into law on December 22, 2017 by President Donald J. Trump. The passing of this act was the most significant tax code overhaul in over 30 years. Substantial changes to the tax rates and the tax base for individual income tax were changes that came about as a result of the passing of the TCJA.

Other changes that came about as a result of the signing of the TCJA is that personal and dependent exemptions were repealed, meaning taxpayers can no longer claim a deduction for personal or dependent exemptions, at least not until tax year 2026. The repeal of the personal and dependent exemptions is effective for tax years 2018-2025. For the most part, a number of the tax changes that came about as a result of the signing of the TCJA are effective for tax years 2018-2025.

In an indirect effort to minimize the sting of the repealing of the personal and dependent exemption, and to minimize the number of taxpayers who itemize deductions, the standard deduction amounts have been increased across the board. The standard deduction amount was nearly doubled.

The TCJA retained the individual AMT; however, it raised the exemption levels, and raised the income threshold at which the AMT exemption phases out. There were many changes made to the tax code as a result of the signing of the TCJA. For a brief overview of some of the changes brought about as a result of the signing of the TCJA, visit the following website: https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/how-did-tax-cuts-and-jobs-act-change-personal-taxes.