There have been many tax law changes in 2018. While all the tax changes will not be covered in this article, we will address tax changes relating to individual taxpayers. – Tax brackets  -Standard deduction  -Personal exemptions  -Expanded Child Tax Credit -529 Savings Plan  -State and local taxes (SALT) -Mortgage interest deduction -Charitable Contributions -Medical Expenses  -Obamacare Penalties -Estate Tax Exemption -Eliminated Deductions.

• Tax Brackets 2018: 10%, 12%, 22%, 24%, 32%, 35%, and 37%
• Standard Deduction: The standard deduction amounts for 2018 are as follows: Single filer: $12,000, Married filing jointly: $24,000, Married filing separately: $12,000 Head of Household: $18,000. With the increase in the standard deduction amounts, it will not be worthwhile for many taxpayers to itemize. One of the goals of the new tax plan was to decrease the number of taxpayers who itemize. According to the Joint Committee of Taxation, they estimate that for the tax year 2018, 94% of households will claim the standard deduction instead of itemizing.
• Personal Exemptions The personal exemption of $4,050 has been eliminated.
• Expanded Child Tax Credit: For qualified children under the age of 17, the child tax credit amount has been increased from $1,000 to $2,000. In addition, the refundable part of the credit has been increased to $1,400. The phaseout threshold for the credit has dramatically increased as well. For individuals, the new phaseout threshold is $200,000 and for married couples filing jointly, the new phaseout amount is $400,000. Subject to the same income thresholds, if your child is 17 years or, or you take care of elderly relatives, you can claim a nonrefundable $500 credit.
• 529 Savings Plan: In addition to qualified college expenses, the new tax laws allow taxpayers to use funds in a 529 savings plan for private school and tutoring for children in grades K-12.
• State and Local Taxes (SALT): Income, sales, and property taxes fall under the category of state and local taxes. Under the new tax law, the maximum deduction for state and local taxes per taxpayer is $10,000.
• Mortgage Interest Deduction: The mortgage interest deduction can only be taken on mortgage debt up to $750,000. Prior to the new tax law, the amount was $1,000,000. The $750,000 applies to mortgages taken out after December 15, 2017. The new tax law does not apply to pre-existing mortgages. In addition, interest on home equity debt can no longer be deducted.
• Charitable Contributions: Up from the previous 50% cap, taxpayers can now deduct donations up to 60% of their income.
• Medical Expenses: Taxpayers can now deduct unreimbursed medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of their AGI, instead of 10% of their AGI. Obamacare Penalties There is no longer a penalty for not having health insurance. Under the new tax law, that mandate has been repealed. Note: The elimination of the penalty doesn’t go into effect until 2019. A penalty will still be imposed on the 2018 return. Also, if a change will be made they should add the $1,350 addition to the standard deduction for each taxpayer 65 and over.
• Estate Tax Exemption: The lifetime exemption for individuals is now $11.18 million and for married couples who file jointly, the exemption amount is $22.4 million.
• Eliminated Deductions  -Tax preparation expenses; -Moving Expenses -Unreimbursed employee expenses; -Employer subsidized parking and transportation reimbursement;  -Other miscellaneous itemized deductions subject to 2% cap; -Casualty and theft losses (except those attributable to a federally declared disaster). To calculate inflation, the new tax law allows for a permanent switch to the Chained CPI.

The permanent switch to the Chained CPI and the temporary tax changes is expected to eventually increase taxes for the middle class as compared to current tax law. Note that most of the changes relating to individual taxpayers are temporary and are scheduled to sunset after December 31, 2025.