Jackson Hewitt® Tax Pros Explain How Tax Reform Will Impact You

"There is a lot of misunderstanding when it comes to the recent tax reform," said Mark Steber, Chief Tax Officer of Jackson Hewitt. "While most provisions won't impact 2017 taxes, you'll want to consider your unique tax situation and plan for 2018 tax returns, due in 2019, because each and every taxpayer will be impacted in some way."

These changes may not only reduce or increase taxes owed for years beginning in 2018, but they could also have an impact that working Americans will notice more immediately. Jackson Hewitt notes the changes that will affect the vast majority of Americans, below:

Your paycheck may change. The new tax brackets and tax rates have resulted in new withholding tables, meaning you could see an increase or decrease in your take-home pay starting early in 2018. The rates are generally lower and the brackets are slightly broader so the majority of taxpayers will pay less in tax.

Personal or dependent exemptions are gone. Personal exemptions were $4,050 per taxpayer, spouse and qualifying dependent in 2017. These exemptions have been removed for the 2018 tax year, meaning more of these taxpayers' income is subject to taxation.

The standard deduction has almost doubled. What you might have lost in exemptions could be made up with this significant increase to the standard deduction. In 2017, the standard deduction for single people was $6,300 and $12,600 for married couples filing jointly. The new deductions are $12,000 and $24,000, respectively.

Taxpayers who itemize deductions may now deduct qualifying medical expenses that exceed 7.5 percent of their adjusted gross income, retroactively for the 2017 tax year and moving forward into 2018. This change allows qualified taxpayers to deduct more medical expenses since the old law only counted qualifying medical expenses that exceeded 10 percent of your adjusted gross income.

There are no more business expense deductions. If you have been a remote employee who deducted a home office, travel, or other items, you've lost a large deduction.

"It's likely that several of these changes will impact many taxpayers," said Steber. "Since each person has a unique tax situation, you can't know if the person will pay more or less in taxes until you look at the whole picture. Since a tax refund can feel like the biggest paycheck of the year for some, we recommend talking to your tax pro to plan for these changes."

To schedule an appointment with a Jackson Hewitt tax pro, go to https://office.jacksonhewitt.com/office-locator

About Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc.
Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc. is an innovator in the tax industry, with a mission to provide its hard-working clients access to simple, low-cost solutions to manage their taxes and tax refunds. Jackson Hewitt is devoted to helping clients get ahead with Maximum Refund and 100% Accuracy Guarantees. With close to 6,000 franchised and company-owned locations, including 3,000 in Walmart stores, and online and mobile tax solutions, Jackson Hewitt makes it convenient for clients to file their taxes. For more information about products, services, and offers, or to locate a Jackson Hewitt office, visit www.JacksonHewitt.com or call 1 (800) 234-1040.

Methodology 
The Jackson Hewitt survey was conducted online by ResearchNow from December 19-28, 2017, among 2,062 American adults aged 18 and older. Respondents to the survey were selected from those who volunteered to participate in online surveys. One thousand fifty-nine complete surveys were collected using the sample framework based on U.S. Census data for age, ethnicity, gender, region, and income and one thousand three complete surveys were collected using a framework based on the millennial generation defined as males and females aged 20 to 36.