Every year, the Internal Revenue Service announces cost-of-living adjustments that affect contribution limits for retirement plans and various tax deduction, exclusion, exemption, and threshold amounts. Here are a few of the key adjustments for 2025.
Estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax
- The annual gift tax exclusion (and annual generation-skipping transfer tax exclusion) for 2025 is $19,000, up from $18,000 in 2024.
- The gift and estate tax basic exclusion amount (and generation-skipping transfer tax exemption) for 2025 is $13,990,000, up from $13,610,000 in 2024.
Standard deduction
A taxpayer can generally choose to itemize certain deductions or claim a standard deduction on the federal income tax return. In 2025, the standard deduction is:
- $15,000 (up from $14,600 in 2024) for single filers or married individuals filing separate returns
- $30,000 (up from $29,200 in 2024) for married joint filers
- $22,500 (up from $21,900 in 2024) for heads of households
The additional standard deduction amount for the blind and those age 65 or older in 2025 is:
- $2,000 (up from $1,950 in 2024) for single filers and heads of households
- $1,600 (up from $1,550 in 2024) for all other filing statuses
Special rules apply for an individual who can be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer.
IRAs
The combined annual limit on contributions to traditional and Roth IRAs is $7,000 in 2025 (the same as in 2024), with individuals age 50 or older able to contribute an additional $1,000. The limit on contributions to a Roth IRA phases out for certain modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) ranges (see table). For individuals who are active participants in an employer-sponsored retirement plan, the deduction for contributions to a traditional IRA also phases out for certain MAGI ranges (see table). The limit on nondeductible contributions to a traditional IRA is not subject to phaseout based on MAGI.
Employer-sponsored retirement plans
- Employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), and most 457 plans can defer up to $23,500 in compensation in 2025 (up from $23,000 in 2024); employees age 50 or older can defer up to an additional $7,500 in 2025 (the same as in 2024), increased to $11,250 in 2025 for ages 60 to 63.
- Employees participating in a SIMPLE retirement plan can defer up to $16,500 in 2025 (up from $16,000 in 2024), and employees age 50 or older can defer up to an additional $3,500 in 2025 (the same as in 2024), increased to $5,250 in 2025 for ages 60 to 63.
Kiddie tax: child’s unearned income
Under the kiddie tax, a child’s unearned income above $2,700 in 2025 (up from $2,600 in 2024) is taxed using the parents’ tax rates.
