Delaware · the numbers
Delaware figures at a glance, 2026
Every Delaware number for the 2026 return in one place: the seven brackets, the standard deduction and its age add-on, the $110 credits, the retirement exclusion, the credits and their percentages, the estimated-tax rules and the dates. Each with a one-line note, and a short list of what changed from 2025. For anyone who files in Delaware, and for anyone checking a preparer’s work.
By Charles Trautman, EA, editor
Need to Know Tax · written from Delaware Division of Revenue sources, November 3, 2026; updated November 12, 2026 after the election · not yet reviewed by a Delaware practitioner
Delaware’s numbers are easy to carry around because almost none of them move. The brackets are fixed in the code and have been the same since 2014; the standard deduction has been $3,250 since 2000; the personal credit has been $110 since 1996. The Division of Revenue reprinted every one of them on its 2026 Form PIT-EST worksheet, so the 2026 figures below are confirmed, not projected. The only 2026 changes are a 20% cap on bonus depreciation for property placed in service this year, a new domicile test for the $12,500 retirement exclusion at age 60, and a future increase in the military pension exclusion that starts in 2027. The return is due April 30, 2027.
The rate schedule
| Taxable income | Tax on the lower figure | Rate on the excess |
|---|---|---|
| $0 to $2,000 | $0 | 0% |
| $2,000 to $5,000 | $0 | 2.2% |
| $5,000 to $10,000 | $66 | 3.9% |
| $10,000 to $20,000 | $261 | 4.8% |
| $20,000 to $25,000 | $741 | 5.2% |
| $25,000 to $60,000 | $1,001 | 5.55% |
| Over $60,000 | $2,943 | 6.6% |
The same schedule applies to single, joint, separate and head-of-household returns; a married couple does not get wider brackets. Taxable income is federal AGI, plus and minus Delaware modifications, minus the Delaware standard or itemized deduction. The Division publishes a tax table for incomes under $60,000 that rounds these figures.
The core figures
| Item | 2025 | 2026 | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting point | Federal AGI | Federal AGI | Form PIT-RES, line 1. After-AGI federal deductions never reach it. |
| Top rate and where it starts | 6.6% at $60,000 | 6.6% at $60,000 | Not indexed; unchanged since 2014. |
| Standard deduction, single, head of household or separate | $3,250 | $3,250 | Fixed by §1108 since 2000. |
| Standard deduction, joint | $6,500 | $6,500 | Exactly double; no marriage bonus beyond that. |
| Additional standard deduction, 65 or older | $2,500 | $2,500 | Per taxpayer or spouse; only with the standard deduction. |
| Additional standard deduction, blind | $2,500 | $2,500 | Stacks with the age amount, $5,000 maximum per person. |
| Personal credit, per federal exemption | $110 | $110 | Taxpayer, spouse and each dependent. Nonrefundable. |
| Extra personal credit, 60 or older | $110 | $110 | Per taxpayer or spouse 60 or older on December 31. |
| Itemizing for Delaware without itemizing federally | Allowed | Allowed | Form PIT-RSA; federal Schedule A amounts less Delaware income tax claimed elsewhere. |
| SALT cap on Form PIT-RSA | $40,000 / $20,000 MFS | $40,000 / $20,000 MFS | Flows through from the federal law; the Division confirmed it. |
| Social Security and Railroad Retirement | Not taxed | Not taxed | Subtracted in full at any age and income, §1106(b)(4). |
| Pension and eligible retirement income exclusion, 60 or older | $12,500 per person | $12,500 per person | Covers pensions, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals, dividends, interest, capital gains and net rents. New for 2026: 3 years of Delaware domicile required (verify). |
| Pension exclusion, under 60 | $2,000 | $2,000 | Pension income only; IRA and 401(k) money does not count. |
| Military pension exclusion, any age | $12,500 | $12,500 | Rises to $15,000 for 2027, $20,000 for 2028, $25,000 for 2029 and later (SB 219). |
| Capital gains rate | Ordinary rates | Ordinary rates | No preference; 6.6% above $60,000 of taxable income. |
| Bonus depreciation, property placed in service in the year | Federal 100% | 20% | HB 255; 0% from 2027 through 2030. Section 179 unaffected. |
| Local income tax | Wilmington 1.25% | Wilmington 1.25% | City filing, residents and people working in the city; no Delaware credit. None elsewhere. |
The credits and subtractions
| Item | Figure | Refundable? | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earned income credit, option A | 4.5% of the federal EITC | Yes | Residents and part-year residents; chosen each year on Schedule II of PIT-RES. |
| Earned income credit, option B | 20% of the federal EITC | No | Pick whichever is worth more; software should run both. |
| Child and dependent care credit | 50% of the federal credit | No | Residents only; the 2025 form caps the entry at $3,000. |
| State child tax credit | None | Each dependent is a $110 personal credit instead. | |
| Volunteer firefighter, ambulance and rescue credit | $1,000 per active member | No | Each spouse separately; residents only. |
| Credit for income tax paid to another state or D.C. | Lesser of the other state’s tax or Delaware tax on the same income | No | Attach the other state’s return; city and county taxes do not qualify. |
| DE529 Education Savings Plan subtraction | $1,000 single / $2,000 joint | Not available above federal AGI of $100,000 single / $200,000 joint. | |
| Delaware ABLE account subtraction | $5,000 single / $10,000 joint | No income limit. | |
| Interest on U.S. obligations | Subtracted in full | Other states’ municipal bond interest is added back. | |
| Renter credit, property tax credit, K-12 credit | None | Senior school property tax relief is claimed through the county, not on PIT-RES. |
Nonresidents filing Form PIT-NON cannot claim the EITC, the child care credit or the firefighter credit.
Worked example: what $75,000 pays, single and married
Two households, each with $75,000 of federal AGI, no Delaware modifications, under 60, taking the standard deduction. The same schedule applies to both, so the couple’s only advantages are the larger deduction and the second $110.
| Single | Married filing jointly | |
|---|---|---|
| Federal AGI | $75,000 | $75,000 |
| Standard deduction | −$3,250 | −$6,500 |
| Delaware taxable income | $71,750 | $68,500 |
| Tax: $2,943 plus 6.6% of the excess over $60,000 | $3,719 | $3,504 |
| Personal credits at $110 | −$110 | −$220 |
| Delaware tax | $3,609 | $3,284 |
| As a share of AGI | 4.8% | 4.4% |
Single: 6.6% of $11,750 is $775.50, added to $2,943. Joint: 6.6% of $8,500 is $561. If both spouses were 65 or older the couple would add $5,000 to the standard deduction and $220 more in credits, cutting the tax to about $2,734; if the income were pensions and IRA withdrawals and both were long-time residents, two $12,500 exclusions would take about $1,424 more off, leaving $1,310.
Filing, estimates and penalties
| Item | Figure | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Return and payment due | Friday, April 30, 2027 | Fifteen days after the federal date. Form PIT-RES or PIT-NON. |
| Extension | To October 15, 2027 | Form PIT-EXT or the Delaware Taxpayer Portal, filed by April 30. The federal extension is not accepted in its place. Payment is not extended. |
| Interest on tax unpaid after April 30 | 0.5% a month | Plus a late-payment penalty of 1% a month, up to 25%; late filing with a balance due, 5% a month. |
| Estimated payments required when Delaware tax after withholding will exceed | $800 | Form PIT-EST or the Portal. |
| 2026 estimated payment dates | April 30, June 15, September 15, 2026; January 15, 2027 | The first payment lands on the return due date, not April 15. |
| Safe harbor | 90% of this year’s tax or 100% of last year’s | 110% of last year’s if last year’s federal AGI exceeded $150,000 ($75,000 MFS). |
| Underpayment penalty | 1.5% a month | Figured on Form PIT-UND; no penalty if the shortfall is $800 or less. |
| Filing threshold, under 60, single / joint | $9,400 / $15,450 | From the 2025 instructions; higher at 60 and at 65. Nonresidents file with any Delaware-source income. |
| Amended return | Form PIT-RES with the amended box checked | Three years from the original due date or two years from payment; report federal changes within 90 days. |
| Earliest refunds | Mid-February 2027 | 2025 refunds were not issued before February 16, 2026. E-filed refunds in as little as 10 days; paper about 12 weeks. |
Beyond the income tax
| Item | 2026 |
|---|---|
| Sales tax | None, state or local. Businesses pay a gross receipts tax on their own sales instead. |
| Estate, inheritance and gift tax | None; the estate tax was repealed for deaths after December 31, 2017. |
| Realty transfer tax | 4% of the price, state and local combined, usually split between buyer and seller; a first-time-buyer reduction applies. |
| Senior School Property Tax Credit, 65 or older | 50% of school property tax on the primary residence, up to $500; 10 years of residency for arrivals after January 1, 2018; apply through the county (verify). |
| Reciprocal states for wages | None. Commuters to or from Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey file two returns and take a credit. |
What changed from 2025
Bonus depreciation, 20% instead of 100%. House Bill 255, signed November 19, 2025, decouples individuals and pass-through owners from the federal 100% allowance for property placed in service after December 31, 2025. The 2026 Delaware figure is 20%, then zero from 2027 through 2030. Expect an addback on the 2026 return (verify the line).
Domicile test for the $12,500 exclusion at 60. Senate Bill 219, signed August 17, 2026, requires three years of Delaware domicile for anyone 60 or older claiming the pension and eligible-retirement-income exclusion, five years for anyone domiciled on or after January 1, 2027. The Division has not said how it applies to 2026 returns (verify).
Military pension exclusion, scheduled to rise. Same act. $12,500 for 2026, then $15,000, $20,000 and $25,000 for 2027, 2028 and 2029 onward, at any age.
Tips, overtime, car-loan interest and the senior deduction: no change, by design. All four federal deductions come after AGI and do not reach Delaware. Nothing to add back; the income was never removed.
Everything else unchanged. Brackets, standard deduction, $2,500 age and blindness amounts, $110 credits, EITC percentages, child care percentage, DE529 and ABLE limits, the $800 estimate threshold and the April 30 due date are all the same as 2025.
Behind the scenes: why nothing is indexed
Delaware wrote its brackets, deduction and credit into the code as dollar figures, and the code has no inflation clause. The federal government indexes nearly everything; Delaware indexes nothing. The result is that a figure which looked generous when enacted shrinks every year. The $60,000 top bracket was set when $60,000 was a comfortable household income; today an ordinary full-time salary reaches 6.6%. The $3,250 standard deduction was about three-quarters of the federal figure in 2000 and is now a fraction of it. Changing any of these takes a bill, and the bill that would have done it, HB 13, failed to get out of committee in June 2025. The upside for the reader is that the 2026 numbers were knowable in January 2026, which is rare.
What to bring
- Last year’s Form PIT-RES, to compare the figures line by line
- Dates of birth for the taxpayer and spouse: the $110 extra credit starts at 60, the $2,500 extra deduction at 65
- Every 1099-R, with the distribution code, for the $12,500 exclusion
- Your 1099-DIV, 1099-INT and 1099-B totals, which also count toward the exclusion at 60
- The date your Delaware domicile began, if you are 60 or older and arrived within the last five years
- Property tax and mortgage interest figures, to test Form PIT-RSA against the $3,250 / $6,500 standard deduction
- DE529 and ABLE contribution statements
- Estimated payment confirmations from the Delaware Taxpayer Portal
Questions people ask
Did the Delaware brackets change for 2026?
No. Seven brackets from 0% to 6.6%, the top one starting at $60,000 for every filing status. They have been the same since 2014 and the Division printed them unchanged on the 2026 estimated-tax worksheet.
What is the Delaware standard deduction for 2026?
$3,250 for a single, head-of-household or separate return and $6,500 joint, plus $2,500 for each taxpayer or spouse who is 65 or older and another $2,500 for blindness. You can itemize on Form PIT-RSA instead, even if you took the federal standard deduction.
Does Delaware have personal exemptions?
Not as a deduction. Delaware gives a $110 credit for each federal exemption, taxpayer, spouse and each dependent, plus $110 more for each taxpayer or spouse who is 60 or older. The credit is nonrefundable.
Is the $12,500 exclusion still $12,500?
Yes, for 2026, for anyone 60 or older, and for a military pension at any age. The military figure rises to $15,000 in 2027. The new wrinkle is a three-year Delaware domicile requirement for claimants 60 or older, added in August 2026, which the Division has yet to explain for 2026 returns.
When is the Delaware return due?
April 30, 2027. The extension runs to October 15, 2027, but it must be requested on Form PIT-EXT or the Delaware Taxpayer Portal by April 30; the federal extension does not count, and the tax is still due April 30.
Does Delaware tax tips and overtime for 2026?
Yes, in full. The federal deductions for both come after AGI and never reach the Delaware return.
Seven fixed brackets, one small deduction, one credit per head
Know that 6.6% starts at $60,000 for everyone and that the return is due April 30, and most Delaware arithmetic is done.
Written by Charles Trautman, EA, editor · Need to Know Tax, Lone Tree, Colorado
Questions about this article in Delaware are answered by [your practice name] · [your phone] · [your email address]. We’re looking for an EA or CPA in each Delaware city to hold that city’s seat and take this spot — is that you?
An invitation to Delaware EAs and CPAs
These Delaware pages were written by the editor from the Delaware Division of Revenue’s own publications, and they need a Delaware practitioner’s eye. One enrolled agent or CPA in each Delaware city holds that city’s seat: reads these pages before the filing season and is credited as a reviewer, is named on every page of their city’s edition, and answers its readers’ questions. $1,000 for the 2026 season, the charter price. Take your city’s seat (a two-minute form and a card), tell us you’re interested, write to editor@needtoknowtax.com, or read how it works.
Forms and official pages named in this article
- Form PIT-RES, Delaware Resident Individual Income Tax Return (2025 version)
- Form PIT-RSA, Delaware Schedule A, Itemized Deductions
- Form PIT-EST instructions, 2026: estimated tax rules, rate schedule and worksheet
- Form PIT-UND, Underpayment of Estimated Taxes
- Form PIT-EXT, Application for Extension of Time to File
- Division of Revenue: Personal Income Tax Forms
- Delaware Taxpayer Portal
Sources and where to check
- Division of Revenue: 2026 Form PIT-EST instructions (2026 rate schedule, standard deduction, $110 credit, $800 threshold, safe harbor)
- Division of Revenue: 2025 Form PIT-RES instructions (due date, extension, filing thresholds, EITC, child care credit, exclusion)
- Delaware Code, Title 30, Chapter 11, Subchapter II (§1106 modifications, §1108 standard deduction, §1110 credit, §1114, §1117)
- Division of Revenue: Tax Season Updates (federal conformity, refund date)
- Division of Revenue: Personal Income Tax FAQs (rates, interest and penalties, exclusion)
- Division of Revenue: Technical Information Memorandum 2025-02 (HB 255)
- Delaware General Assembly: Senate Bill 219
- HB 13 / HS 2 for HB 13, bill history