Vermont · figures

Vermont figures at a glance, 2026: rates, deduction, exemption, credits, dates

The numbers for the 2026 Vermont return on one page: the four brackets by filing status, the standard deduction and personal exemption, the Social Security and military retirement lines, the family credits, the property tax and renter credits, the estimated payment rules and the due dates, each with a line on what it means. The 2026 figures the Department has not yet published are marked to come, with the 2025 figure beside them.

By Charles Trautman, EA, editor

Need to Know Tax · written from Vermont Department of Taxes sources, November 3, 2026; updated November 12, 2026 after the election · not yet reviewed by a Vermont practitioner

Vermont indexes its brackets, standard deduction and personal exemption every year and publishes the final figures in late December. As of November 2026 the Department of Taxes has published preliminary 2026 rate schedules in the Form IN-114 estimated tax instructions and a $5,400 withholding allowance; the final schedules, tax tables, standard deduction and exemption are to come. The thresholds that are not indexed, the Social Security lines, the Child Tax Credit phase-out, the 3% minimum tax floor, the estate tax exemption, carry over from 2025 unless the Legislature acts, and the 2026 session did not move them (verify). Everything below is from the Department’s own forms and pages; where a figure is the 2025 one it says so.

Rates and brackets

2026 Vermont rate schedules, preliminary (verify), on Vermont taxable income
Rate	Single	Married filing jointly, surviving spouse	Head of household	Married filing separately
3.35%	$0 – $50,750	$0 – $84,700	$0 – $68,000	$0 – $42,350
6.60%	$50,750 – $122,850	$84,700 – $204,750	$68,000 – $175,500	$42,350 – $102,375
7.60%	$122,850 – $256,300	$204,750 – $312,050	$175,500 – $284,150	$102,375 – $156,025
8.75%	over $256,300	over $312,050	over $284,150	over $156,025

Base tax at the top of each bracket, single: $1,700 at $50,750; $6,459 at $122,850; $16,601 at $256,300. Joint: $2,837 at $84,700; $10,761 at $204,750; $18,916 at $312,050. For 2025 the single breakpoints were $49,400 / $119,700 / $249,700 and joint $82,500 / $199,450 / $304,000. Taxable income under $75,000 uses the tax tables, which produce the same result to within a few dollars.

The return

Deductions, exemptions and floors
Item	2026	Note
Starting point	Federal AGI, Form 1040 line 11	Act 164 ties Vermont to the Internal Revenue Code as of December 31, 2025; below-AGI federal deductions never reach IN-111
Standard deduction, single or married filing separately	to come ($7,650 for 2025)	Indexed; everyone takes it, no itemizing
Standard deduction, head of household	to come ($11,450 for 2025)
Standard deduction, joint or surviving spouse	to come ($15,300 for 2025)
Added per age-65-or-older or blind box on the federal return	to come ($1,250 for 2025)	Vermont’s only age break on the income tax
Personal exemption, per taxpayer, spouse and dependent	to come ($5,300 for 2025)	The 2026 withholding allowance is $5,400 (verify); no high-income phase-out
3% minimum tax	AGI over $150,000	Tax is at least 3% of AGI less U.S. interest; not indexed
Capital gains exclusion, Schedule IN-153	$5,000 flat, or 40% of gain on qualifying assets held over 3 years	Capped at the lesser of 40% of federal taxable income or $350,000; not for publicly traded securities or a residence
Charitable contribution credit	5% of the first $20,000 of gifts, maximum $1,000	Nonrefundable; no itemizing needed
Medical expense subtraction	Federal Schedule A medical (after 7.5% floor) minus Vermont standard deduction and exemptions	Rarely reaches zero; CCRC fee limits $480–$6,020 per person (2025)
Student loan interest subtraction	None if AGI over $120,000 / $200,000 joint	IN-112 line 16
Use tax table, if no records kept	$0 at AGI under $20,000 to $150 at $100,001 and up	IN-111 line 22; 6% rate
Local income tax	None	No Vermont city or town levies one

Standard deduction and exemption are indexed to inflation annually; the Department publishes them with the final rate schedules. The 2025 figures are from the 2025 Form IN-111 instructions.

Retirement income

Retirement exclusions, Schedule IN-112 Part I
Item	2026	Note
Social Security fully exempt, AGI up to (single, HOH, MFS, surviving spouse)	$55,000	Partial to $65,000; none at or above; set for 2025 by Act 71, not indexed
Social Security fully exempt, AGI up to (joint)	$70,000	Partial to $80,000; none at or above
CSRS or other non-covered pension exclusion	$10,000	Same AGI lines; instead of, not with, the Social Security exclusion
Military retirement and survivor pay, fully exempt at AGI up to	$125,000 (verify)	Phased out to $175,000; can be combined with the Social Security exclusion
Railroad Retirement Tier 1 and 2	All of it	No income test
Pensions, IRAs, 401(k)s, Roth conversions	Fully taxed	At the graduated rates, any age
Early withdrawal addition	24% of the federal 10% penalty	Schedule IN-119 Part I
Credit for the elderly or disabled	24% of federal Schedule R credit	Nonrefundable
Federal $6,000 senior deduction	Not on the return	Below AGI federally

The AGI tests use full federal AGI, including the taxable Social Security itself. The worked example in Vermont for retirees shows a $6,000 IRA withdrawal costing $1,166 of Vermont tax at the $80,000 line.

Family credits

Refundable and nonrefundable credits
Credit	2026	Note
Child Tax Credit, per child age 6 or under	$1,000	Children born 2020–2026; full at AGI of $125,000, −$20 per $1,000 above, zero at $174,001; refundable; no work test
Earned income credit, with a qualifying child	38% of federal	Refundable; follows federal eligibility
Earned income credit, no qualifying child	100% of federal	Refundable
Child and dependent care credit	72% of federal Form 2441 credit	Refundable
Veteran Tax Credit	$250	Full at AGI of $25,000; −$5 per $100 above; zero at $30,000; refundable; needs discharge record
VT529 credit	10% of the first $2,500 per beneficiary ($5,000 joint)	$250 ($500 joint) per beneficiary; nonrefundable; Vermont plan only
K-12 tuition credit or deduction	None
Part-year residents	Credits prorated by Vermont share of income	IN-112 Part II lines 14–17

The Child Tax Credit and EITC are filed on Schedule IN-112 Part II and paid even when no tax is due, but only on a filed return. See Credits and breaks for Vermont families.

Property tax and renter credits

Relief filed with the return but not part of the income tax
Item	Figure	Note
Homestead Declaration, Form HS-122 Section A	Due April 15 every year	Required of every owner-occupant on April 1, whatever the income; late penalty up to 3% or 8%; nonhomestead rate after October 15
Property Tax Credit household income ceiling	$115,400 (2026 claim, 2025 income); 2027 claim to come	Household income on Schedule HI-144 counts all household members and all Social Security
Property Tax Credit maximum	$8,000	$5,600 education, $2,400 municipal; paid to the town and shown on the bill
Property Tax Credit late claim	$150 off	Claims after April 15, through October 15; if the Homestead Declaration was filed by October 15, a claim is accepted to March 15 of the following year with the $150 fee, paid to the owner
Renter Credit, Form RCC-146	10% of HUD fair market rent for county and household size, income-tested	Full-year Vermont domicile, six months of rent; 2025 claim full-credit lines $21,800–$27,300 for one person; 2026 claim limits to come
Renter Credit deadline	April 15; final October 15	No extension; nothing accepted after October 15
Disabled veteran property exemption	$10,000–$40,000 of home value by town (verify)	Through the Office of Veterans Affairs, not the Department

Paying in

Withholding and estimated payments
Item	2026	Note
Withholding allowance, Form W-4VT	$5,400	Up from $5,300; effective January 1, 2026 (GB-1210)
Estimated payments required if tax after withholding is	$500 or more	Below $500, no penalty or interest
Safe harbor	100% of 2025 Vermont tax or 90% of 2026	Four equal installments; farmers and fishermen with two-thirds of income from farming or fishing exempt
Estimated due dates	April 15, June 15, September 15, 2026; January 15, 2027	Form IN-114 or myVTax; 3% fee on credit card payments
Child Care Contribution, employers	0.44% of Vermont wages	Up to a quarter may be withheld from the employee (verify)
Child Care Contribution, self-employed	0.11% of Vermont self-employment income	IN-111 line 21; paid with estimates
Nonresident real estate withholding	2.5% of sale price	Form RW-171, buyer remits within 30 days; credited on the seller’s return

Dates and penalties

2026 return
Item	Date or figure	Note
Return due	April 15, 2027	Form IN-111; Homestead Declaration and Property Tax Credit same day
Extended due date	October 15, 2027	Automatic with a federal extension; Form IN-151 only to pay or without a federal extension; extends filing, not payment
Late filing penalty	$50	None for the first 60 days after April 15; $50 from day 61; $50 if an extended return misses October 15, even with a refund
Amended return	Within 60 days of a federal change	Mark IN-111 “AMENDED,” attach Form 1040-X
Refund claim window	3 years from the due date, including extensions
Refund timing	E-filed 6–8 weeks, paper 8–12	Returns filed before January 31 held for W-2 data
Resident filing threshold	More than $100 of Vermont income, with a federal filing requirement	Nonresidents: gross Vermont income over $1,000
Estate tax exemption and filing threshold	$5,000,000	Gross estate plus taxable gifts within two years of death; filing threshold raised to match June 18, 2026; flat rate on the excess (verify); no inheritance or gift tax

What changed from 2025

Bracket breakpoints indexed about 2.7% (preliminary); single 3.35% bracket to $50,750 from $49,400, joint to $84,700 from $82,500.
Standard deduction and personal exemption: 2026 figures to come in December; withholding allowance already up to $5,400 from $5,300.
Child Tax Credit birth-year window moves to 2020–2026 from 2019–2025.
Estate tax filing threshold raised to $5,000,000 for deaths on or after June 18, 2026.
Act 164 added section 168(n) and large-business section 174A to the depreciation and research addbacks on IN-112 line 4, retroactive to 2025.
Property Tax Credit ceiling for the 2027 claim and Renter Credit limits for the 2026 claim: to come.
Unchanged: the four rates, the $55,000 / $70,000 Social Security lines, the $125,000 military line, the $150,000 minimum-tax floor, the $500 estimated payment threshold, the $50 late penalty.

Questions people ask

When will the final 2026 Vermont figures be published?

The Department normally posts the rate schedules, tax tables, standard deduction and personal exemption in late December; the 2025 set appeared December 22, 2025. Until then the IN-114 preliminary schedule is the best guide.

Is the Vermont standard deduction the same as the federal one?

No. Vermont’s was $7,650 single and $15,300 joint for 2025, plus $1,250 per age or blindness box, with the 2026 figures to come. It is taken by everyone; there is no Vermont itemizing.

What is the Vermont personal exemption for 2026?

To come. It was $5,300 for 2025, and the 2026 withholding allowance rose to $5,400, which usually tracks the exemption (verify).

How much can I owe before Vermont requires estimated payments?

Under $500 of tax after withholding and credits draws no underpayment penalty or interest. At $500 or more, pay 100% of last year’s tax or 90% of this year’s in four installments.

Check the December release before relying on a 2026 figure

The rates, Social Security lines and credits are settled; the brackets are preliminary and the deduction and exemption are not yet published, so the figures marked to come will change this page once.

Written by Charles Trautman, EA, editor  ·  Need to Know Tax, Lone Tree, Colorado
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Forms and official pages named in this article

Sources and where to check

Updated November 12, 2026, after the November 3 election · tax year 2026 figures · awaiting review by a Vermont practitioner — use the right article