Yes. Minors follow the same federal tax rules as adults once their income passes IRS limits, and there is no minimum age. For tax year 2026 a dependent must file if wages are over $16,100, unearned income such as interest is over $1,350, or net self-employment earnings are $400 or more. For tax year 2025 the wage line is $15,750.

How much can a teenager make before paying taxes in 2026?

If wages are their only income, a teen you claim as a dependent can earn up to $16,100 in 2026 without owing federal income tax, because that is the 2026 standard deduction, up from $15,750 in 2025. Social Security and Medicare still come out of every paycheck, whatever the amount.

Do minors get taxes taken out of their paycheck?

Usually yes. Employers withhold 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare (7.65% in total) from a W-2 paycheck regardless of age, and that is not refundable. Federal income tax withheld based on the teen's Form W-4 can come back as a refund if they earn under the filing threshold and file a return.

What is the kiddie tax for 2026?

The kiddie tax covers a child's unearned income (interest, dividends, capital gains), not wages. In 2026 the first $1,350 is tax-free, the next $1,350 is taxed at the child's rate, and anything over $2,700 is taxed at the parent's rate. It can apply to children under 18, and to 18-year-olds and full-time students aged 19 to 23 whose earned income is not more than half of their support.

Should my teen file a tax return even if they do not have to?

Often yes. If an employer withheld federal income tax and the teen earned under the filing threshold, filing a return is how they get that money back as a refund. Filing also creates a small paper trail and is good first practice. It does not cost anything to file a simple return.

At what age does a child have to start paying taxes?

There is no age threshold. Taxes depend on how much a child earns and what kind of income it is, not how old they are. A young child with a large custodial investment account can owe the kiddie tax, while a 17-year-old whose only income is under $16,100 in wages in 2026 owes no federal income tax. Age only changes a few narrow rules, like the Social Security and Medicare exemption for a child under 18 who works for a parent's sole proprietorship.

Does my child's income affect my tax return?

Usually no. Your child reports their own income on their own return, and a qualifying child has no income limit, so a job does not by itself stop you from claiming them; the test that matters is that the child did not provide more than half of their own support. If a child's only income is interest and dividends under $13,500 (the 2025 and 2026 limit), you may be able to report it on your own return with IRS Form 8814 instead.

Do minors pay state income taxes?

It depends on the state. States like Texas, Florida, and Washington have no personal income tax, so a working teen there deals only with federal rules. States that do tax income set their own filing thresholds, which are often lower than the federal one, so a teen can owe state tax even when they owe no federal income tax. Check your state tax website for the current limits.

By the Penny Time editorial team June 24, 2026

Reviewed by the Penny Time editorial team

Part of our Earning hub.

Do Minors Pay Taxes? A 2026 Guide for Parents and Teens

Quick answer

Do minors pay taxes?

Yes. Minors follow the same federal tax rules as adults once their income passes IRS limits, and there is no minimum age. For tax year 2026 (the return filed in 2027), a teen you claim as a dependent has to file if their wages are over $16,100, their unearned income such as interest or dividends is over $1,350, or their net self-employment earnings are $400 or more. For tax year 2025 the wage line is $15,750 and the other two are the same.

Most teens with a part-time job stay under the wage line and owe no federal income tax. Social Security and Medicare still come out of every W-2 paycheck at 7.65%, whatever the teen's age, and a side hustle that nets $400 or more owes 15.3% self-employment tax on most of the profit.

This guide is educational information, not tax advice. Tax thresholds change every year and every family's situation is different. Check IRS.gov or talk to a tax professional before filing.

When does a minor have to file a tax return?

There is no minimum age for paying taxes. What matters is how much a child earns and what kind of income it is. A single dependent under 65 has to file a federal return if any line in this table applies:

**Filing thresholds for a dependent child, by tax year**
Type of income	Tax year 2025	Tax year 2026
Earned income (wages, salary, tips)	More than $15,750	More than $16,100
Unearned income (interest, dividends)	More than $1,350	More than $1,350
Net self-employment earnings	$400 or more	$400 or more
Gross income (earned plus unearned)	More than $1,350 or earned income plus $450, whichever is larger	More than $1,350 or earned income plus $450, whichever is larger

Tax year 2025 is the return filed in 2026; tax year 2026 is the return filed in 2027. Sources: IRS Publication 501 (2025), Table 2, and the 2025 Form 1040 instructions. The 2026 column applies the 2026 amounts in IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (a $16,100 standard deduction, and the same $1,350 and $450 dependent figures) to the same rules, until the IRS publishes the 2026 edition of Publication 501.

The self-employment line surprises a lot of parents. A teen who nets $400 or more mowing lawns or reselling sneakers has to file and pay self-employment tax, which is the Social Security and Medicare they now owe as their own boss. The rate is 15.3%, charged on 92.35% of net earnings, and the IRS says these rules apply no matter how old you are. A teen who nets $1,000 owes about $141.

The mixed-income rule that catches savers

A teen with a job and a savings account can have to file even when both income lines look safe. Take tax year 2025: a 16-year-old earns $5,000 in wages and $600 in interest. Each is under its own line. But their gross income of $5,600 is more than $5,000 plus $450, or $5,450, so they must file, and they owe tax on the $150 above their standard deduction. For most working teens, more than $450 of interest or dividends on top of their wages means filing a return.

Practice with their own money before the first paycheck

In Penny Time you set a recurring allowance and it lands on schedule. On their own phone or tablet, your child sees every deposit in their transaction history, checks their balance and asks you to cash out. It helps kids practice the habit a first paycheck needs: check what came in, then decide what to do with it. No device for them yet? You can track the allowance from your phone.

How old do you have to be to pay taxes?

There is no minimum or maximum age. A child actor and a retiree follow the same rules: what triggers tax is how much they earn and what type of income it is, not how many birthdays they have had. A toddler with a large custodial investment account can owe the kiddie tax, while most teenagers earn under the wage line ($15,750 for 2025, $16,100 for 2026) and owe no federal income tax at all.

Age only changes a handful of narrow rules. A child under 18 who works for a parent's sole proprietorship, or a partnership where each partner is a parent, does not pay Social Security and Medicare on those wages. That exemption does not cover a corporation, even one a parent controls. And the kiddie tax on unearned income applies to children under 18, plus 18-year-olds and full-time students aged 19 to 23 whose earned income is not more than half of their support.

Earned income vs unearned income

The tax rules treat two kinds of income very differently, so it helps to know which is which:

Earned income is money a teen works for: wages from a job, tips, or self-employment. It is taxed at the teen's own (usually very low) rate.
Unearned income is money that comes from assets: interest, dividends, and capital gains from a savings or custodial investment account. This is where the kiddie tax can apply.

How the dependent standard deduction works

A teen you claim as a dependent does not get the full standard deduction. Their deduction is the greater of $1,350 or their earned income plus $450, capped at the regular amount. That cap is $15,750 for tax year 2025 and $16,100 for tax year 2026, and the $1,350 and $450 figures are the same in both years.

In practice, wages up to the cap are covered in full, while unearned income gets only a small share of the deduction. A teen with $3,000 in wages and nothing else gets a $3,450 deduction and owes no income tax. A child whose only income is $2,000 of interest gets $1,350, so $650 is taxable.

What is the kiddie tax?

The kiddie tax stops families from shifting investments into a child's name just to get a lower tax rate. It applies only to unearned income, not to wages from a job. It works in three layers:

**How the kiddie tax stacks up (tax years 2025 and 2026)**
Child's unearned income	How it is taxed
First $1,350	Tax-free (covered by the standard deduction)
Next $1,350 (up to $2,700)	Taxed at the child's rate
Over $2,700	Taxed at the parent's rate

It applies when a child has more than $2,700 of unearned income, is required to file a return, does not file a joint return, has at least one living parent, and is one of these:

Under 18 at the end of the tax year
18 at the end of the year, with earned income not more than half of their support
A full-time student aged 19 to 23, with earned income not more than half of their support

Source: IRS Instructions for Form 8615 (2025) and Topic 553. For tax year 2026 the underlying $1,350 amount is unchanged (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), so the $2,700 line stays the same.

For most kids with a normal savings account, interest never gets close to these amounts, so the kiddie tax never comes up. It mainly matters for children with sizable custodial investment accounts.

Does my teen get taxes taken out of their paycheck?

Usually yes, and this is the part that confuses new workers. Two different things can come out of a teen's W-2 paycheck:

FICA (Social Security and Medicare): 6.2% for Social Security plus 1.45% for Medicare, 7.65% in all, with the same rates for 2025 and 2026. The IRS says wages are generally subject to these taxes regardless of the employee's age, so $2,000 of summer wages loses $153. This is not refundable. The narrow exception is a child under 18 working for a parent's sole proprietorship or a partnership of the parents.
Federal income tax: withheld based on the Form W-4 the teen fills out when hired. If the teen earns under the wage line for the year and has no other income, this withholding can be claimed back as a refund.

Raise kids who understand how money works

Download the app, add your child, and connect their phone or tablet by scanning a code. About a minute, no email needed for kids.

How setup works for you and your child →

No ads. No data selling. No credit card.

Will my teen get a tax refund?

Often, yes. If an employer withheld federal income tax during the year but the teen's only income was wages under the standard deduction ($15,750 for 2025, $16,100 for 2026), the teen owes no income tax and can get that withholding back by filing a simple return. They will not get FICA back, but reclaiming withheld income tax is a common reason teens file even when they are not required to.

How to help your teen file their first return

Find their Form W-2 (from a job) or 1099 forms (from freelance or investment income), usually available by late January.
Check the thresholds above to see whether filing is required, or worth it for a refund.
Use free filing. The IRS Free File program covers simple returns at no cost.
Sit with them the first time. Filing together turns a chore into a money lesson they will use for life.

Key takeaway

Minors do pay taxes, but most teens with a part-time job earn well under the wage line and owe no federal income tax. The two things parents most often miss are that FICA comes out of every paycheck regardless of age, and that a side hustle netting $400 or more triggers self-employment tax. When in doubt, filing a simple return is cheap insurance and a great first money lesson.

Sources

Frequently Asked Questions

: Yes. Minors follow the same federal tax rules as adults once their income passes IRS limits, and there is no minimum age. For tax year 2026 a dependent must file if wages are over $16,100, unearned income such as interest is over $1,350, or net self-employment earnings are $400 or more. For tax year 2025 the wage line is $15,750.
: If wages are their only income, a teen you claim as a dependent can earn up to $16,100 in 2026 without owing federal income tax, because that is the 2026 standard deduction, up from $15,750 in 2025. Social Security and Medicare still come out of every paycheck, whatever the amount.
: Usually yes. Employers withhold 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare (7.65% in total) from a W-2 paycheck regardless of age, and that is not refundable. Federal income tax withheld based on the teen's Form W-4 can come back as a refund if they earn under the filing threshold and file a return.
: The kiddie tax covers a child's unearned income (interest, dividends, capital gains), not wages. In 2026 the first $1,350 is tax-free, the next $1,350 is taxed at the child's rate, and anything over $2,700 is taxed at the parent's rate. It can apply to children under 18, and to 18-year-olds and full-time students aged 19 to 23 whose earned income is not more than half of their support.
: Often yes. If an employer withheld federal income tax and the teen earned under the filing threshold, filing a return is how they get that money back as a refund. Filing also creates a small paper trail and is good first practice. It does not cost anything to file a simple return.
: There is no age threshold. Taxes depend on how much a child earns and what kind of income it is, not how old they are. A young child with a large custodial investment account can owe the kiddie tax, while a 17-year-old whose only income is under $16,100 in wages in 2026 owes no federal income tax. Age only changes a few narrow rules, like the Social Security and Medicare exemption for a child under 18 who works for a parent's sole proprietorship.
: Usually no. Your child reports their own income on their own return, and a qualifying child has no income limit, so a job does not by itself stop you from claiming them; the test that matters is that the child did not provide more than half of their own support. If a child's only income is interest and dividends under $13,500 (the 2025 and 2026 limit), you may be able to report it on your own return with IRS Form 8814 instead.
: It depends on the state. States like Texas, Florida, and Washington have no personal income tax, so a working teen there deals only with federal rules. States that do tax income set their own filing thresholds, which are often lower than the federal one, so a teen can owe state tax even when they owe no federal income tax. Check your state tax website for the current limits.

Raise kids who understand how money works

Download the app, add your child, and connect their phone or tablet by scanning a code. About a minute, no email needed for kids.

How setup works for you and your child →

No ads. No data selling. No credit card.

Put this into practice this week

Add your child in Penny Time and, on their own phone or tablet, they can watch a real balance grow, take on quests, and ask for cash-outs you approve. Free for the whole family.