26 Ways the New Tax Law Will Affect Your Wallet

The new year starts with a new tax law affecting every taxpayer in the land.

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The new year starts with a new tax law affecting every taxpayer in the land. Now that a jubilant President Trump has signed the massive tax overhaul into law, it’s time for the number crunching to move from Capitol Hill to your kitchen table. Do the pros and cons found in the 500-plus pages of legislative language add up to good news or bad news for your family’s bottom line?

Here’s a look at key provisions of the new law that could affect everything from your family to your investments to your retirement planning. Most of the changes go into effect right away in 2018, but will NOT affect your 2017 tax return due in April. In almost every case, that return is covered by the old rules. Also, note that many of the changes affecting individuals are scheduled to expire after 2025. Unless a future Congress acts to extend them, most of these rules would revert to those in effect in 2017.

Kevin McCormally
Chief Content Officer, Kiplinger Washington Editors
McCormally retired in 2018 after more than 40 years at Kiplinger. He joined Kiplinger in 1977 as a reporter specializing in taxes, retirement, credit and other personal finance issues. He is the author and editor of many books, helped develop and improve popular tax-preparation software programs, and has written and appeared in several educational videos. In 2005, he was named Editorial Director of The Kiplinger Washington Editors, responsible for overseeing all of our publications and Web site. At the time, Editor in Chief Knight Kiplinger called McCormally "the watchdog of editorial quality, integrity and fairness in all that we do." In 2015, Kevin was named Chief Content Officer and Senior Vice President.