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The Daily Insight

Did itemized deductions change in 2018?

Author

James Williams

Published Feb 12, 2026

For 2018, miscellaneous itemized deductions subject to the two-percent floor are suspended. The suspension of the miscellaneous itemized deductions subject to the two-percent floor is for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017 until tax years beginning after December 31, 2025.

Is itemized 2018 better than standard deduction?

The standard deduction amount might be lower than the amount you could deduct if you itemize. For example, the standard deduction might be less than the total amount of mortgage interest, real estate taxes and charitable contributions you’ve paid and could deduct. However, this won’t be the case for many people.

Do you have to itemize on your 2018 tax return?

When you’re sitting down to file your 2018 tax return, you’ll want to see if your deductible expenses exceed the standard deduction amount. If so, then itemizing would make the most sense. If not, the standard deduction is the way to go.

Can You itemize state taxes if you don’t itemize federal taxes?

If the itemized deductions for your state income tax return equate to less than your federal standard deduction, you could itemize on your state taxes, but wouldn’t necessarily want to itemize on your federal taxes. California, for example, allows taxpayers to itemize on their state taxes, whether or not they itemize on their federal return.

When was the last year you could take itemized deductions?

Before the tax overhaul, about 30 percent of taxpayers took itemized deductions, according to the Tax Policy Center. The 2017 tax year marked the last time you could file under the old code, so 2018 tax returns will follow the new rules.

Are there changes to itemized deductions under tax reform?

Taxpayers may only do one or the other. They either take the standard deduction or claim itemized deductions. The tax reform law made the following changes to itemized deductions that can be claimed on Schedule A for 2018. Limit on overall itemized deductions suspended.