The 15 Percent Rate on Capital Gains: A Casualty of the Alternative Minimum Tax

Publication Date: March 2007

Publisher: Tax Policy Center

Author(s): Greg Leiserson

Research Area:

Keywords: Tax Policy; Taxation of Households; Individual Alternative Minimum Tax; Savings

Type: Report

Abstract:

Tax rate reductions on long-term capital gains and qualifying dividends were a key, highly touted component of the tax cuts passed in the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (JGTRRA). However, like the 2001?2006 tax cuts more broadly, taxpayers affected by the individual alternative minimum tax (AMT) may not pay the advertised lower rates. This article explains the interaction between the capital gains rate and the AMT and provides example tax calculations for two sample taxpayers.