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Treasury Regulations · 26 CFR

§ 1.4-1. Number of exemptions.

In effect eCFR current as of October 15, 2026

Regulation text, no changes From the eCFR, current as of October 15, 2026. The eCFR is an authoritative but unofficial editorial compilation of the Code of Federal Regulations; the official text is the annual CFR on govinfo. Compare it with this section on ecfr.gov (external site) or the official annual CFR on govinfo (external site).

Regulation under 26 U.S.C. § 4

Cite as 26 CFR § 1.4-1

At a glance

Read from the text and its source citation. Not part of the regulation.

Status
In the current eCFR
Issued
November 26, 1960 by T.D. 6500
Last amended
May 18, 1971 by T.D. 7114
Issued under
26 U.S.C. § 4
Length
624 words · about 3 min to read
Cross-references
cites 2 Code sections and 3 regulations; cited by 0
(a) For the purpose of determining the optional tax imposed under section 3, the taxpayer shall use the number of exemptions allowable to him as deductions under section 151. See sections 151, 152, and 153, and the regulations thereunder. In general, one exemption is allowed for the taxpayer; one exemption for his spouse if a joint return is made, or if a separate return is made by the taxpayer and his spouse has no gross income for the calendar year in which the taxable year of the taxpayer begins and is not the dependent of another taxpayer for such calendar year; and one exemption for each dependent whose gross income for the calendar year in which the taxable year of the taxpayer begins is less than the applicable amount determined pursuant to § 1.151-2. No exemption is allowed for any dependent who has made a joint return with his spouse for the taxable year beginning in the calendar year in which the taxable year of the taxpayer begins. The taxpayer may, in certain cases, be allowed an exemption for a dependent child of the taxpayer notwithstanding the fact that such child has gross income equal to or in excess of the amount determined pursuant to § 1.151-2 applicable to the calendar year in which the taxable year of the taxpayer begins. The requirements for the allowance of such an exemption are set forth in paragraph (c) of § 1.152-1. See paragraphs (c) and (d) of § 1.151-1 with respect to additional exemptions for a taxpayer or spouse who has attained the age 65 years and for a blind taxpayer or blind spouse
(b) The application of this section may be illustrated by the following examples:
Example 1.

A, a married man whose duties as an employee require traveling away from his home, has as his sole gross income a salary of $5,600 for the calendar year 1954. His traveling expenses, including cost of meals and lodging, amount in such year to $750, and hence, his adjusted gross income is $4,850. His wife, B, has as her sole income interest in the amount of $85, and thus the aggregate adjusted gross income of A and B is $4,935. A has two dependent children neither of whom has any income. A and B file a joint return for 1954 on Form 1040. In such case four exemptions are allowable. The adjusted gross income falls within the tax bracket $4,900-4,950. By referring to such tax bracket in the tax table in section 3 and to the column headed “4” therein, the tax is found to be $407.

Example 2.

C, a married man, has as his sole income in 1954 wages of $4,600, and has two dependent children neither of whom has any income. His wife, D, has adjusted gross income of $400. C files a separate return for 1954 and is entitled to claim three exemptions. C's income falls within the tax bracket $4,600-4,650 and hence, with three exemptions his tax is $480. No exemption is allowed with respect to since D has gross income and a joint return was not filed.

Example 3.

D, a married man with no dependents, attains the age of 65 on September 1, 1954. The aggregate adjusted gross income of D and his wife for 1954 is $4,840. D and his wife file a joint return for 1954 and are entitled to three exemptions, one for each taxpayer and one additional exemption for D because of his age. Since the adjusted gross income of D and his wife falls within the tax bracket $4,800-4,850, the tax on a joint return is $509.

[T.D. 6500, 25 FR 11402, Nov. 26, 1960, as amended by T.D. 7114, 36 FR 9018, May 18, 1971]

Other regulations under § 4

Cross-references

Computed from the citations in the text of 26 CFR.

Code sections it cites

Regulations it cites

Amendment history

From the source citation at the end of the section, newest first. T.D. is a Treasury decision; FR is the Federal Register.

  1. Amended by T.D. 7114 (36 FR 9018)
  2. Issued by T.D. 6500 (25 FR 11402)

Where it sits in 26 CFR

  1. Subchapter A Income tax
  2. Part 1 Income taxes
  3. Normal Taxes and Surtaxes

Nearby sections