Key Takeaways
- For the 2025 tax year, a single taxpayer under age 65 generally does not need to file if total income is below $15,750 (assuming no special circumstances apply)
- Certain types of income, like self-employment income or taxable Social Security, can trigger a filing requirement even at lower income levels
- Dependents and minors have their own, separate filing thresholds that don’t match the standard deduction rules for adults
- Filing a return is still important even if you aren’t required to file, especially if taxes were withheld or credits are available
Not everyone is actually required to file a federal income tax return.
And if your income was low enough in 2025 that you don’t have to file this year, you might be tempted to skip it.
But not required doesn’t mean you have nothing to gain by filing. So let me explain why you should still file, even if it’s optional.
How much do I have to make to file taxes for the 2025 tax year?
You generally don’t need to file a federal return for 2025 if all of the following are true:
- Your total income is less than $15,750 (the 2025 standard deduction for a single filer)
- You’re under age 65
- Your filing status is Single
- You don’t have special circumstances that require filing (like self-employment income)
The key factor here is the standard deduction. Your deductions determine how much of your income is actually taxable. If your total income doesn’t exceed the standard deduction and there’s nothing else to report, there’s no taxable income. And therefore, no filing requirement.
But that changes once other income enters the picture. Self-employment income is a common example. Even relatively small amounts can create a filing obligation, because self-employment tax applies separately from income tax.
What are the gross income thresholds for 2025?
The IRS sets different filing thresholds depending on age, filing status, and income type. These thresholds are based on your gross income, not just taxable income.
Here’s what those thresholds look like for the 2025 tax year:
| Filing Status | Taxpayer Age (at end of 2025) | File a return if gross income was at least: |
| Single | Under 65 | $15,750 |
| Single | 65 or older | $17,750 |
| Head of Household | Under 65 | $23,625 |
| Head of Household | 65 or older | $25,625 |
| Married Filing Jointly | Under 65 (both spouses) | $31,500 |
| Married Filing Jointly | 65 or older (one spouse) | $33,100 |
| Married Filing Jointly | 65 or older (both spouses) | $34,700 |
| Married Filing Separately | Any age | $5 |
| Qualifying Surviving Spouse | Under 65 | $31,500 |
| Qualifying Surviving Spouse | 65 or older | $33,100 |
How much do I have to make to file taxes on Social Security benefits?
If Social Security benefits are your only source of income, you usually don’t need to file a return.
That said, Social Security becomes taxable once your overall income crosses certain levels. Depending on your situation, part of your benefits may count as taxable income even if you don’t have wages.
For instance, if you’re married filing separately while living with a spouse, Social Security benefits are much more likely to be taxable.
Tax-exempt interest income can also trip people up. Even though municipal bond interest isn’t taxed directly, it’s still included when determining whether your Social Security benefits are taxable.
To determine whether Social Security benefits are taxable, add one-half of your Social Security benefits to all other income, including tax-exempt interest. Compare the total to the base amount for your filing status.
If that total exceeds $25,000 (single filers) or $32,000 (joint filers), some of your benefits may be taxable.
Do minors and dependents have to file taxes?
A minor has to file if they earn income above certain thresholds and are claimed as a dependent on someone else’s return.
There’s a limited exception for unearned income. If your dependent’s unearned income was less than $13,500 in 2025, you may be able to report that income on your own return instead.
For dependents with earned income, the filing threshold is tied to their own standard deduction. For a single dependent under age 65 and not blind, the standard deduction is the greater of:
- $1,350, or
- $450 plus earned income, up to the full single standard deduction of $15,750
Once earned income exceeds that amount, a tax return is required.
Should I file taxes even if I don’t have to?
Even when the IRS doesn’t require you to file a tax return, filing is still the smart move for many Paducah taxpayers. Let me give you 5 reasons why:
- If federal income tax was withheld from your paycheck and you’re owed a refund from the IRS, that money doesn’t automatically come back to you. The only way to recover those withheld dollars is by filing a return.
- If you’re self-employed, a freelancer, or have any income that isn’t subject to withholding, filing your return is how your estimated tax payments are reconciled against your actual tax liability. Sometimes that reconciliation shows you owe a bit more or that you’re entitled to a refund.
- Certain credits (like the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Child Tax Credit) can result in a refund even if you owe no tax at all. But these credits aren’t applied automatically. If you don’t file, you don’t receive them.
- Your filed tax return is often treated as proof of income. Lenders, McCracken County mortgage companies, student loan programs, and even some government benefits rely on recent tax returns to verify earnings.
- If the IRS later receives income documents (like a late Form 1099) that don’t match what they have on file, a filed return helps anchor the record. It also avoids the possibility of penalties or interest if a filing requirement turns out to apply after all.
Final thoughts
Skipping your tax return can feel like a relief when you’re not required to file. But it can also mean leaving money unclaimed (or creating avoidable complications later).
If you’re unsure whether filing makes sense for your situation, that’s a good conversation for us to have in the next few weeks:
FAQs
“I made less than 15K this year. Do I really need to bother filing?”
From a legal standpoint, if you’re single and under 65, the answer is likely no. However, from a financial standpoint, you might be leaving money on the table. If your Paducah employer withheld federal income tax from your paychecks, the only way to get that money back is to file a return.
“I only did a little bit of gig work in 2025. Do I need to file taxes?”
Yes. If you had net earnings of $400 or more from self-employment, you are required to file a return. This is because you have to pay into Social Security and Medicare, which isn’t automatically taken out of your gig pay like it is at a 9-to-5 job.
“How much do I have to make to file taxes if I receive Social Security income?”
Usually, you don’t have to file taxes if Social Security is your only income source. But if you have other income, like a part-time job, a pension, or even tax-exempt interest, it could trigger a formula that makes part of your Social Security taxable. If half of your Social Security plus all your other income exceeds $25,000 (Single) or $32,000 (Married Filing Jointly), you should definitely check if a return is required.
“My teenager has a part-time job. Do they have to file their own taxes?”
It depends on how much they made. For 2025, if they earned more than $15,750, they must file. If they earned less than that but had taxes withheld, they should file to get their refund. Just remember: even if they file their own return, you can usually still claim them as a dependent on yours as long as you’re providing more than half of their support.
“Will filing a low-income return help me get a loan later?”
Absolutely. If you’re planning to apply for a mortgage, a car loan, or even student financial aid (FAFSA), those institutions almost always ask for your most recent tax returns. If you skip filing because you weren’t required to, you might find yourself having to file back taxes later just to prove your income to a lender.
