Learning Center
We keep you up-to-date on the latest tax changes and news in the industry.
Tax Reform Muted the AMT: Holders of Incentive Stock Options, Take Note
Article Highlights
- Alternative Minimum Tax
- Deterrent to Tax Shelters
- Tax Reform Changes
- Tax Deductions and Preferences
- Incentive Stock Options
- Tax Planning Opportunity
Congress originally developed the AMT in 1969 as a means to prevent high-income individuals from using tax shelters to reduce their taxes. For the AMT, federal income tax is calculated without certain deductions and tax preferences. This tax applies if it is greater than the regularly computed income tax. Although it has since been indexed to inflation, the AMT at one point began to apply to middle-income taxpayers, who are not the intended targets of this punitive tax.
The AMT computation includes a tax-exempt amount, but this amount begins to phase out for taxpayers whose adjusted gross income (AGI) exceeds a certain threshold (depending on their filing status). Although the tax reform did not eliminate the AMT, it did mute that tax considerably by increasing the AMT exemptions and by substantially raising the exemption-phaseout thresholds, as illustrated below. The exemptions and AGI phaseout thresholds will be inflation-adjusted in future years.
|
AMT EXEMPTIONS ($)
|
||
| Status | 2017 | 2018 |
| Married Filing Jointly or Surviving Spouse | 84,500 | 109,400 |
| Single or Head of Household | 54,300 | 70,300 |
| Married Filing Separately | 42,250 | 54,700 |
|
EXEMPTION-PHASEOUT AGI THESHOLDS
|
||
| Status | 2017 | 2018 |
| Married Filing Jointly or Surviving Spouse | 160,900 | 1,000,000 |
| Single or Head of Household | 120,700 | 500,000 |
| Married Filing Separately | 80,450 | 500,000 |
These are the tax deductions and preferences that most often affect the average taxpayer:
- Some itemized deductions are allowed for the regular tax computation but not for the AMT computation.
- Tier II miscellaneous itemized tax deductions are not allowed for the AMT computation; in addition, for the years 2018 through 2025, they are also not allowed for the regular tax computation. This category primarily includes employee business expenses, investment expenses, and legal fees. As these expenses aren’t currently deductible in either tax calculation, there is no adjustment for the AMT calculation.
- The AMT computation does not allow the itemized deduction for interest on home-equity debt; such debt also is not deductible in the regular computation through 2025, which eliminates another difference in the two computations.
- Employee incentive stock option tax preferences are also handled differently in the two computations, as is discussed in more detail later in the post.
Incentive stock options – Employers sometimes grant employees qualified stock options (i.e., incentive stock options), as motivation to become more involved in the company’s success and to share in the company’s stock appreciation.
For these options, the employer grants the employee an opportunity to purchase the company’s stock at a preset price on a future date. An option is usually accompanied by a vesting schedule that details the date when the options can be exercised (i.e., when the stock can be purchased). Once the employees has held these shares for more than a year—and for at least two years after the option was granted—any subsequent gains from sales of the stock are subject to the capital-gains tax instead of the ordinary (less favorable) income tax.
The Catch – The catch for incentive stock options is that, in the year when the employee exercises the option and purchases the stock, the difference (often referred to as the “bargain element”) between the stock’s current market value and the price that the employee paid as part of the option is treated as a tax preference. Thus, this difference is added to the employee’s AMT income but is not included in the regular tax income. In the past, this usually triggered the AMT, which meant that the employee had to pay tax on the phantom income in the year of the option, even though there was no actual stock sale. As a result, many employees have shied away from taking full advantage of incentive stock options; rather than holding the stock for the required qualifying period, they have been selling the stock in the year when they exercised the option, resulting in the profit being classified as ordinary income.
(Note that nonqualified stock options are not eligible for the beneficial tax treatment that incentive stock options are afforded. When a nonqualified option is exercised, the bargain element is included in the employee’s wages as ordinary income for the year when the option is exercised. However, this ordinary income is not a preference item for AMT purposes. Most employees who exercise nonqualified stock options immediately sell the stock so that they have money to pay the payroll taxes related to the resulting ordinary income. The paperwork that the employer provides when awarding the option states whether the option is qualified or nonqualified.)
Opportunity – The changes in the AMT present low- to moderate-income taxpayers with an opportunity to exercise incentive stock options without triggering the AMT.
If you hold incentive stock options, it may be possible to develop a plan—perhaps a multiyear plan—that will allow you to exercise your options without incurring phantom income in the AMT calculation. Please call this office for assistance in developing such a plan.
Want our best tax and accounting tips and insights delivered to your inbox?
Sign up for our newsletter.
Benefits of having a business advisor
Your CFO, Reimagined as a Financial Doctor
Diagnosing root causes, prescribing solutions, and guiding your property business toward long-term wealth.
Our CFO | Advisor
Raquel is a passionate business owner. Now, she is returning to her grassroots with a twist - guiding clients with her expertise as a CPA, she can advise your company as your trusted CFO and Advisor.
-
Raquel Deodanes, MS, CPA
Co-Founder✅ CPA with Real-World Experience – I help property managers stay profitable, tax-efficient, and cash flow positive.
✅ Tax Strategist – Former advisor at California’s revenue agency.
✅ Trusted by 4,000+ Businesses – Experience across CA, FL, TX, NV, and beyond.
✅ Real Estate Investor – I understand the financial realities of property management.
✅ Entrepreneur – I’ve built businesses and know the challenges you face.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
We diagnose financial inefficiencies, treat problems like poor cash flow or rising costs, and guide you to long-term financial health. That includes cleaning up your books, forecasting cash flow, optimizing operations, and helping you grow your portfolio with confidence — just like a doctor builds a custom care plan for a patient.
-
Bookkeepers record transactions. CPAs file your taxes. We connect the dots — helping you understand your numbers, strategically improve them, and make smarter decisions throughout the year. We work alongside your existing team to drive performance, not just compliance.
-
If you're unsure where your cash is going, struggling with rising costs, planning to scale, or just tired of reacting instead of planning — now is the right time. We help you get ahead of problems, not just clean up after them.
-
Clients typically see improved cash flow, cleaner books, higher NOI, better financial reporting, and a lot less stress at tax time. More importantly, you gain clarity, confidence, and control over your business — and a partner who helps you grow it.
Pricing
Painless, transparent pricing.
Let us take away your stress and give you back your time. Choose your perfect package today.
Base
-
Dedicated finance expert
-
Bookkeeping with accrual basis
-
Includes P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow statements
Core
-
Includes everything in Base, PLUS
-
Industry KPIs and financial ratios
-
Monthly virtual 1-hr meetings
-
Monthly rolling budget forecasts
Growth
-
Includes everything in Base, CORE
-
Budget vs. actuals variance analysis and review
-
Payroll and HR Platform