LIC-11.10 - Household Exemption

Administrative Rules Adopted by Bureaus Pursuant to Rule Making Authority (ARB)
Policy number
LIC-11.10

A. Residents within a household do not owe the tax if the household income is at or below the federal poverty guidelines for the 48 Contiguous States and the District of Columbia established by the federal Department of Health and Human Services for that tax year.

B. “Residents within a household” generally means all residents within a dwelling who are included on a single federal or state joint tax return (for example, taxfiler, spouse and dependents).

C. A person within a dwelling who is 18 years of age or older, is not a dependent on the income tax return of another person and who is not permitted to file a joint tax return under Oregon law shall be deemed a household of a single person.

1. Example: Father, mother, daughter and grandfather live within the same dwelling. Father, mother and daughter are included on a joint Oregon tax return. Grandfather is not included on that joint tax return as a dependent. Grandfather is not part of the “household” for purposes of determination of household income.

2. Example: Partner A and Partner B have a registered domestic partnership under Oregon law and are therefore permitted to file a joint Oregon tax return. Both partners are considered to be part of the household. A third person, C, lives in the dwelling who is over the age of 18, is not a dependent of A or B and is unrelated to Partner A and Partner B. C is considered to be a household of a single person.

D. “Household income” means:

1. For individuals filing a joint return for the State of Oregon, the combined income of all individuals included in that joint tax return (including dependents).

2. For individuals whose Oregon filing status is “married filing separately,” the combined income of both spouses filing (and any dependents). However, if the two married individuals are living separately and maintaining two separate households independently, each separately filed return would be considered on its own to determine household income.

3. For individuals whose Oregon filing status is “head of household,” the combined income of the individual and the “qualifying person’s” (i.e., dependent) income during the period of time the dependent lived with the individual.

4. For individuals whose Oregon filing status is “qualifying widow(er),” the income of the individual and the dependent claimed as an exemption on the tax return.

5. If no tax return is filed because the income of the household is below the filing limits, the combined incomes earned or received by the individuals who otherwise would be considered as residents of a household if a tax return were filed.

E. For purposes of determining if household income is at or below the federal poverty guideline, “Household income” includes all positive income, whether or not included in Oregon taxable income or federal adjusted gross income. Household income includes, but is not limited to income from jobs, net self-employment income, positive net rental income, Social Security benefits, PERS benefits, federal (including VA) retirement benefits, disability benefits (including VA disability), child support, unemployment benefits, alimony, pensions, interest and other investment income. Losses shall be treated as zero income.

1. For tax year 2020, “Household income” will not include unemployment compensation received by a household that is excluded from Oregon taxable income or federal adjusted gross income under the “American Rescue Plan Act of 2021”.


History

Amended by Director of Revenue Division February 3, 2016.

Amended by Director of Revenue Bureau May 2, 2013.

Adopted by Director of Revenue Bureau February 20, 2013 and filed for inclusion in PPD March 4, 2013.

Amended by Director of Revenue Bureau March 31, 2021.

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