Do Teens Need to Pay Taxes Now?

Stephanie Liang, Walter Payton College Preparatory, Sophomore, Fall 2024

Ugh taxes! According to the Tax Foundation,  they are confusing to over 61 percent of American adults and even more so for Americans under 18 (Callaway, 2024). This problem emerges with increasingly competitive college acceptances. Programs like After School Matters, which matches teens with paid summer internships, and One Summer Chicago, which offers employment and internship opportunities, are becoming more prominent because of this upward trend of ambitious students looking for new opportunities.

As this group grows, so does the number of confused kids dealing with taxes. Tax forms are pages upon pages filled with vague and confusing jargon, so many may relate to Walter Payton College Preparatory student, Katelyn Tran, who says, “the majority of people my age would feel lost if suddenly forced to fill out tax forms”. The question now is, do kids under 18 actually have to pay taxes? The simple answer is yes, but under certain circumstances, after a certain threshold.

“If someone under 18 earns more than $14,600 per year from their internship or job, they need to file their own 1040 tax return,” says Yanming Zhu, an accountant who has worked with Ladder Up to provide tax services. Now to specify, according to Fidelity, a private financial services company, if an unmarried, able, dependent student has unearned income  (income from trusts, interest, etc) of more than $1,350 or earned income (income from salaries, tips, etc) over $15,000 for the 2025 tax year, they would have to file a return  (Fidelity, 2025). If, however, one is under more complicated tax situations, it is advisable to contact a tax professional or financial advisor for the best steps forward.

While filing and understanding taxes is nuanced and ever-changing, it’s possible. We don’t plan on seeing a stop to this new wave of educated, ambitious students who have new streams of income, so it’s better to learn about taxes now than later. There are tools and resources to help along the way. Zhu recommends the IRS website for its comprehensive tax information suitable for teens. Other resources like FreeFiles, Ladder Up, and VITA sites are great starting points that offer tax services, often at no charge depending on your income level, and additional information. 

https://taxfoundation.org/blog/national-tax-literacy-poll-education/#:~:text=On%20average%2C%20over%2061%20percent,know%20how%20tax%20brackets%20work.  

https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/personal-finance/kiddie-tax#:~:text=For%20a%20child%20with%20no,taxed%20at%20the%20parents%27%20rate. 

Yanming Zhu, previous accountant at Ladder Up (non-profit that provides tax services)

Katelyn Tran, senior at Walter Payton College Prep