Much of the conversation around taxes the past few months has been about the sweeping changes to the tax code that President Trump signed into law just before the holidays.

Tina Orem

Much of the conversation around taxes the past few months has been about the sweeping changes to the tax code that President Trump signed into law just before the holidays. But here's the thing: Most of those rules took effect Jan. 1 " the start of the 2018 tax year. The tax return you have to file by April 17, however, is for the 2017 tax year.

So before the big changes, here are some littler ones " the tinkering and adjusting that the IRS does each year " that you should know about as your W-2s and 1099s start arriving.

Tax brackets and tax rates

The seven tax rates are what they have been the past few years " 10%, 15%, 25%, 28%, 33%, 35% and 39.6% " but the thresholds have been adjusted:

Tax rateSingleMarried, filing jointlyHead of householdMarried, filing separately10%$0 to $9,325$0 to $18,650$0 to $13,350$0 to $9,32515%$9,326 to $37,950$18,651 to $75,900$13,351 to $50,800$9,326 to $37,95025%$37,951 to $91,900$75,901 to $153,100$50,801 to $131,200$37,951 to $76,55028%$91,901 to $191,650$153,101 to $233,350$131,201 to $212,500$76,551 to $116,67533%$191,651 to $416,700$233,351 to $416,700$212,501 to $416,700$116,676 to $208,35035%$416,701 to $418,400$416,701 to $470,700$416,701 to $444,550$208,351 to $235,35039.6%$418,401 or more$470,701 or more$444,551 or more$235,351 or moreStandard deduction

The standard deduction for single taxpayers and married couples filing separately is $6,350. For married couples filing jointly, it's $12,700. And for heads of households, it is $9,350. (Go here for help deciding whether to itemize or take the standard deduction.)

Filing statusStandard deduction amountSingle$6,350Married, filing jointly$12,700Head of household$9,350Married, filing separately$6,350

The standard deduction is $1,250 higher ($1,550 if unmarried and not a surviving spouse) for those who are 65 and over or blind. If someone can claim you as a dependent, you get a smaller standard deduction.

Personal exemption

The personal exemption is the same in 2017 as it was in 2016: $4,050 per person. However, not everyone can take the personal exemption; it phases out depending on your adjusted gross income. The thresholds for those phaseouts have been adjusted:

Filing status2017 personal exemption starts to phase out once AGI hits:2017 personal exemption is unavailable once AGI hits:Single$261,500$384,000Married, filing jointly$313,800$436,300Head of household$287,650$410,150Married, filing separately$156,900$218,150Retirement plan contribution and income limits

'A lot of people don't know that they have until [the April filing deadline] to make IRA contributions, and have that be deductible for the prior year,' says Mike Pine, a certified public accountant at Pine & Company CPAs in Keller, Texas.

In 2017, the limit on annual IRA contributions remains the same: $5,500 ($6,500 if you're 50 or older). There are two kinds of IRAs " traditional and Roth " and while their differences are many, one that matters here is that contributions to a traditional IRA can be tax-deductible.

But that deduction phases out at higher incomes. If you or your spouse were covered by a retirement plan at work, the deduction also could be lower. If you (and your spouse, if you have one) aren't covered by a retirement plan, the phaseouts below don't apply:

2017 Traditional IRA deduction rules Filing status2017 modified AGITax deductionMarried filing jointly or qualifying widow or widowerIf you're covered by a workplace retirement plan: Less than $99,000
If your spouse is covered: Less than $186,000Full deduction up to contribution limitIf you're covered by a workplace retirement plan: Between $99,000 and $118,999
If your spouse is covered: Between $186,000 and $195,999Partial deductionIf you're covered by a workplace retirement plan: $119,000 or more
If your spouse is covered: $196,000 or moreNo deductionSingle or head of household$62,000 or lessFull deduction up to contribution limitMore than $62,000 but less than $72,000Partial deduction$72,000 or moreNo deductionMarried filing separatelyIf you or your spouse is covered by a workplace retirement plan: Less than $10,000Partial deductionIf you or your spouse is covered: $10,000 or moreNo deductionStudent loan interest deduction

The student loan interest deduction lets you subtract up to $2,500 of interest payments from your taxable income if you make less than a certain amount. Those income phaseouts changed for people filing joint returns for 2017:

Deduction starts to phase out once modified AGI hits$65,000 ($135,000 married filing jointly)Deduction unavailable once modified AGI hits$80,000 ($165,000 married filing jointly)Earned Income Tax Credit

The EITC credit is intended to reduce or eliminate the tax paid by low- and moderate-income wage earners (go here for more on how it works). Below are the maximum credits available, plus the max you can earn before losing the benefit altogether.

Number of children you claimMax earnings
single filers can haveMax earnings
married filers can haveMax EITC credit you can get0$15,010$20,600$5101$39,617$45,207$3,4002$45,007$50,597$5,6163 or more$48,340$53,930$6,318Limit on itemized deductions

You may not be able to deduct 100% of your taxes paid, interest paid, charitable donations, job expenses and other deductions if your adjusted gross income is above a certain level. In 2017, those thresholds increased. (Note that some deductions aren't subject to these limits, meaning you can take the deduction regardless of AGI as long as you qualify.)

Filing statusAGI thresholdSingle$261,500Married, filing jointly$313,800Head of household$287,650Married, filing separately$156,900