Income tax in the United States
Income tax is like a game where the government asks you to pay a little bit of money based on how much money you make in a year. It's like a fee you pay for living and working in the United States.
Let's say that you have a lemonade stand and you make $10 a day. You work for 100 days so your income is $1,000. The government says that if you make less than $12,400 a year, you don't have to pay anything. That means you can keep all of your $1,000.
But if you make more than $12,400, you have to give a little bit of money to the government so they can use it to pay for things like schools, roads, and hospitals. The government uses a special chart or table to figure out how much money you have to give based on how much you make.
For example, if you make $20,000 a year, the government may say you have to give them $1,500. That might sound like a lot, but it's really just a small part of what you made. You can think of it like giving away one of your 20 lemons each day.
Some people make a lot more money than others, so they have to give more money to the government. This is called a "progressive" tax system, which means people who make more money pay a larger percentage of their income in taxes than people who make less money.
Overall, income tax is a way for the government to collect money from citizens so they can use it to provide services that benefit everyone.
Let's say that you have a lemonade stand and you make $10 a day. You work for 100 days so your income is $1,000. The government says that if you make less than $12,400 a year, you don't have to pay anything. That means you can keep all of your $1,000.
But if you make more than $12,400, you have to give a little bit of money to the government so they can use it to pay for things like schools, roads, and hospitals. The government uses a special chart or table to figure out how much money you have to give based on how much you make.
For example, if you make $20,000 a year, the government may say you have to give them $1,500. That might sound like a lot, but it's really just a small part of what you made. You can think of it like giving away one of your 20 lemons each day.
Some people make a lot more money than others, so they have to give more money to the government. This is called a "progressive" tax system, which means people who make more money pay a larger percentage of their income in taxes than people who make less money.
Overall, income tax is a way for the government to collect money from citizens so they can use it to provide services that benefit everyone.