Iowa paychecks in 2026: what changed
Iowa's flat 3.8% rate applies to all taxable income in 2026. The withholding formula and the IA W-4 were revised for 2026 to follow federal tax changes.
The changes
- New federal withholding tables. The IRS updated Publication 15-T for 2026, including changes from the 2025 tax law. The standard deduction is $16,100 single, $32,200 married filing jointly, and $24,150 head of household.
- Social Security wage base: $184,500 (up from $176,100). If you earn more, Social Security stops later in the year.
- Tips and overtime deductions for 2025–2028 — see below.
- State income tax: 3.8% flat.
- Deduction amount in the withholding formula: $13,000 a year for "Other", $19,500 for head of household, $26,000 for married filing jointly when your spouse has no earned income.
- IA W-4 allowance for yourself: $40.
- Minimum wage: still $7.25.
Tips and overtime in 2026
New federal deductions apply for 2025 through 2028: up to $25,000 for qualified tips, and up to $12,500 ($25,000 for joint filers) for the extra "half" of time-and-a-half overtime. Both phase out above $150,000 of income ($300,000 joint).
These are deductions on your tax return. Your employer still takes Social Security and Medicare out of tips and overtime, and still withholds income tax unless you tell it otherwise. If you expect to claim them, you can put the expected amount in Step 4(b) of your W-4 (and in the Step 4(b) box above) so less income tax is withheld during the year.
Work out your 2026 Iowa paycheck →
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Sources
- IRS Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods — Worksheet 1A and the annual percentage-method tables
- IRS Publication 15 (2026), Employer's Tax Guide — Social Security and Medicare rates
- Social Security Administration — 2026 wage base of $184,500
- IRS — tips and overtime deductions
- Iowa Department of Revenue — Iowa Individual Income Tax Withholding Formula, Effective January 1, 2026 (released November 2025) — T1 = wages − deduction amount; T2 = T1 × 3.80%; T3 = T2 − allowance amount ÷ pay periods; T4 = T3 + additional; deduction amounts $13,000 / $19,500 / $26,000 a year; ten worked examples
- Iowa Department of Revenue — Iowa Withholding Tables Effective January 1, 2026 (released November 2025)
- Iowa Department of Revenue — 2026 IA W-4 Employee Withholding Allowance Certificate — filing status; line 1 $40 for yourself ($80 head of household), +$20 age 65 or blind; line 2 $40 per dependent; line 7 total allowances; line 8 additional amount; school district surtax advice
- Iowa Department of Revenue — IDR Announces 2026 Individual Income Tax and Interest Rates (October 21, 2025) — flat 3.8% on all levels of taxable income; Senate File 2442 (May 2024)
- Iowa Department of Revenue — IDR Issues New Income Withholding Tax Tables for 2026 (November 3, 2025) — formula and IA W-4 revised for 2026 federal law changes
- Iowa Administrative Code 701—307.3 — Withholding allowance certificates — an employee who fails to furnish a certificate is considered as claiming no withholding allowances
- Iowa Department of Revenue — IA 1040 expanded instructions, Line 19: School District Surtax / Emergency Medical Services Tax — surtax is a percentage of Iowa tax, based on the school district you live in on December 31, paid on the return
- Iowa Workforce Development — Unemployment Insurance Claimant Handbook 2026–2027 — "a tax paid entirely by employers"; "You do not pay any part of this cost."
- Iowa Code §91D.1 — Minimum wage — $7.25 as of January 1, 2008; tips may count for up to 40% of the minimum wage; $6.35 during the first 90 calendar days
- Iowa Code §91A.3 — Mode of payment — at least monthly, semimonthly or biweekly on regular paydays; payday no more than 12 days (excluding Sundays and legal holidays) after the end of the period
- Iowa Code §91A.4 — Payment on termination — all wages earned due no later than the next regular payday
- Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing — Wage and Child Labor: Wages — wage claims: less than one year since wages were due, under $6,500, all work in Iowa; overtime questions go to the U.S. Department of Labor
- U.S. Department of Labor — Overtime pay — time and one-half after 40 hours in a workweek