2026 · H-1B and H-4 households
H-4 EAD tax calculator: what your household keeps
Enter the H-1B salary and your H-4 EAD pay, or $0 without a work permit. See the couple's 2026 take-home pay on a joint return, the Social Security and Medicare each of you pays, and how much of the H-4 EAD salary you actually keep.
2026 figures, last updated .
Your household's pay
Wages on a W-2. Leave $0 if you have no work permit: filing jointly still lowers the H-1B's tax.
For the $2,200 child tax credit. A child with an ITIN does not qualify.
Estimated 2026 take-home pay, both of you
$133,988
Your H-4 EAD job adds $37,914 a year
Where your pay goes
Out of $180,000 a year before tax, both of you.
- Take-home$133,98874%
- Federal income tax$21,94012%
- State & localIncludes State Disability Insurance (SDI)$10,3026%
- Social Security & Medicare$13,7708%
Income
H-1B spouse's pay
$120,000
Your H-4 EAD pay
$60,000
Taxes
Federal income tax
$21,940
Social Security & Medicare (FICA)
$13,770
California income tax
$7,962
State Disability Insurance (SDI)
$2,340
Total tax
$46,012
Take-home
Take-home pay
$133,988
Show the math
Federal (Form 1040, married filing jointly)
Wages $180,000 − pre-tax payroll $0 = $180,000 (W-2 box 1, both W-2s)
= adjusted gross income $180,000 − deduction $32,200 = taxable $147,800
- 10% on $24,800 ($0–$24,800) = $2,480
- 12% on $76,000 ($24,800–$100,800) = $9,120
- 22% on $47,000 ($100,800–$211,400) = $10,340
FICA
FICA wages $120,000: Social Security $11,160, Medicare $2,610, including your own $4,590.
California
Starting income $180,000 − standard deduction $11,800 = taxable $168,200 → tax $7,962 (after a $316 exemption credit)
Sources: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (brackets, standard deductions, child tax credit), Notice 2025-67 and Rev. Proc. 2025-19 (401(k), IRA, HSA limits), SSA 2026 wage base, Publication 519, and each state's revenue department.
FICA from the first H-1B day
Filing jointly with an H-4 spouse
About California
California taxes HSA contributions, so they still count as California income.
Estimate for 2026 W-2 wages in one state for the whole year. It is not tax advice and not your withholding. Not included: self-employment tax on 1099 pay (15.3%, which H-4 EAD freelancers owe), the dependent care and other credits, state child credits, other income, catch-up contributions, and a spouse's 401(k). The H-1B spouse is taken to be a resident for the whole year.
How much of an H-4 EAD salary does a household keep?
With the H-1B spouse on $120,000 in Texas, a $60,000 H-4 EAD job adds $43,510 after tax, 73% of it. It is taxed from the H-1B pay's top bracket up on the joint return, and it pays 7.65% Social Security and Medicare like any job.
| H-4 EAD salary | Texas | California | New Jersey | Washington | Added by the EAD job (Texas) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No EAD, $0 | $100,780 | $97,634 | $97,035 | $100,780 | |
| $40,000 | $130,220 | $124,090 | $124,198 | $130,220 | $29,440 |
| $60,000 | $144,290 | $136,328 | $136,994 | $144,290 | $43,510 |
| $90,000 | $165,395 | $154,643 | $156,188 | $165,395 | $64,615 |
How these are worked out
- Both spouses on a joint Form 1040 as residents for all of 2026, with the $32,200 standard deduction, no children and no pre-tax deductions. Both pay Social Security and Medicare on their own wages.
- For W-2 wages. An H-4 EAD holder paid on a 1099 also owes 15.3% self-employment tax, which these figures leave out.
- State payroll programs also come out of pay and are not in these figures: California's State Disability Insurance (SDI), New Jersey's Unemployment & Workforce (UI/WF/SWF), New Jersey's Temporary Disability Insurance, New Jersey's Family Leave Insurance, Washington's Paid Family & Medical Leave. The calculator above includes them.
Figures last updated .
Read the guide
H-1B with a spouse in India or abroad: can you file a joint return?
File jointly
An H-1B and H-4 couple can file one joint return: a $32,200 standard deduction and brackets twice as wide, even if the H-4 spouse earns nothing.
H-4 EAD pay owes FICA
There is no student exemption on an H-4: 7.65% Social Security and Medicare comes out of H-4 EAD pay, on top of income tax at the household's bracket.
An SSN or an ITIN
Each spouse on a joint return needs a number. With an EAD you can get an SSN; without one, an ITIN on Form W-7 goes in with the return.
Guides for international students
Residency and status changes
H-1B with a spouse in India or abroad: can you file a joint return?
The three 2026 filing statuses for an H-1B resident whose nonresident spouse lives in India or another country, a worked example on $100,000, and what the joint-return choice costs in later years.
Residency and status changes
F-1 to H-1B and married: can a joint return lower your 2026 tax?
The IRS choices behind a joint 2026 Form 1040 after an H-1B start, how a start by July 2 or on October 1 changes the route, and an example where the joint return costs $8,072 less.
Residency and status changes
On H-1B with a spouse still on F-1: joint or separate tax returns?
Both 2026 paths side by side, an example where one joint return costs $5,282 less than two separate ones, and what your F-1 spouse gives up by choosing resident status.
Forms
Do international students need an ITIN? SSN vs ITIN explained
When an F-1 or J-1 student needs an SSN, an ITIN or neither for tax year 2026, how to apply on Form W-7, where to mail it, and when an ITIN expires.
OPT, CPT and work
Switching from F-1 to H-1B in 2026: your tax checklist
What to check before your H-1B starts, on your first H-1B paycheck, on December 31 and in the 2027 filing season, with a worked October 1 example.
Filing basics
F-2 and J-2 dependents: Form 8843, ITINs and taxes on J-2 work
What an F-2 or J-2 spouse and child file for tax year 2026, when they need an SSN or ITIN, how a working J-2 is taxed, and why most families cannot claim dependents on Form 1040-NR.
Residency and status changes
Do resident or nonresident aliens pay more tax in 2026?
A resident alien gets the $16,100 standard deduction but pays 7.65% Social Security and Medicare tax. We ran the same 2026 wages both ways in four states.
H-4 and H-4 EAD tax questions
Does an H-4 spouse have to file a tax return?
Not on their own if they have no income, but they are usually on the H-1B spouse's joint return, which lowers the couple's tax. With H-4 EAD pay, that pay goes on the joint return too.
How is H-4 EAD income taxed?
Like any wages: federal income tax on the joint return, 7.65% Social Security and Medicare, and state tax where you work. There is no FICA exemption for H-4. With the H-1B spouse on $120,000 in Texas, a $60,000 H-4 EAD job adds $43,510 after tax, 73% of it.
Should an H-1B and H-4 couple file jointly or separately?
Jointly, almost always. Filing separately gives each of you the $16,100 standard deduction and the single-width brackets, and loses some credits. With one income the gap is large: on $120,000 in Texas, joint federal income tax is about $10,040.
Does an H-4 spouse need an ITIN to file jointly?
Only without a Social Security number. An H-4 spouse with an EAD can get an SSN; one without applies for an ITIN on Form W-7, attached to the front of the joint return, which then goes to the IRS ITIN Operation in Austin.
How to apply: Getting an ITIN
Can an H-4 spouse who arrived this year be on a joint return?
Yes. If the H-1B spouse is a resident for the year, you can both choose to treat the H-4 spouse as a resident too (IRC 6013(g)) and file jointly; you then report both spouses' worldwide income. If the H-1B spouse is also new, a dual-status year can still be filed jointly if you both choose to be residents for the whole year (IRC 6013(h)).
What about H-4 EAD freelance or 1099 income?
It is self-employment income: income tax on the profit, plus 15.3% self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare for both halves) on 92.35% of it, reported on Schedules C and SE, usually with quarterly estimated payments. The calculator covers W-2 wages, so it leaves self-employment tax out.
H-1B and H-4 take-home pay by state
Take-home pay on an H-1B salary in every state and DC for 2026, single or filing jointly with an H-4 spouse.
Filing jointly with a spouse on H-4
Who can be on a joint return, the choice to treat a nonresident spouse as a resident, and the ITIN a spouse without an SSN needs.
Read the guide