In the U$.$S$.,$ all earned income is subject to federal income tax. The tax system is divided intobrackets so that higher earners pay a higher percentage of their income in tax. For the $2023$tax year $($which is what youre filing taxes for in Spring $2024),$ the brackets are set up like thisfor a single filer:Income Tax RateUp to $$11,00010\%$Over $$11,000,$ up to $$44,72512\%$Over $$44,725,$ up to $$95,37522\%$Over $$95,375,$ up to $$182,10024\%$Over $$182,100,$ up to $$231,25032\%$Over $$231,250,$ up to $$578,12535\%$Over $$578,12537\%$A common misconception is that if youre near the border between two brackets, its advan$-$tageous to refuse a small raise because you would end up with less after$-$tax pay if you getbumped into the next higher bracket. This is totally false. The tax rates in the table above aremarginal, which means they apply only to the portions of income in each range, rather thanall of the income.Thus, earning more income will generally result in more after$-$tax pay. There are some excep$-$tions, such as an income increase disqualifying a taxpayer for the Earned Income Tax Credit$1,$