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that eliminates the need for many taxpayers to itemize actual deductions, such as medical ex­ penses, charitable contributions, and taxes, on Schedule A (Form 1040). The standard deduc­ tion is higher for taxpayers who: Are 65 or older, or Are blind. You benefit from the standard deduc- tion if your standard deduction is more than the total of your allowable item- ized deductions. Persons not eligible for the standard de- duction. Your standard deduction is zero and you should itemize any deductions you have if: 1. Your filing status is married filing sepa­ rately, and your spouse itemizes deduc­ tions on his or her return, 2. You are filing a tax return for a short tax year because of a change in your annual accounting period, or 3. You are a nonresident or dual­status alien during the year. You are considered a dual­status alien if you were both a non­ resident and resident alien during the year. If you are a nonresident alien who is married to a U.S. citizen or resident alien at the end of the year, you can choose to be treated as a U.S. resident. (See Publi­ cation 519.) If you make this choice, you can take the standard deduction. If an exemption for you can be claimed on another person's return (such as your parents' return), your standard de- duction may be limited. See Standard Deduc­ tion for Dependents, later. Standard Deduction Amount The standard deduction amount depends on your filing status, whether you are 65 or older or blind, and whether another taxpayer can claim an exemption for you. Generally, the standard deduction amounts are adjusted each year for inflation. The standard deduction amounts for most people are shown in Table 6. Decedent's final return. The standard deduc­ tion for a decedent's final tax return is the same as it would have been had the decedent contin­ ued to live. However, if the decedent was not 65 or older at the time of death, the higher stand­ ard deduction for age cannot be claimed. Higher Standard Deduction for Age (65 or Older) If you are age 65 or older on the last day of the year and do not itemize deductions, you are en­ titled to a higher standard deduction. You are considered 65 on the day before your 65th birthday. Therefore, you can take a higher standard deduction for 2014 if you were born before January 2, 1950. Use Table 7 to figure the standard deduction amount. TIP CAUTION ! Death of taxpayer. If you are preparing a re­ turn for someone who died in 2014, consider the taxpayer to be 65 or older at the end of 2014 only if he or she was 65 or older at the time of death. Even if the taxpayer was born be­ fore January 2, 1950, he or she is not consid­ ered 65 or older at the end of 2014 unless he or she was 65 or older at the time of death. A person is considered to reach age 65 on the day before his or her 65th birthday. Higher Standard Deduction for Blindness If you are blind on the last day of the year and you do not itemize deductions, you are entitled to a higher standard deduction. Not totally blind. If you are not totally blind, you must get a certified statement from an eye doctor (ophthalmologist or optometrist) that: 1. You cannot see better than 20/200 in the better eye with glasses or contact lenses, or 2. Your field of vision is 20 degrees or less. If your eye condition is not likely to improve beyond these limits, the statement should in­ clude this fact. Keep the statement in your re­ cords. If your vision can be corrected beyond these limits only by contact lenses that you can wear only briefly because of pain, infection, or ulcers, you can take the higher standard deduction for blindness if you otherwise qualify. Spouse 65 or Older or Blind You can take the higher standard deduction if your spouse is age 65 or older or blind and: 1. You file a joint return, or 2. You file a separate return and can claim an exemption for your spouse because your spouse had no gross income and cannot be claimed as a dependent by an­ other taxpayer. Death of spouse. If your spouse died in 2014 before reaching age 65, you cannot take a higher standard deduction because of your spouse. Even if your spouse was born before January 2, 1950, he or she is not considered 65 or older at the end of 2014 unless he or she was 65 or older at the time of death. A person is considered to reach age 65 on the day before his or her 65th birthday. Example. Your spouse was born on Febru­ ary 14, 1949, and died on February 13, 2014. Your spouse is considered age 65 at the time of death. However, if your spouse died on Febru­ ary 12, 2014, your spouse is not considered age 65 at the time of death and is not 65 or older at the end of 2014. You cannot claim the higher standard deduction for an individual other than yourself and your spouse. CAUTION ! Examples The following examples illustrate how to deter­ mine your standard deduction using Table 6 and 7. Example 1. Larry, 46, and Donna, 33, are filing a joint return for 2014. Neither is blind, and neither can be claimed as a dependent. They decide not to itemize their deductions. They use Table 6. Their standard deduction is $12,400. Example 2. The facts are the same as in Example 1, except that Larry is blind at the end of 2014. Larry and Donna use Table 7. Their standard deduction is $13,600. Example 3. Bill and Lisa are filing a joint re­ turn for 2014. Both are over age 65. Neither is blind, and neither can be claimed as a depend­ ent. If they do not itemize deductions, they use Table 7. Their standard deduction is $14,800. Standard Deduction for Dependents The standard deduction for an individual who can be claimed as a dependent on another per­ son's tax return is generally limited to the greater of: 1. $1,000, or 2. The individual's earned income for the year plus $350 (but not more than the reg­ ular standard deduction amount, generally $6,200). However, if the individual is 65 or older or blind, the standard deduction may be higher. If you (or your spouse if filing jointly) can be claimed as a dependent on someone else's re­ turn, use Table 8 to determine your standard deduction. Earned income defined. Earned income is salaries, wages, tips, professional fees, and other amounts received as pay for work you ac­ tually perform. For purposes of the standard deduction, earned income also includes any part of a taxa­ ble scholarship or fellowship grant. See chap­ ter 1 of Publication 970 for more information on what qualifies as a scholarship or fellowship grant. Example 1. Michael is 16 years old and single. His parents can claim an exemption for him on their 2014 tax return. He has interest in­ come of $780 and wages of $150. He has no itemized deductions. Michael uses Table 8 to find his standard deduction. He enters $150 (his earned income) on line 1, $500 ($150 + $350) on line 3, $1,000 (the larger of $500 and $1,000) on line 5, and $6,200 on line 6. His standard deduction, on line 7a, is $1,000 (the smaller of $1,000 and $6,200). Example 2. Joe, a 22­year­old college stu­ dent, can be claimed as a dependent on his pa­ rents' 2014 tax return. Joe is married and files a separate return. His wife does not itemize de­ ductions on her separate return. Joe has $1,500 in interest income and wages of $3,800. Page 24 Publication 501 (2014)