Current through Pub. L. 119-100Open in workspace

§ 262 Personal, living, and family expenses

(a) General rule

Except as otherwise expressly provided in this chapter, no deduction shall be allowed for personal, living, or family expenses.

(b) Treatment of certain phone expenses

For purposes of subsection (a), in the case of an individual, any charge (including taxes thereon) for basic local telephone service with respect to the 1st telephone line provided to any residence of the taxpayer shall be treated as a personal expense.

(Aug. 16, 1954, ch. 736, 68A Stat. 76; Pub. L. 100–647, title V, § 5073(a), Nov. 10, 1988, 102 Stat. 3682.)

Operative text only. Editorial notes, amendment history, and effective dates: official OLRC text of § 262

Source: decipher.legal/usc/26/262 · Internal Revenue Code, current through Pub. L. 119-100 (OLRC XML of 2026-04-17)