what is a flat tax 
a flat tax also known as a regressive tax applies the same tax rate to every taxpayer regardless of income bracket no deductions or exemptions are allowed most flat tax systems or proposals do not tax income from dividends distributions capital gains or other investments the bottom linethe u s has a marginal tax rate system with different tax brackets with ever increasing tax rates kicking in at different levels of income you re taxed at a certain rate for certain amounts of income that progressively get larger that is you won t pay 37 the top tax rate on all of 1 000 000 if you make that amount you would instead pay the marginal rates on income within each tax bracket up to 609 350 of income for single filers only the last 390 650 would be subject to the 37 rate correction nov 8 2023 this article has been corrected to reflect that the marginal tax rate is higher than the effective or average tax rate and to update federal tax brackets 