What do Trump's tax returns show?

Former US President Donald Trump's tax returns have been released, ending a bitter six-year long battle to gain greater insights into his finances.

The returns stretch from 2015 through 2020, covering Mr Trump's candidacy and time in the White House.

They give details of various entities through which he would have paid tax, including holdings companies and personal income.

Responding to the release, Mr Trump's camp warned that the disclosure would lead to the US political divide becoming "far worse".


Newly released tax returns for former President Donald Trump have shed light on his business losses, complicated tax set-ups and tax payments during his White House years.

However, they are unlikely to have a major political impact as he eyes another presidential run, experts say.

The documents confirmed that Mr Trump paid no federal taxes in 2020 and only $750 (£622) in 2016 and 2017.

He paid close to $1m in 2018, however.



A long legal battle led to the release of the records, and Mr Trump criticised the disclosure, warning that it will deepen the US political divide.

He added that the returns "show how proudly successful I have been and how I have been able to use depreciation and various other tax deductions as an incentive for creating thousands of jobs and magnificent structures and enterprises."

Although there's no law requiring it, it is tradition for presidents to publish their tax returns.

US presidents are paid a salary like any worker, but many also earn income from their personal businesses and investments.

The newly released documents include tax returns and related documents for Donald Trump, the Donald J Trump Revocable Trust and seven corporate entities.

They represent only a fraction of the former president's over 400 separate business interests.


The records also show that the Internal Revenue Service - the US federal entity responsible for collecting taxes - did not audit Mr Trump during the first years of his presidency, only beginning in 2019 after Democrats sought to gain access to his tax records.

The finding led to criticism from Democrats. Don Beyer, a member of the committee that oversaw the record release, said that the IRS' auditing system was broken and that "Congress has so much work to do to make tax enforcement in this country fairer."

In a memo cited in an earlier report, the IRS noted that "it is not possible to obtain the resources available to examine all potential issues" associated with Mr Trump's hundreds of business interests.

Maryanne Monforte, a professor of accounting practices at Syracuse University, said the tax returns represent a "quagmire" even for professionals.

"He's the quintessential businessman and he's got his hands in everything," she said. "He started out in real estate, and that creates a level of complexity between valuations, revenues, losses and depreciation. That all means his return has an added layer of complexity that you might not see with other billionaires."



How much taxes have other presidents paid - and how does Trump compare?
In some years, Mr Trump paid a far smaller proportion of his income than other recent presidents. In 2018, he and his wife earned $24.3m in adjusted gross income. But he paid just under $1m, giving him a tax rate of just 4.1%. In America, spouses file together.

In other years, because he reported huge business losses, Mr Trump's tax burden was actually greater than what he earned on paper. For example, in 2017, he lost money but still paid taxes.

In comparison, Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama's taxable income peaked in 2009, when they took home $5.5m, and paid about 30% in taxes. Most of their income came from the sales of Mr Obama's two books, Dreams from My Father and Audacity of Hope.

As his book sales dwindled, Mr Obama's taxable income declined considerably - in 2015, the couple earned just $447,880, almost all from his presidential salary, and paid about 18% of their income to the IRS.

George W Bush did not write his presidential biography until after he left office - while he was president, he and his wife Laura Bush averaged an income of about $800,000. About half came from salaries, and the other half came from interest and investments. They had an average tax rate of 27.8%.

Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary Clinton started off in 1992 making just under $300,000 a year, mostly from salaries, and paying 23.6%. of their income to tax. In 1996, Mrs Clinton's book helped the couple earn over $1m, but their tax rate actually declined to 18.5%.