Income: Flat 5.19% for 2025, 4.99% for 2026
House Bill 111 cut the flat rate to 5.19% for tax year 2025, and the rate falls to 4.99% for tax year 2026.
Financial planning in Georgia
A flat-fee financial advisor serving Georgia.
A falling flat rate and a retirement income exclusion of up to $65,000 per person.
Flat 5.19% for 2025, 4.99% for 2026Georgia income tax, tax year 2026.
NoneGeorgia estate tax.
$150–$1,650/qtrFlat quarterly memberships, no AUM fee, no annual commitment.
Minnetonka-basedA Minnesota firm serving Georgia households virtually; no Georgia office is claimed.
Direct answer
What Is Different About Financial Planning in Georgia?
Georgia's income tax is a flat rate that keeps coming down — 5.19% for 2025 and 4.99% for 2026. Retirees do well here: from age 62 up to $35,000 of retirement income per person is excluded, rising to $65,000 from 65, and Social Security is not taxed at all. There is no estate tax. For an Atlanta household the work is about timing income into lower-rate years and, later, arranging retirement income so that a couple's $130,000 of exclusions is used every year.
Georgia tax treatment
How Georgia taxes a planning household
Figures are for tax year 2026, each read from the source beside it. Thresholds and rates are revised regularly; confirm the current year before acting on any of them. What these rules change in a household’s plan, from the order accounts are drawn to the timing of Roth conversions, is set out in the retirement tax planning overview.
Source
Retirement income: Up to $35,000 excluded from 62, up to $65,000 from 65, per person; Social Security not taxed
The retirement income exclusion is $35,000 at ages 62 to 64 and $65,000 from 65, and each spouse can claim it. Pensions, annuities, IRA distributions, interest, dividends, capital gains and rental income all count, along with up to $5,000 of earned income. Social Security is not taxed and sits outside the exclusion.
Estates: None
Georgia's estate tax was based on a federal credit and applied only to deaths before January 1, 2005. No Georgia estate tax return is required for deaths since; only the federal exclusion applies.
Worth doing here
Planning opportunities specific to Georgia
Things that are worth doing in Georgia that would not be worth doing, or would work differently, somewhere else.
Two exclusions, used every year
A couple both aged 65 or over can exclude up to $130,000 of retirement income a year from Georgia tax, and interest, dividends and capital gains count toward it. Drawing retirement income steadily rather than in lumps is what uses the full amount.
The Path2College 529 deduction
Contributions to Georgia's Path2College 529 plan can be deducted up to $4,000 per beneficiary a year, or $8,000 on a joint return, and you need not be the account owner to claim it.
A rate that falls each year
When the rate is scheduled to drop, income that can be deferred from one year to the next — a bonus, a conversion, a sale — is taxed less for waiting. The schedule is set by statute and worth checking each year.
Federal and state, together
How Georgia Tax Interacts With Your Federal Return
At roughly 5%, Georgia income tax on a high income plus metro Atlanta property tax often sits near the federal deduction cap, and above $500,000 of modified adjusted gross income the cap shrinks toward $10,000. In retirement the exclusions remove most of the state layer.
The federal deduction for state and local taxes is $40,400 for tax year 2026 and begins to shrink above $500,000 of modified adjusted gross income, down to a floor of $10,000, and is scheduled to return to $10,000 after 2029. The federal estate tax exclusion is $15,000,000 per person for deaths in 2026. IRS, Instructions for Schedule A (2025), line 5e; IRS, tax year 2026 inflation adjustments (Rev. Proc. 2025-32).
Cities
Where we work with Georgia households
Each city page covers what is local — how households there tend to be paid, what the first meeting usually covers — and inherits this state layer.
Atlanta, GA
Metro Atlanta is home to a dense group of publicly traded headquarters across consumer goods, logistics, airlines and home improvement, a large hospital and university sector, and one of the busiest corporate-relocation markets in the country.
Watch and learn
Financial Planning, Explained Clearly
Start with three videos selected for this page, then use the controls to explore every published Flames FP video guide.
Videos 1–3 of 14
What Nobody Tells You About Earning $400K a Year
See why a $400K income can still leave too little investable margin and how taxes, lifestyle growth, and deliberate investing change the result.
The RSU Strategy Most $300K Tech Earners Miss
Understand taxation at vesting, check the withholding gap, and turn each RSU vest into a deliberate diversification and household-planning decision.
The 3-Account System for a $250K Income
Use cash reserves, tax-advantaged accounts, and a taxable brokerage account to turn a strong income into a repeatable wealth-building system.
The 6 Levels of Wealth for $200K+ Households
Use six stages to separate a high income from the wealth it actually creates.
The Most Underrated Retirement Account
How a taxable brokerage account can support retirement flexibility alongside tax-advantaged accounts.
How to Decrease Your Tax Bill
Review practical tax-planning decisions that can connect income, investments, retirement, and withholding.
Should You Invest or Spend Your HSA?
A practical framework for deciding how an HSA fits healthcare costs, taxes, and retirement planning.
Four Common Backdoor Roth IRA Mistakes
Understand contribution, conversion, pro-rata, and reporting mistakes before they create tax problems.
Direct Indexing vs ETFs in a Taxable Account
Compare diversification, tax management, cost, and complexity before changing an investment strategy.
My New Favorite Account to Gift Money to Kids and Grandkids
Compare the new child investment account with 529 plans, custodial accounts, Roth IRAs for earned income, and the family's actual goals.
Estate Planning Documents You May Need
A plain-English review of wills, powers of attorney, healthcare directives, beneficiaries, and trusts.
Flat Fee vs 1% Financial Advisor
See how a percentage fee changes in dollars as a portfolio grows and what to compare beyond the headline rate.
How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?
Think through income replacement, debt, children, childcare, education, and family risk.
Five Money Mistakes High Earners Make
Common coordination gaps involving taxes, cash flow, investments, insurance, and estate planning.
Common questions
Georgia Financial Planning Questions
Does Georgia tax Social Security?
No. Social Security is not taxed by Georgia, and it does not count against the retirement income exclusion.
How much retirement income can be excluded in Georgia?
Up to $35,000 per person at ages 62 to 64 and up to $65,000 per person from 65, covering pensions, IRA distributions, interest, dividends, capital gains, rental income and up to $5,000 of earned income. Both spouses can claim it.
Is there a Georgia estate tax?
No. Georgia's estate tax applied only to deaths before 2005.
Does Flames Financial Planning have an office in Georgia?
No. Flames Financial Planning is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and serves Georgia households through a virtual planning relationship. This page describes the service area and does not claim a Georgia office.
Is Georgia tax planning part of the relationship?
Yes. State tax treatment shapes withdrawal order, Roth-conversion timing, and where investments are best held. Planning includes tax guidance and review of a completed return; Premier adds tax projections and preparation and filing through an independent tax partner.
Next step
See what a flat-fee relationship would cost a Georgia household.
A discovery meeting covers your situation, what you pay now, and whether a fixed quarterly membership is a better fit.