Income Taxes and Your Contribution to the War Effort
What can your tax bill actually purchase for the U.S. Military
It's tax season in the United States.
We also happen to be at war with Iran.
The overlapping of these two mostly unrelated events has resulted in a news stories about the emergence of Iran War tax protestors. Iran War tax protestors are U.S. taxpayers who are planning to not pay their 2025 Federal Income Taxes in protest of the war in Iran.
Consequences of Not Paying Your Income Taxes
Not paying your taxes can result in civil issues with the Internal Revenue Service (penalties and interest) and even criminal charges in some rare cases. Beyond civil and criminal issues, not paying your taxes can make it more difficult to qualify for a loan or pass a background checks so you must carefully consider the consequences.
How Far Do Your Tax Dollars Actually Go
Not paying taxes in protest of the Iran War raises the question of how far one taxpayers dollars actually go in funding the war. CNBC spoke with tax protestor Rachel Cohen. Cohen owes $8,830 in federal income taxes she has intentionally failed to pay in protest of the war. Ms. Cohen's $8,830 is the equivalent of 1/200th of a Tomahawk Cruise Missile or just 1/9,000th of an F-35A fighter jet.
If you're curious as to how your tax dollars can be used to fund the war then try our simple Iran War Income Tax Calculator below. Simply enter the amount of income tax you owe after credits. This amount can be located on your 2025 Form 1040, Line 22.
$
This is your total tax — the number on line 22 of your 2025 federal Form 1040.
Your Tax Dollars At Work
Your $0
in federal taxes could purchase…
How to Read This
These calculations show your individual tax contribution as a fraction of each item's cost. Of course, no single taxpayer buys any weapon alone — the U.S. government collects roughly $2.5 trillion in individual income taxes each year from over 150 million filers. But framing it this way shows how your personal contribution scales against the real cost of military equipment, as reported by the Department of Defense and Congressional Budget Office.
* Costs sourced from DoD budget documents, GAO reports, CBO analyses, and defense procurement contracts (2024–2025). Prices are approximate unit flyaway or procurement costs and may vary by production lot, variant, and contract terms. Line 22 of Form 1040 represents your total tax before credits and withholding — it is the gross tax liability figure. This calculator is for educational and illustrative purposes only.
