US President Trump, family granted immunity from pending tax audits

Published 20 May 2026 · us

United States President Donald Trump, his family, and his businesses have been granted immunity from any ongoing audits into their tax affairs, according to a

United States President Donald Trump, his family, and his businesses have been granted immunity from any ongoing audits into their tax affairs, according to a directive by the Department of Justice. The move on Tuesday came as an addendum to Trump’s agreement a day earlier to settle a $10bn lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over the leak of his tax information to media outlets between 2018 and 2020. In a one-page document, signed by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Justice Department said authorities would be “FOREVER BARRED and PRECLUDED” from “prosecuting or pursuing” tax claims against Trump, members of his family, and his businesses. The document, which was posted on the Justice Department’s website without any official announcement or press release, stipulates that the waiver applies to inquiries that are “currently pending or that could be pending”, including any related to tax returns filed by Trump before Monday’s settlement.

Democratic lawmakers immediately blasted the move. Senator Adam Schiff of California accused the Trump administration of engaging in corruption and “self-dealing”. “The ta dodging President gets himself and his whole family a tax break, thanks to Todd Blanche,” Schiff said in a statement on social media. Nathan Goldman, a professor of an accounting and tax expert at North Carolina State University, called the move “unprecedented.” “The clause within the settlement that Trump and his family will no longer be subject to the audit process breaks from the current tax policies and puts Trump in a situation where he can pay what he believes is the correct amount without any fear of prosecution,” Goldman told Al Jazeera. “This makes him and his family different from other US taxpayers who, should they underpay their taxes, could be subject to audit, penalty, and potential jail time.” Richard Painter, the chief White House ethics lawyer under former President George W Bush, said that exempting Trump from any tax obligations would be unconstitutional.

“If the president or his family owe the IRS money, this is a violation of the domestic emoluments clause of the US Constitution, which specifically says that the president cannot receive any profits or advantages from the US government other than his salary appropriated by Congress,” Painter told Al Jazeera. Like other citizens, US presidents are legally required to file tax returns and can be audited. They are also entitled to the same privacy protections as other taxpayers. While the IRS does not disclose taxpayers’ information, every presidential candidate since 1980 had voluntarily released their tax returns until Trump broke with the tradition during his 2016 campaign. The Justice Department and the Trump Organization did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Justice Department’s directive marks a dramatic expansion in Trump’s settlement agreement, which established a so-called “Anti-Weaponization Fund” to compensate people who claim to have been victims of politically-motivated “lawfare”.