No Tax on Overtime for Police Officers and Firefighters: How 7(k) Changes the Math
Short answer: Police and firefighters are not exempt from FLSA overtime, so their FLSA-required overtime premium can be deducted up to $12,500 ($25,000 joint). But public agencies can use 7(k) work periods: firefighters get overtime only after 212 hours in 28 days and police after 171 hours, so a 56-hour firefighter week produces far less FLSA overtime than a 40-hour rule would suggest. Overtime your department pays under a union contract beyond what the FLSA requires isn't qualified.
Not exempt, but on a different clock
The Department of Labor says the white-collar exemptions don't apply to police officers, detectives, deputy sheriffs, state troopers, correctional officers, firefighters, paramedics, EMTs and similar first responders, regardless of rank or pay level. Their overtime comes from section 7 of the FLSA, which is what the tax deduction requires.
The wrinkle is section 7(k). A public agency may pay overtime on a "work period" basis of 7 to 28 consecutive days. For fire protection staff the threshold in a 28-day period is 212 hours; for law enforcement it is 171. Shorter periods scale down: 106 and 86 hours in 14 days, or 53 and 43 hours in 7 days. A department's collective bargaining agreement may pay more generously, but that extra is not required by the FLSA and is therefore not part of qualified overtime compensation.
Worked examples (2026 tax year, single filer)
| Firefighter, 24-on / 48-off | Police officer, 48-hr weeks | |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly rate | $34.00 | $38.00 |
| Hours per 28-day period | 224 | 192 |
| 7(k) threshold per 28 days | 212 | 171 |
| FLSA overtime hours per 28 days | 12 | 21 |
| Overtime hours per year | 156 | 274 |
| Qualified overtime (half-time premium) | $2,659 | $5,201 |
| Approx. total pay (MAGI) | $101,939 | $100,310 |
| Deduction | $2,659 | $5,201 |
| Estimated federal income tax saved | $585 | $1,144 |
A firefighter on a 24-on / 48-off rotation works about 9.33 shifts, or 224 hours, per 28 days. That is only 12 hours above the 212-hour threshold, so about 156 hours of FLSA overtime a year. Under the ordinary 40-hour rule, the same 56-hour average week would produce 16 hours of overtime every week, or about $14,144 of half-time premium: roughly 5.3 times as much. That gap comes from the 7(k) work-period rule itself, not from the tax deduction.
The police officer works four 10-hour shifts plus an 8-hour extra shift each week: 48 hours, or 192 in 28 days. That's 21 hours over the 171-hour threshold. For contrast, an officer on a 2-2-3 schedule averaging 84 hours per 14 days (168 per 28) has 0 FLSA overtime hours, because 168 is below 171.
Illustrative. We assume a 365-day year (13.04 periods of 28 days), straight-time hourly rates with no differentials, and that all overtime is paid in cash.
Public agencies may offer compensatory time off instead of cash overtime. We found no IRS guidance on how comp time is treated for the deduction before it is cashed out. Overtime pay that your contract provides above FLSA requirements (for example, premium for hours under the 7(k) threshold) is generally not qualified. Your W-2 box 12 code TT should show the qualified portion; if it seems low, ask payroll how it was calculated.
Frequently asked questions
Do police officers and firefighters get overtime under the FLSA?
Yes. They are not exempt as executive, administrative or professional employees regardless of rank or pay, according to the Department of Labor. But public agencies may use a 7(k) "work period" of 7 to 28 days. For firefighters overtime starts after 212 hours in a 28-day period, and for police after 171 hours.
What are the 7(k) thresholds for shorter work periods?
For work periods of at least 7 but less than 28 days, the threshold scales proportionally: fire protection personnel are due overtime after 106 hours in a 14-day work period, and law enforcement personnel after 86 hours in 14 days. For 7 days, those are 53 and 43 hours.
Is comp time deductible?
Public agencies may give compensatory time at not less than 1.5 hours for each overtime hour in lieu of cash, and police and fire employees can accrue up to 480 hours. We found no IRS guidance on whether comp time counts as qualified overtime compensation before it is paid out or cashed in. The deduction is for compensation paid, so ask your payroll office and a tax professional.
Are paramedics and EMTs treated like firefighters?
The Department of Labor says fire protection personnel include firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, rescue workers, ambulance personnel and hazardous materials workers who are trained in fire suppression and employed by a fire department of a municipality, county, fire district or state, among other conditions. Employees who do not meet all the criteria are not treated as fire protection personnel under section 3(y) of the FLSA.
Do I need to be a sworn officer to be treated as law enforcement?
The Department of Labor defines law enforcement personnel as employees empowered by state or local ordinance to enforce laws, who have the power to arrest and have undergone law enforcement training. An employee who spends more than 20 percent of the workweek or work period in nonexempt activities is not considered engaged in law enforcement activities under the FLSA, so the 7(k) threshold would not apply to that person.
Sources and citations
Every dollar figure on this page was checked against the official pages below on November 14, 2026. If an agency updates its guidance, the agency page controls.
- U.S. DOL Fact Sheet #8: Law enforcement and fire protection employees under the FLSA
- U.S. DOL Fact Sheet #17A: Exemption for executive, administrative, professional, computer and outside sales employees
- IRS FS-2026-01: Questions and answers about the deduction for qualified overtime compensation
- IRS: General Instructions for Forms W-2 and W-3 (2026)
- IRS Publication 6133 (Rev. 3-26): tips and overtime deductions