Fraud loss table 2026: the federal amendments raise the dollar cutoffs in the §2B1.1 loss table for inflation but keep all 16 tiers. No increase now applies to losses of $9,000 or less (previously $6,500), and the +14 tier starts above $750,000 (previously $550,000). A loss that falls between an old cutoff and a new one usually drops one tier, which is 2 offense levels.
If you or a family member is waiting on a federal fraud sentencing, the loss table is probably the biggest factor in your guideline range. The table was set to change on November 1, 2026. The change is smaller than many early client alerts said, but it can still lower a sentencing range. This article covers what changed, what did not, and how a pending case gets recalculated.
What changed: an inflation adjustment
The U.S. Sentencing Commission adopted a package of amendments on April 16, 2026, in what its news release calls "unanimous votes." The package was to go to Congress by May 1, 2026 and, "absent congressional action, go into effect on November 1, 2026."
The release lists one change for economic crimes: an update to "the economic crime guidelines to account for inflation," which it calls "an adjustment that has not been made in more than ten years." The rest of the package simplifies how multiple counts of conviction are handled, removes more than two dozen specific offense characteristics that are rarely or never applied, clarifies sentencing options (probation, fine, imprisonment), and adds an amendment for the HALT Fentanyl Act. The Commission's emailed version of the release lists the same highlights.
Commission Chair Judge Carlton W. Reeves said the amendments came out of public comment and data: "Today's common sense, good government amendments were informed by this valuable feedback," he said, "as well as the Commission's sentencing data."
The structure of the loss table did not change. AMC Defense Law puts it this way: "The loss table keeps all sixteen tiers and only the dollar figures move." AMC estimates the cutoffs went up by roughly 36 percent.
Old and new loss table cutoffs
AMC Defense Law lists the full table this way:
| Offense level increase | Old cutoff (loss more than) | New cutoff (loss more than) | | --- | --- | --- | | No increase | $6,500 or less | $9,000 or less | | +2 | $6,500 | $9,000 | | +4 | $15,000 | $20,000 | | +6 | $40,000 | $55,000 | | +8 | $95,000 | $150,000 | | +10 | $150,000 | $200,000 | | +12 | $250,000 | $350,000 | | +14 | $550,000 | $750,000 | | +16 | $1.5 million | $2 million | | +18 | $3.5 million | $5 million | | +20 | $9.5 million | $15 million | | +22 | $25 million | $35 million | | +24 | $65 million | $90 million | | +26 | $150 million | $200 million | | +28 | $250 million | $350 million | | +30 | $550 million | $750 million |
Other sources confirm parts of this table. ArentFox Schiff reports the +14 cutoff moving from $550,000 to $750,000 and the +20 cutoff moving from $9,500,000 to $15,000,000. Law360 reports the same move for the 14-level tier. Steptoe reports that the minimum rises from $6,500 to $9,000 and the top tier from $550 million to $750 million.
Tax cases are affected too. ArentFox Schiff reports that in the tax table (§2T4.1), the 22-level increase now starts above $2,000,000 instead of $1,500,000.
Some things did not move. AMC Defense Law reports that the health care fraud thresholds in §2B1.1(b)(7) were not amended. It also notes that departures were abolished in the previous amendment cycle, effective November 1, 2025.
What did not pass, and why it matters
In December 2025 the Commission put out much broader proposals. Epstein Becker Green summarized them in January 2026:
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An eight-tier loss table in place of the 16-tier table.
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A 2-level decrease for defendants who acted at an employer's direction out of fear of losing their job, or because of a family or intimate relationship, threats, or unusual vulnerability.
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A tiered decrease for stopping the activity, returning money or property, or reporting the offense before knowing of an investigation.
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A separate rehabilitation adjustment in a new §3E1.2.
None of these were adopted. Law360 reported on adoption day that "One of the proposals that was not adopted by the commission would have restructured the loss calculation formula" by cutting half of the table's tiers. Steptoe also lists "reducing the number of tiers from sixteen to eight" among the proposals that were not adopted. Law360 and Steptoe both report that the §3E1.2 rehabilitation adjustment was not adopted. AMC Defense Law reports that the proposed reductions for defendants "who acted under employer pressure" and those "who stopped and self-reported before learning of an investigation" were dropped.
Some early client alerts described these proposals as adopted. If your defense plan depends on a guideline reduction for coercion, early repayment, or rehabilitation, ask your lawyer to look at it again. Those reductions are not in the guidelines.
How the recalculation works
The loss amount is matched to a tier, and the tier adds offense levels. A higher total offense level means a higher guideline range. When a cutoff goes up, some loss amounts move down a tier. AMC Defense Law's table gives these examples:
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$600,000 loss: +14 under the old table (above $550,000). +12 under the new table (above $350,000 but not above $750,000).
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$160,000 loss: +10 under the old table (above $150,000). +8 under the new table (above $150,000 but not above $200,000).
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$7,000 loss: +2 under the old table (above $6,500). No increase under the new table ($9,000 or less).
Defendants whose loss is just above an old cutoff gain the most. A loss that sits between the old and new cutoffs usually drops one tier, which is 2 offense levels, and that moves the whole guideline range down. A loss far above the new cutoff for its tier may not change at all. That is why the exact loss figure, and how it was calculated, matters more now.
Who gets the new table
The general rule is in guideline §1B1.11, quoted by the Supreme Court in Peugh v. United States, 569 U.S. 530 (2013). The court uses the Guidelines Manual in effect on the sentencing date unless that "would violate the Ex Post Facto Clause." In that case the court uses the Manual "in effect on the date that the offense of conviction was committed."
In Peugh, decided June 10, 2013 in an opinion by Justice Sotomayor, the Court held that the Ex Post Facto Clause is violated when a defendant is sentenced under Guidelines adopted after the offense that produce a higher range. The rule protects defendants in one direction only. Raising the loss cutoffs lowers or keeps ranges the same, so the clause does not block the new table. AMC Defense Law states that defendants sentenced on or after November 1, 2026 get the new table. ArentFox Schiff agrees: "sentencings after November 1 will apply the new, more favorable loss tables." This holds even if the conduct happened years earlier.
This article covers sentencings that have not happened yet. If you have already been sentenced, ask a lawyer whether the change can affect your case.
What to do if your sentencing is pending
AMC Defense Law recommends these steps:
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Calculate the loss under both tables. Know exactly which tier your loss falls in under each one.
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Check which Manual the presentence report uses. If your sentencing is on or after November 1, the report should apply the current Manual.
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Object to the presentence report in writing. AMC warns that findings you do not challenge may be used to support the loss figure.
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Keep the numbers separate. Amounts billed, amounts paid, loss, and restitution are different figures. Challenge the scope of the loss and whether it is properly attributed to you as relevant conduct under §1B1.3.
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Check the guideline for your count. The count of conviction may call for a different guideline.
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In plea negotiations, address forfeiture. Ask for a written commitment that forfeited funds will go toward restitution.
For hearings that were scheduled before November 1, ArentFox Schiff described two options: "defense counsel may seek an adjournment," and "Counsel may also ask the court to consider the forthcoming amendments when requesting a variance."
Questions to ask your lawyer
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Which Guidelines Manual will my presentence report use?
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What is my loss tier under the old table and the new one?
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Is my loss figure close to a cutoff, and is that figure correct?
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Should we challenge the loss amount or how relevant conduct was attributed to me?
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Does my plea agreement stipulate a loss figure or offense level that we should revisit?
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How will forfeiture and restitution be handled, and can forfeited funds go toward restitution?
The bottom line
For pending federal fraud cases, the sentencing date and the exact loss figure now matter more. The new table can take 2 levels off for defendants whose losses fall between the old and new cutoffs, and that applies to older conduct as well. The reductions for coercion, early repayment, and rehabilitation never became guideline rules. Those facts can still be presented at sentencing as mitigation, including in a request for a variance.
Related reading
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A Second DUI While the First Is Pending Can Now Mean One Felony in Oklahoma
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Which Past Acts Can Oklahoma Prosecutors Now Show a Domestic Violence Jury?
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What Happens When You Can Never Pay Back Federal Restitution
Sources
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Law360, Sentencing Commission Votes To Enact Modest Reform Agenda (Stewart Bishop, April 16, 2026)
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Epstein Becker Green, Recalibrating Economic Crime Sentencing (Jan. 29, 2026)
Note: This article contains AI-assisted content and has been reviewed by our editorial team.
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