Tax Deductions

Our military personnel protect our country and the IRS tax code recognizes the sacrifices they and their families make in the name of national service. The IRS tax code includes special tax breaks...

Every year working Americans receive their gross pay. From these wages they are required by law to pay taxes to the federal and/or state government and Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA)...

Although maintaining homeowners' insurance is a requirement if you have a mortgage on your property, it is not deductible as a personal itemized deduction. However, there are circumstances under...

The Hope Credit is a tax credit you can claim on your federal income tax return for the costs of higher education. According to Internal Revenue Service rules, the Hope Credit is 40 percent...

You want to maximize the itemized deductions on Schedule A of your federal tax return but you do not want problems with the IRS. There are several categories of deductions available to you,...

The IRS has a variety of different programs available for tax-paying individuals in the country. One of the possible programs is the EIC, or Earned Income Credit. The EIC is a tax credit for...

Each year, you can purchase tax software with which to prepare your income taxes. If you itemize deductions, you can deduct your prior-year tax software cost from your prior-year taxable income....

The additional child tax credit is provided by the government to relieve families of expenses they have for qualifying children under the age of 17 years old. While not all families qualify for...

A tax deduction affects a taxpayer's income tax at the end of the year. A tax deduction is subtracted from your total gross income when you compute your income taxes. The tax deduction lowers your...

When tax time rolls around, many taxpayers spend a lot of time looking for deductions to reduce the amount of money they have to pay the government. If you are a taxpayer who itemizes his or her...

One of the advantages of contributing to a traditional IRA is that most people can deduct the value of their contributions from their taxes as an above-the-line deduction. This means you can take...

Bad debt income tax deductions in the U.S. are available to some taxpayers who can meet the complex IRS regulations pertaining to qualifying bad debt. Both individuals and business taxpayers may...

The IRS allows for a range of tax deductions to help taxpayers lower their taxable income. Tax deductions fall in two categories: above-the-line deductions and itemized deductions. If a deduction...

In addition to providing a stream of income, rental properties can also help save money on taxes. As a landlord, it is important to be aware of what expenses you can--and cannot--claim on your...

The harder you find yourself working for your money, the more you want to keep it. That's when deductions become more important because they can reduce your taxable income. If you are getting...

Tax deductions are ways to reduce your taxable income. Dental bills are lumped together in the same category as medical expenses for the purposes of itemized tax deductions. If you chose to claim...

The child tax credit is valued at up to $1,000 for each qualifying child you have as of 2009. A tax credit directly decreases the amount of taxes you pay. If your tax bill would have been $5,000...

Most people would like to find ways to make their tax to the federal government smaller. This can be done by taking legal deductions from your income that lower your taxable income, which in turn,...

Many people believe that the best way to avoid a tax audit by the Internal Revenue Service is to keep their deductions close to the national average. While this may or may not be true, knowing the...

Thanks to the phenomenon of flipping (purchasing houses with the idea of selling them for a profit), some people became accidental landlords when they weren't able to sell the property without...

The Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, uses various form 1099s to validate businesses deductions and monitor income reporting for individuals and unincorporated businesses. Because form 1099...

Tax deductions reduce your taxable income which reduces your tax liability. These deductions can be especially useful if you have income that is in a higher tax bracket. For example, in 2009...

Many people fail to use the tax deductions available to them. Finding even one or two deductions can substantially reduce a taxpayer's liability. There are also adjustments to income that reduce...

Education is an integral part of your career that carries a high price tag. You are likely to devote at least four years of your life to your undergraduate degree, in addition to paying a hefty...

New and experienced property owners alike miss valuable income-tax deductions every year. Every missed deduction results in additional tax you pay. You are legally entitled to claim allowable...

According to a publication put forth by the United States Census, in 1997 more than a quarter of American children lived with one parent. From this group, 38 percent did so due to divorce....

Knowing which tax deductions and credits to use can save you quite a bit of money. As the government wishes to help those in school or those thinking of attending, there are many great tax breaks...

Tight economies and lower wages make it ever important for single parents to take advantage of all available tax credits and deductions on their federal income tax returns. Several are available...

Tax preparation is often a confusing and frustrating task. Every year, people pay more taxes than necessary because they are unaware of tax deductions they are eligible to take. Aside from...

The Internal Revenue Service allows you to deduct your charitable donations from your taxable income. The deduction for donations is an itemized deduction, which means in order to claim it you...

The Internal Revenue Service allows a deduction for the use of a vehicle in a variety of cases. The most common deduction is for a business, however, charitable, medical and employee uses also can...

The Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, allows taxpayers to deduct certain items from their income, resulting in decreased taxable income. Using these deductions is to your advantage, but...

Tax write-offs are ways to decrease the amount of tax that you owe when you file your tax returns. Many write-offs are only applicable if your modified adjusted gross income is below a certain...

The IRS divides tax deductions into 2 categories: itemized deductions and above-the-line deductions. You should always take any above-the-line deductions you are eligible for because taking them...

Tax write offs, also known as tax deductions, help to reduce the amount of taxable income you have so that you end up paying less in taxes. You will have to spend time throughout the year keeping...

The deductions listed are all itemized deductions, which means you have to forgo the standard deduction on your tax return. You should only take the itemized deductions if the total of all of your...

Traditional IRAs are retirement accounts that you set up and contribute to on your own apart from your employer. These contributions may be tax deductible. The contributions, deductible or not,...

When filing your tax returns, there are a number of deductions that you can take to reduce the amount of taxable income you have. All of the deductions listed below are above-the-line deductions,...

If you claim someone else as a dependent and you pay a majority of their educational costs, you may be able to take a credit or deduction from your taxes. The deductions can either be an...

An itemized tax filing means listing and calculating all your qualified deductions to lower your taxable income. Both itemized and standard deductions are subtracted from your adjusted gross...

There are two types of tax deductions: above-the-line deductions, which can be taken even if you take the standard deduction; and itemized deductions, which cannot be taken in addition to the...

IRAs (individual retirement accounts) are special tax-advantaged accounts that were implemented to give individuals an incentive to save for retirement. You are eligible to contribute to an...

To reward individuals who have given significant amount of money to charity, the federal government allows individuals who itemize their deductions to take off for charitable contributions. To...

There is more to owning rental property than making a profit. There are dozens of tax deductions that you can take to help offset the costs of renting your property. Keep in mind that using your...

For the purpose of tax deductions, donations to educational facilities are treated the same way as donations to other charities. Most schools are considered qualifying organizations because they...

If your child is disabled, regardless if she is 18 years old or older, you can be eligible to take a number of tax deductions to help significantly lower your taxable income and help offset the...

Each year, you are required to pay taxes on your income. There are a number of deductions you can take to lower your taxable income, resulting in a lower tax liability (the amount you will owe the...

Parents know the cost of raising children can get expensive. To offset some of the costs, the federal government has created a number of deductions and credits you can take for qualifying children...

Many musicians don't realize that when tax time comes around, they can deduct many of their expenses. These deductions can save musicians a significant amount of money, and help reduce the amount...

Financial 529 plans are designed to help people save for college by giving them specific tax incentives. As of 2009, there are two types of 529 plans and each state offers at least one 529 plan....