Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Medical and Dental Expenses

If you itemize your deductions on Form 1040, Schedule A, you may be able to deduct expenses you paid in 2010 for medical care – including dental – for yourself, your spouse, and your dependents. Here are six things the IRS wants you to know about medical and dental expenses and other benefits.
1. You may deduct only the amount by which your total medical care expenses for the year exceed 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income. You do this calculation on Form 1040, Schedule A in computing the amount deductible.
2. You can only include the medical expenses you paid during the year. Your total medical expenses for the year must be reduced by any reimbursement. It makes no difference if you receive the reimbursement or if it is paid directly to the doctor or hospital.
3. You may include qualified medical expenses you pay for yourself, your spouse, and your dependents, including a person you claim as a dependent under a multiple support agreement. If either parent claims a child as a dependent under the rules for divorced or separated parents, each parent may deduct the medical expenses he or she actually pays for the child. You can also deduct medical expenses you paid for someone who would have qualified as your dependent except that the person didn't meet the gross income or joint return test.
4. A deduction is allowed only for expenses primarily paid for the prevention or alleviation of a physical or mental defect or illness. Medical care expenses include payments for the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, or treatment affecting any structure or function of the body. The cost of drugs is deductible only for drugs that require a prescription except for insulin.
5. You may deduct transportation costs primarily for and essential to medical care that qualify as medical expenses. The actual fare for a taxi, bus, train, or ambulance may be deducted. If you use your car for medical transportation, you can deduct actual out-of-pocket expenses such as gas and oil, or you can deduct the standard mileage rate for medical expenses. With either method you may include tolls and parking fees.
6. Distributions from Health Savings Accounts and withdrawals from Flexible Spending Arrangements may be tax free if you pay qualified medical expenses.

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Wednesday, January 26, 2011

W-2 Scam - Do not respond to that E-mail!

"We would like to inform you that as of the 21th of January you are late in updating your W-2 form submition with the new updated version. Please send us your completed W-2 update form by 02/01/2011. The updated version of the W-2 form please click on the link below:"

- They are "Phishing" for your personal information. Contact your Human Resources department if you think there might be a real issue and not this fake one.

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Saturday, January 22, 2011

IRS Announces date for returns

The IRS announced that they will accept itemized returns (Sch. A) on February 14th. This does not mean that your return can not be completed, just not e-filed.

Our software is up to date and will calculated your return correctly. It is the slow IRS that is having committee meetings on changing software to match last years software.

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Friday, January 14, 2011

2010: Your filing Status is

Here are eight facts about the five filing status options the IRS wants you to know so that you can choose the best option for your situation.
  1. Your marital status on the last day of the year determines your marital status for the entire year.
  2. If more than one filing status applies to you, choose the one that gives you the lowest tax obligation.
  3. Single filing status generally applies to anyone who is unmarried, divorced or legally separated according to state law.
  4. A married couple may file a joint return together. The couple’s filing status would be Married Filing Jointly.
  5. If your spouse died during the year and you did not remarry during 2010, usually you may still file a joint return with that spouse for the year of death.
  6. A married couple may elect to file their returns separately. Each person’s filing status would generally be Married Filing Separately.
  7. Head of Household generally applies to taxpayers who are unmarried. You must also have paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home for you and a qualifying person to qualify for this filing status.
  8. You may be able to choose Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child as your filing status if your spouse died during 2008 or 2009, you have a dependent child and you meet certain other conditions.

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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Facts about Dependents and Exemptions

1. Exemptions reduce your taxable income. There are two types of exemptions: personal exemptions and exemptions for dependents. For each exemption you can deduct $3,650 on your 2010 tax return.

2. Your spouse is never considered your dependent. On a joint return, you may claim one exemption for yourself and one for your spouse. If you’re filing a separate return, you may claim the exemption for your spouse only if they had no gross income, are not filing a joint return, and were not the dependent of another taxpayer.

3. Exemptions for dependents. You generally can take an exemption for each of your dependents. A dependent is your qualifying child or qualifying relative. You must list the social security number of any dependent for whom you claim an exemption.

4. If someone else claims you as a dependent, you may still be required to file your own tax return. Whether you must file a return depends on several factors including the amount of your unearned, earned or gross income, your marital status, any special taxes you owe and any advance Earned Income Tax Credit payments you received.

5. If you are a dependent, you may not claim an exemption. If someone else – such as your parent – claims you as a dependent, you may not claim your personal exemption on your own tax return.

6. Some people cannot be claimed as your dependent. Generally, you may not claim a married person as a dependent if they file a joint return with their spouse. Also, to claim someone as a dependent, that person must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. resident alien, U.S. national or resident of Canada or Mexico for some part of the year. There is an exception to this rule for certain adopted children. See IRS Publication 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information for additional tests to determine who can be claimed as a dependent.

Friday, January 7, 2011

IRS 5 Tax Time Tips

It’s that time of the year again, the income tax filing season has begun and important tax documents should be arriving in the mail. Even though your return is not due until April, getting an early start will make filing easier. Here are the Internal Revenue Service’s top 5 tips that will help your tax filing process run smoother than ever this year.

1. Start gathering your records Round up any documents or forms you’ll need when filing your taxes: receipts, canceled checks and other documents that support income or deductions you’re claiming on your return.

2. Be on the lookout W-2s and 1099s will be coming soon; you’ll need these to file your tax return.

3. Consider Direct Deposit If you elect to have your refund directly deposited into your bank account, you’ll receive it faster than waiting for a paper check.

4. Remember this number: 17 Check out IRS Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax on the IRS website. It’s a comprehensive collection of information for taxpayers highlighting everything you’ll need to know when filing your return.

5. Don’t panic! If you run into a problem, remember the IRS is here to help. Try http://www.irs.gov or call toll-free at 800-829-1040.

Call us now for your tax appointment 515.285.5544