by steve | Feb 4, 2010 | Tax Help, Uncategorized
IRS has just released on their newswire TIPS for taxpayers with disabilities. Fresh Start Tax will keep you posted on all relative up dates. Read below directly from the newswire
Taxpayers with disabilities may qualify for a number of IRS tax credits and benefits. Parents of children with disabilities may also qualify. Listed below are seven tax credits and other benefits that are available if you or someone else listed on your federal tax return is disabled.
Standard Deduction Taxpayers who are legally blind may be entitled to a higher standard deduction on their tax return.
Gross Income Certain disability-related payments, Veterans Administration disability benefits, and Supplemental Security Income are excluded from gross income.
Impairment-Related Work Expenses Employees, who have a physical or mental disability limiting their employment, may be able to claim business expenses in connection with their workplace. The expenses must be necessary for the taxpayer to work.
Credit for the Elderly or Disabled This credit is generally available to certain taxpayers who are 65 and older as well as to certain disabled taxpayers who are younger than 65 and are retired on permanent and total disability.
Medical Expenses If you itemize your deductions using Form 1040 Schedule A, you may be able to deduct medical expenses. See IRS Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses.
Earned Income Tax Credit EITC is available to disabled taxpayers as well as to the parents of a child with a disability. If you retired on disability, taxable benefits you receive under your employers disability retirement plan are considered earned income until you reach minimum retirement age. The EITC is a tax credit that not only reduces a taxpayers tax liability but may also result in a refund. Many working individuals with a disability who have no qualifying children, but are older than 25 and younger than 65 do — in fact — qualify for EITC. Additionally, if the taxpayers child is disabled, the age limitation for the EITC is waived. The EITC has no effect on certain public benefits. Any refund you receive because of the EITC will not be considered income when determining whether you are eligible for benefit programs such as Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid.
Child or Dependent Care Credit Taxpayers who pay someone to come to their home and care for their dependent or spouse may be entitled to claim this credit. There is no age limit if the taxpayers spouse or dependent is unable to care for themselves.
you may always click directly to the IRS site to see move on this issue.
by steve | Feb 3, 2010 | Tax Help, Uncategorized
Where your tax return gets filed:
Taxpayers in Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Virginia and the District of Columbia will now send their tax returns to the IRS Kansas City Service Center in Kansas City, Mo. Taxpayers in Indiana and Michigan will send their tax returns to the IRS Fresno Service Center, in Fresno, Calif. Taxpayers in Alabama will send their tax returns to the IRS Austin Service Center in Austin, Texas.
The IRS continuously monitors work flow at its centers and makes appropriate adjustments by altering the volume of returns to be sent to each. Taxpayers who use the envelope provided with the income tax instructions do not have to be concerned with the address change; their returns automatically will go to the correct center.
IRS does try to improve there work flow, they really do.
by steve | Jan 26, 2010 | Tax Help, Uncategorized
Federal Income Tax Withheld. If you are not required to file, you should file to get money back if Federal Income Tax was withheld from your pay, you made estimated tax payments, or had a prior year overpayment applied to this year’s tax.
Making Work Pay Credit. You may be able to take this credit if you have earned income from work. The maximum credit for a married couple filing a joint return is $800 and $400 for other taxpayers.
Government Retiree Credit. You may be eligible for this credit if you received a government pension or annuity payment in 2009. However, the amount of this credit reduces any making work pay credit you receive.
Earned Income Tax Credit. You may qualify for EITC if you worked, but did not earn a lot of money. EITC is a refundable tax credit; which means you could qualify for a tax refund.
Additional Child Tax Credit. This credit may be available to you if you have at least one qualifying child and you did not get the full amount of the Child Tax Credit.
Refundable American Opportunity Credit. This education tax credit is available for 2009 and 2010. The maximum credit per student is $2,500 and the first four years of post secondary education qualify.
First-Time Home buyer Credit. This credit is a maximum of $8,000 or $4,000 if your filing status is married filing separately. The credit applies to homes bought anytime in 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010. However, you have until on or before June 30, 2010, if you entered into a written binding contract before May 1, 2010. If you bought a home after November 6, 2009, you may be able to qualify and claim the credit even if you already owned a home. In this case, the maximum credit for long-time residents is $6,500, or $3,250 if your filing status is married filing separately.
Health Coverage Tax Credit. Certain individuals, who are receiving Trade Adjustment Assistance, Reemployment Trade Adjustment Assistance, or pension benefit payments from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, may be eligible for a Health Coverage Tax Credit worth 80 percent of monthly health insurance premiums when you file your 2009 tax return.
Fresh Start Tax will post any news directly from the IRS NEWS WIRE site upon receipt to get the information out to our public ASAP.
by steve | Jan 26, 2010 | Tax Help, Uncategorized
IRS NEWS WIRE RELEASE
If you are donating to charities providing earthquake relief in Haiti, you may be able to claim those donations on your 2009 tax return. Here are 10 important facts the Internal Revenue Service wants you to know about this special provision.
A new law allows you to claim donations for Haitian relief on your 2009 tax return, which you will be filing this year.
The contributions must be made specifically for the relief of victims in areas affected by the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti.
To be eligible for a deduction on the 2009 tax return, donations must be made after Jan. 11, 2010 and before March 1, 2010.
In order to be deductible, contributions must be made to qualified charities and cannot be designated for the benefit of specific individuals or families.
The new law applies only to cash contributions.
Cash contributions made by text message, check, credit card or debit card may be claimed on your federal tax return.
You must itemize your deductions in order to claim these donations on your tax return.
You have the option of deducting these contributions on either your 2009 or 2010 tax return, but not both.
Contributions made to foreign organizations generally are not deductible. You can find out more about organizations helping Haitian earthquake victims from agencies such as the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Federal law requires that you keep a record of any deductible donations you make. For donations by text message, a telephone bill will meet the record-keeping requirement if it shows the name of the organization receiving your donation, the date of the contribution, and the amount given. For cash contributions made by other means, be sure to keep a bank record, such as a canceled check or a receipt from the charity. Receipts should show the name of the charity, the date and amount of the contribution.
All the information on this Blog is posted directly from the IRS sight.
PLEASE do all you can to help these suffering people of God. See the site listed below for more details.
http://www.usaid.gov/
by steve | Jan 25, 2010 | Tax Help, Uncategorized
Everyone Can Use Free File
The IRS Free File service provides free federal income tax return preparation and electronic filing for all taxpayers. All you need is access to a computer and the Internet and you can prepare and e-file your federal tax return for free.
Free File is offered through a partnership between the IRS and the Free File Alliance, a group of private-sector tax software companies. Since Free File?s debut in 2003, more than 27 million returns have been prepared and e-filed through this program.
Free File offers two options. The first is Traditional Free File, which includes approximately 20 tax preparation software products from which to choose. Taxpayers with 2009 incomes of $57,000 or less are eligible for this service. The second option is Free File Fill-able Forms, which is an electronic version of IRS paper forms. All taxpayers can use Free File Fill-able Forms to prepare and file tax forms electronically.
This has just come in off the news wire service from the IRS. If you can do this, get started today and do not wait. How cheap is free?
by steve | Jan 22, 2010 | Tax Help, Uncategorized
The IRS has a wonderful feature called TaxWise TV. It is an Audit Technique guide that no one should be without. What most taxpayers do not know is that the IRS has set up Market Specialization Programs that are unique for every industry. What that means.
TaxWise TV features the IRS Audit Technique Guide and Navigating IRS.gov
to help the IRS agents conduct examinations of returns more efficiently and require less of the taxpayers time, the IRS produces Audit Technique Guides, which focus on developing highly trained examiners for a particular market segment. These publicly available guides contain examination techniques, common and unique industry issues, business practices, industry terminology and other information to assist examiners in performing examinations.
