1. The Non-business Energy Property Credit Homeowners who install energy-efficient improvements may qualify for this credit. The 2011 credit is 10 percent of the cost of qualified energy-efficient improvements, up to $500. Qualifying improvements includeadding insulation, energy-efficient exterior windows and doors and certain roofs. The cost of installing these items does not count. You can [...]
With business tax-filing deadlines fast approaching, the Internal Revenue Service encourages small employers that provide health insurance coverage to their employees to check out the small business health care tax credit and then claim it if they qualify.The recently-revamped Small Business Health Care Tax Credit page on IRS.gov is packed with information and resources designed [...]
Each year, millions of taxpayers choose whether to take the standard deduction or to itemize their deductions. The following seven facts from the IRS can help you choose the method that gives you the lowest tax.1. Qualifying expenses - Whether to itemize deductions on your tax return depends on how much you spent on certain [...]
The Internal Revenue Service offers the following seven tips to help taxpayers avoid an emerging scheme tempting senior citizens and other taxpayers to file tax returns claiming fraudulent refunds.These schemes promise refunds to people who have little or no income and normally don’t have a tax filing requirement.Promoters claim they can obtain for their victims, [...]
Did you know that almost everything you own and use for personal or investment purposes is a capital asset? Capital assets include a home, household furnishings and stocks and bonds held in a personal account. When you sell a capital asset, the difference between the amount you paid for the asset and its sales price [...]
If you make eligible contributions to an employer-sponsored retirement plan or to an individual retirement arrangement, you may be eligible for a tax credit, depending on your age and income.Here are six things the IRS wants you to know about the Savers Credit:1. Income limits The Savers Credit, formally known as the Retirement Savings Contributions [...]
Two federal tax credits may help you offset the costs of higher education for yourself or your dependents. These are the American Opportunity Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit.To qualify for either credit, you must pay postsecondary tuition and fees for yourself, your spouse or your dependent. The credit may be claimed by either the [...]
Refunds totaling more than $1 billion may be waiting for one million people who did not file a federal income tax return for 2008. However, to collect the money, a return for 2008 must be filed with the IRS no later than Tuesday, April 17, 2012.The IRS estimates that half of these potential 2008 refunds [...]
In today’s economy, small business owners sometimes save money through bartering to get products or services they need. The IRS wants to remind small business owners that the fair market value of property or services received through barter is taxable income.Bartering is the trading of one product or service for another. Usually there is no [...]
The Internal Revenue Service has issued its annual “Dirty Dozen” tax scams list, reminding taxpayers to use caution during tax season to protect themselves against a wide range of schemes ranging from identity theft to return preparer fraud.The Dirty Dozen listing, compiled by the IRS each year, lists a variety of common scams taxpayers can [...]