Whether you want to think about it or not, April 15, 2011
is approaching quickly. As you get ready to prepare
your Federal income tax return, here are a few things to consider:
Many tax professionals use products such as Lacerte and TurboTax
Professional, but if you're a do-it-yourselfer, you can still
get good results with products like TurboTax and Tax
Cut. TurboTax comes in several flavors, including
editions for those filing State tax returns and those with small
businesses. And if you're going to prepare your own taxes,
don't forget additional resources such as J. K. Lasser's
Your Income Tax.
Here are a few things to check
out -- you can find out more on each of them by clicking on
the resources on this page, and by going to the home page, clicking
Government,
etc on the menu at the left of the page, and selecting the
Internal Revenue Service link.
The information shown here is current as of the date of this writing.
- Mileage deductions (cents per
mile)
have changed for
certain categories. The deductions may be subject to certain limitations.
| Deduction |
2011 |
2010 |
2009 |
July - Dec 2008 |
Jan - June
2008 |
2007 |
2006 |
2006 Katrina
|
| Business |
51.0 |
50.0 |
55.0 |
58.5 |
50.5 |
48.5 |
44.5 |
|
| Medical & Moving |
19.0 |
16.5 |
24.0 |
27.0 |
19.0 |
20.0 |
18.0 |
|
| Charitable - General |
14.0 |
14.0 |
14.0 |
14.0 |
14.0 |
14.0 |
14.0 |
34.0 |
| Charitable - Reimbursement |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
48.5 |
- Personal exemptions
remains
$3,650 in 2010 but there is no AGI phaseout (for 2011, the
exemption is increased to $3,750 and an AGI phaseout is in place).
- The standard deduction
for 2010
depends on several factors, but in general
is $11,400 for married filing jointly; $5,700 for single
and married filing separately; and has increased to $8,400 for heads of household
(for 2011, these amounts are $9,750, $5,800/$4875, and $8,600 respectively).
Publication 17 contains information to help you
determine your standard deduction.
By the way, all the deductions and credits in the world don't
matter if the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) quietly takes them
all back (and a lot more).
Contact
your representatives in Washington and voice your support
for a repeal of this onerous tax.
