Top quality tax office firms in Houston? Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit: A tax credit is so much better than a tax deduction—it reduces your tax bill dollar for dollar. So missing one is even more painful than missing a deduction that simply reduces the amount of income that’s subject to tax. But it’s easy to overlook the child and dependent care credit if you pay your child care bills through a reimbursement account at work. The law allows you to run up to $5,000 of such expenses through a tax-favored reimbursement account at work. Up to $6,000 in care expenses can qualify for the credit, but the $5,000 from a tax favored account can’t be used. So if you run the maximum $5,000 through a plan at work but spend more for work-related child care, you can claim the credit on up to an extra $1,000. That would cut your tax bill by at least $200 using the minimum 20 percent of the expenses. The credit percentage goes up for lower income households.
Harvest Your Capital Losses: If you own stocks that have lost money, you can sell them and deduct up to $3,000 on your federal taxes. Just be careful not to violate the wash-sale rule, which would disallow the deduction. This rule states you cannot purchase the same or a substantially similar stock within 30 days before or after the sale. “Some people think it’s OK if I do it using two accounts,” Zollars says. They may think they can sell a stock from a taxable account and then immediately purchase similar securities in an IRA. However, this is not allowed. “That’s not the way the rule works,” he says.
In some states, provisions exist that allow employers to seek reimbursement from the employee for administrative costs related to excessive garnishments. Additionally, some types of garnishments, such as child support, allow for similar provisions that authorize employers to recoup administrative expenses. The limits on the maximum amount of the administrative fee that can be deducted vary by state. When considering employment actions in relation to an employee who has active garnishments, it is recommended to consult a knowledgeable HR source or employment attorney. See additional details at Bookkeepers Near Me.
Review Tax Filings From Previous Years: For most people, the changes from one tax year to the next are relatively slight. Previous tax returns are excellent reminders of areas you can easily overlook, such as interest or dividends, capital loss carry-forward balances, and infrequently used deductions. I keep paper copies as well as scanned copies of past years’ returns, in addition to four spreadsheets detailing my income and expenses for each year. One spreadsheet contains the information from Form 1040, while the others have previously filed data for Schedules A, C, and D. This allows me to quickly check whether I’ve overlooked an income or expense item, as well as the year-to-year changes in amounts. For example, if I received dividends from one security holding or interest from a particular bank in prior years, but the amount is missing or substantially changed for the current year, I know to check for the reason behind the omission, increase, or decrease before completing my tax filing.
Decide how much tax you want withheld: If you received a big refund on your tax return last year, it may mean your employer is withholding too much tax from your paychecks. Decreasing those withholdings might “[give] you access to more of your money throughout the year to invest or pay down debt,” says Fraim, “assuming you have the discipline to actually save the funds.” If you’d rather have a bigger paycheck to work toward your financial goals, instead of that potentially big refund next year, meet with your payroll manager to review your withholding allowances on your W-4 form. Just be careful not to reduce your withholding by too much. Overly reducing your withholding may result in having too little tax withheld throughout the year, and could mean a big tax bill in April and potentially a penalty for failing to properly estimate your taxes as well.
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