February 2011
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by Devon Weaver, Keeping Tabs Accounting
Page 30
Phone: 260-463-4901 • Fax 888-439-6528 • The Hometown Treasure
Those Who Itemize Must Wait Until February
Those Who Itemize Must
Wait Until February to File
Due to late tax law
changes, the IRS announced
that taxpayers claiming certain items on their return will
need to wait to file their tax returns until tax processing
systems are ready, which the IRS estimates will be in
mid- to late February. These items include returns
involving— the state and local sales tax deduction,
higher education tuition and fees deduction or
educator expenses deduction as well as those taxpayers
who itemize deductions on Form 1040 Schedule A.
“The majority of taxpayers will be able to fill out
their tax returns and file them as they normally do,”
said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. “We will do
everything we can to minimize the impact of recent
tax law changes on other taxpayers. The IRS will work
through the holidays and into the New Year to get our
systems reprogrammed and ensure taxpayers have a
smooth tax season.”
The IRS will announce a specific date in the near
future when it can start processing tax returns impacted
by the late tax law changes. Meanwhile, people in
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350 S. Van Buren • Shipshewana, IN 46565
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D. Elliott O.D.
Office Hrs: 9-12 & 1-5
T. Morlan O.D.
(260) 768-7721 Mon, Tue, Thu. & Fri
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the affected categories can start working on their tax
returns, but they should not submit their returns until
IRS systems are ready to process the new tax law changes.
Tax Corner · Tax Corner · Tax Corner · Tax Corner
Six Important Facts About Dependents
And Exemptions
Some tax rules affect every person who may have to
file a federal income tax return – these rules include
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.