taxes

How the new Tax Cut and Jobs Act will effect your Itemized Deductions, by Marcus A. Rogers, CPA, JD, LLM

How the new Tax Cut and Jobs Act will effect your Itemized Deductions, by Marcus A. Rogers, CPA, JD, LLM

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was passed by Congress on December 20, 2017 and signed into law by President Trump on December 22, 2017.  The Tax Act is the most sweeping and impactful revision of the Internal Revenue Code since the Act of 1986.  The Act institutes several changes to the Internal Revenue Code affecting all taxpayers including Individuals, pass-through entities and Corporations.  A lot of attention has been paid to the newly revised tax brackets for individuals and Corporations.  However there has been significant revisions to IRS Form 1040 Schedule A Itemized deductions. These changes are unprecedented and to a great extent may eliminate the need to file Schedule A itemized deductions for a large number of individuals.

Numbers Don't Lie...income not deductions a major factor in rate of IRS audits

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2016/04/12/worried-irs-audit-read/82075438/

Most people are afraid to take the deductions that the government allows for fear of an audit.  The truth is that as long as your deduction is legitimate and you have the proper documentation you should not fear.  There are statistics that show that your level of income is the primary motivator behind an audit.  The second motivator is incorrect information on your returns such as addresses, social security numbers, income numbers not matching a W-2 or K-1.  A distant third is specific deductions.  Check out this USA Today article from April 2016.