Tag Archives: Relocation (personal)

IRS Tax Tip: Moving This Summer? Here are 10 Helpful Tax Tips

13 Monday Aug 2012

Posted by in Taxpayers

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School’s out for the summer, and summer is a popular time for people to move – especially families with children.  If you are moving to start a new job or even the same job at a new job location, the IRS offers 10 tax tips on expenses you may be able to deduct on your tax return.

1. Expenses must be close to the time you start work  Generally, you can consider moving expenses that you incurred within one year of the date you first report to work at a new job location.

2. Distance Test  Your move meets the distance test if your new main job location is at least 50 miles farther from your former home than your previous main job location was from your former home.  For example, if your old main job location was three miles from your former home, your new main job location must be at least 53 miles from that former home.

3. Time Test  Upon arriving in the general area of your new job location, you must work full time for at least 39 weeks during the first year at your new job location. Self-employed individuals must meet this test, and they must also work full time for a total of at least 78 weeks during the first 24 months upon arriving in the general area of their new job location. If your income tax return is due before you have satisfied this requirement, you can still deduct your allowable moving expenses if you expect to meet the time test. There are some special rules and exceptions to these general rules, so see Publication 521, Moving Expenses for more information.

4. Travel  You can deduct lodging expenses (but not meals) for yourself and household members while moving from your former home to your new home. You can also deduct transportation expenses, including airfare, vehicle mileage, parking fees and tolls you pay, but you can only deduct one trip per person.

5. Household goods  You can deduct the cost of packing, crating and transporting your household goods and personal property, including the cost of shipping household pets. You may be able to include the cost of storing and insuring these items while in transit.

6. Utilities  You can deduct the costs of connecting or disconnecting utilities.

7. Nondeductible expenses  You cannot deduct as moving expenses: any part of the purchase price of your new home, car tags, a drivers license renewal, costs of buying or selling a home, expenses of entering into or breaking a lease, or security deposits and storage charges, except those incurred in transit and for foreign moves.

8. Form  You can deduct only those expenses that are reasonable for the circumstances of your move. To figure the amount of your deduction for moving expenses, use Form 3903, Moving Expenses.

9. Reimbursed expenses  If your employer reimburses you for the costs of a move for which you took a deduction, the reimbursement may have to be included as income on your tax return.

10. Update your address  When you move, be sure to update your address with the IRS and the U.S. Postal Service to ensure you receive mail from the IRS. Use Form 8822, Change of Address, to notify the IRS.

More details are available in IRS Publication 521 and Form 3903. IRS publications and forms are available on IRS.gov or by calling 800-829-3676.
Links:

  • Publication 521, Moving Expenses (PDF)
  • Form 3903, Moving Expenses (PDF)
  • Form 8822, Change of Address (PDF)
  • Tax Topic 455 – Moving Expenses

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Special Tax Benefits for Armed Forces Personnel

19 Thursday Jul 2012

Posted by in Income Tax

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US flag(Photo credit: Mad-Loïs)

IRS Summertime Tax Tip 2012-04

Military personnel and their families face unique life challenges with their duties, expenses and transitions. The IRS wants active members of the U.S. Armed Forces to be aware of all the special tax benefits that are available to them.

 

Here are 10 of those special tax benefits:

1. Moving Expenses If you are a member of the Armed Forces on active duty and you move because of a permanent change of station, you may be able to deduct some of your unreimbursed moving expenses.

2. Combat Pay If you serve in a combat zone as an enlisted person or as a warrant officer for any part of a month, all your military pay received for military service during that month is not taxable. For officers, the monthly exclusion is capped at the highest enlisted pay, plus any hostile fire or imminent danger pay received. You can also elect to include your nontaxable combat pay in your “earned income” for purposes of claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit.

3. Extension of Deadlines The deadline for filing tax returns, paying taxes, filing claims for refund, and taking other actions with the IRS is automatically extended for qualifying members of the military.

4. Uniform Cost and Upkeep If military regulations prohibit you from wearing certain uniforms when off duty, you can deduct the cost and upkeep of those uniforms, but you must reduce your expenses by any allowance or reimbursement you receive.

5. Joint Returns Generally, joint income tax returns must be signed by both spouses. However, when one spouse is unavailable due to military duty, a power of attorney may be used to file a joint return.

6. Travel to Reserve Duty If you are a member of the US Armed Forces Reserves, you can deduct unreimbursed travel expenses for traveling more than 100 miles away from home to perform your reserve duties.

7. ROTC Students Subsistence allowances paid to ROTC students participating in advanced training are not taxable. However, active duty pay – such as pay received during summer advanced camp – is taxable.

8. Transitioning Back to Civilian Life You may be able to deduct some costs you incur while looking for a new job. Expenses may include travel, resume preparation fees, and outplacement agency fees. Moving expenses may be deductible if your move is closely related to the start of work at a new job location, and you meet certain tests.

9. Tax Help Most military installations offer free tax filing and preparation assistance during and/or after the tax filing season.

10. Tax Information IRS Publication 3, Armed Forces’ Tax Guide, is an excellent resource as it summarizes many important military-related tax topics. Publication 3 can be downloaded from IRS.gov or may be ordered by calling 1-800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).
Link:

IRS Publication 3, Armed Forces’ Tax Guide (PDF)