Tax tip number one: Get your taxes prepared now!
You should have all your statements and documents in hand by this time for activities in 2013. Your W2s were required to be mailed to you by mid-January. Most tax statements were issued on February 18th this year. Filing early puts you in a position to collect a refund quicker and make a payment plan if necessary. Filing taxes early also helps stave off an unscrupulous fraudster grabbing your refund before you do. There are plenty of tax fraud schemes as you may be aware. We found a great “Dirty Dozen” list of schemes from Daily Finance.
Tax tip number two: 2013 taxes are the first opportunity for same-sex married benefit options
The IRS and Minnesota have declared same-sex married couples can choose their filing status for joint, married or single filing status. Also ruled as acceptable is amended or original income tax returns from same-sex married couples for all open, prior tax years. For more information, see Minnesota Tax Information for Same-Sex Married Couples.
Tax Tip number three: Avoid a penalty and enroll in health insurance
Your 2013 won’t be affected if you are not carrying health coverage, but you will be asked if you have health coverage. Plan to have coverage by March 31st to avoid a 2014 penalty.
Tax Tip number four: Contribute to a tax-advantaged account
There are several options for these types of contributions. The great thing is you have until April 15th of 2014 to make the contributions that you can attribute to your 2013 return. Some examples of tax advantaged accounts are: 401(k), health savings accounts (HSAs), Roth, SEP accounts.
We have many tips to share based on your unique situations.
Call for an appointment. We will review your needs and explore how we can minimize the taxes you owe and keep the most amount of your earnings in the bank.
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