It seems I have paid the government more than what was necessary over the past few years. When I first started earning money outside of my primary employer in 2004 or 2005, I assumed it would make the most sense to simply claim that income as self-employment income on Schedule C of the standard 1040 ... Continue reading this article…

President Nicolas Sarcozy of France revealed his plans for working to reduce his country’s carbon dioxide emissions. For each taxpayer’s metric ton of carbon dioxide emission due to use of oil, gas, or coal, the government will charge that taxpayer a fee of €17 (roughly $25). This rate would rise over time. Other energy use, ... Continue reading this article…

Between March 1917 and January 1984, there have been thirteen major changes in the rules for the estate tax, a tax paid by heirs for wealth inherited. Of these thirteen changes, eight were tax increases and five were tax decreases. In 2001, A study by the University of British Columbia and the University of Michigan ... Continue reading this article…

Every so often I come across a news story that’s more enjoyable to read when I add a vindictive “ha ha ha ha ha” after each sentence. For example: Rich Americans who have evaded taxes by hiding foreign holdings have about a week to turn themselves in to an Internal Revenue Service amnesty program or ... Continue reading this article…

This article refers to an earlier version of Form 1040X. Some instructions may be slightly different depending on the form revision the IRS now has available. If you have filed your taxes for the most recent year but would like to take advantage of a new credit, such as the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax ... Continue reading this article…

Marginal tax rates are one of the most misunderstood financial concepts, and I intend to write more about this in the future. This misunderstanding occasionally leads people to mistakenly believe that earning $1 over the barrier into the next tax level would result in a significantly higher tax bill because all income would be taxed ... Continue reading this article…

As a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (see our roundup of ways to take advantage), 2009 and 2010 are good years to make some of the “green” home improvements you may’ve been considering. I’ve had a little trouble, however, navigating and understanding the many tables and footnotes, so I’m condensing ... Continue reading this article…

Smithee has been keeping me up-to-date with a major part of the 2009 economic stimulus, the $400 for individuals or $800 for couples tax credit. Here are some things to keep in mind about this stimulus going into effect today, called the “Making Work Pay” credit in the law that established it. Smithee says the ... Continue reading this article…

In general, if you have to ask whether you need to report certain income to the IRS, the most likely answer is, “Yes.” Here are some examples, courtesy of MSN Money. Q. I hosted a party to sell products to my friends (and use my social circle for multilevel marketing from some corporation), and the ... Continue reading this article…