Frequently Asked Questions
The Answers You Need
What do I bring to my tax appointment? Find a printable form with more detail here.
If you: You will need to bring:
have employment income - W-2 or 1099
have self employment income -1099NEC (new form for non employee compensation or 1099K (reports credit card sales) -all other income not reported on 1099 forms
and all expenses associated with this income
received unemployment -NYS unemployment
paid estimated taxes -record of all estimated tax payments
have medical bills that exceed 10% of your AGI - a totaled amount for medical, dental, mental health bills, mileage to appointments
have a house mortgage statement (1098) If you are not escrowed, your property tax receipt
have a brokerage account that
had sales of stocks, bonds, etc. -year end statement
have work expenses (deductible on NYS taxes) -a list of all expenses
donations (new for 2020 deductible
even if you don't itemize) -receipts of your donations
How do I notify the IRS my address has changed?
You can change it when you file your taxes or you can complete a form 8822.
How can I get a bigger tax refund?
An important point to note is that beside refundable credits, your refund is your over payment of your federal and state taxes (withholding from your paycheck). If you want a larger refund, you can have more withholding taken from your paychecks (or pay more in your quarterly self employment taxes). This would mean less money in your paycheck which may be less desirable. The other way is to ensure that you are claiming all of the deductions and credits that you are entitled to. If you have investments, own rental properties or operate your own small business, consider hiring a professional tax preparer. They can help you identify losses and expenses that will lower your taxable income which may in turn increase your refund.
I made an error on my tax. What do I do?
Mistakes happen, whether you forgot a W-2, unemployment income, or omitted income from a 1099. The easiest way to see if the inclusion of the missing information will have you owe or get a refund would be to amend your tax using the 1040X. You can track its status 3 weeks after filing the amendment using this link.
How long should I keep my tax records?
You need to keep all tax records and documents used to prepare the taxes for 7 years.
Do I need to pay estimated taxes?
If you own rentals and or are self-employed, you can avoid a surprise tax bill and possibly a penalty by making estimated tax payments during the year. You may also owe if you receive income that did not have federal or state withholding such as cancelled debt, pension income, and the sale of rental property. Please check with your tax preparer if you are unsure about whether or not you should pay quarterly taxes. If you are paying quarterly taxes and need the forms, here is the federal form and the NYS form.
Paying your estimated taxes will alleviate much of the headaches and stresses during tax season.
Should I itemize or take the standard deduction?
A deduction lowers your adjusted gross income, or the dollar amount that determines your tax liability (what you owe before credits and your withholding are figured in). Naturally you would want to have the highest deduction you are entitled to. The standard deduction just about doubled from 2017 to 2018 due to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. For 2021 the standard deduction for single is 12,200, For married filing jointly, a couple can claim 24,400 while head of household can claim 18,000. If what you can claim on your itemized taxes (schedule A) is higher than your standard deduction, then by all means take the higher figure.
Keep in mind that your state may not have doubled the standard deduction as NYS did not. You may be able to still take the itemized deduction on your state taxes. In NYS, the state did not put a ceiling of $10,000 on state deductions and also did not eliminate the work expenses. The 2018 tax year is the first year where New York residents can take the itemized deduction even if they don't itemize on federal.