Can I itemize everything I have bought this year so long as I have the receipts (i.e. clothing, books, dining out, travel for pleasure, etc) or are there restrictions to what I can list there? If so, where can I find a list of them?
I live in the state of Washington and will be filing single.
2007-02-07 16:48:21 · 4 answers · asked by Maria F 3 in Business & Finance ➔ Taxes ➔ United States
Good grief no, you can't deduct everything you bought.
Read the instructions for 1040 schedule A - that will tell you what you can deduct.
Since Washington state doesn't have a state income tax, you can instead take a deduction for SALES tax paid. You don't have to add up all the receipts for sales tax though, although you can if you want to - there's a chart for your state by income and family size the will give you an amount you can take for sales tax without having receipts. If you bought a car, plane or boat, you can add the sales tax paid on that to the amount from the table.
2007-02-07 16:57:25 · answer #1 · answered by Judy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Nope...if only we could deduct personal expenses like that! The IRS has placed restrictions on what is deductible.
Here are the links to the Schedule A Form and Instructions (the form for itemizing your deductions)
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040sab.pdf
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1040sa.pdf
Some clarification to Kittymeow's post - you can only deduct unreimbursed medical expenses that are greater than 7.5% of your adjusted gross income (line 38 on the 1040). For most people to qualify, it would involve major medical bills, hospitalization, etc. not ordinary doctor visits, prescriptions, etc.
In addition to unreimbursed business expenses, qualified charitable contributions, mortgage interest, etc. you may also deduct:
Real estate taxes
State and local taxes
Unreimbursed casualty and theft losses, e.g., Katrina victims who lost their house and didn't have sufficient insurance.
Good luck!
2007-02-07 17:04:45 · answer #2 · answered by Beni 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can NOT deduct everything you spend. Check out www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc500.html for more info straight from the source. Basically, you can deduct all charitable contributions and some medical, dental, child care, mortgage, and business expenses. This link will give you a lot more info and details on each type of deduction.
2007-02-07 16:53:10 · answer #3 · answered by M H 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Donations to charity, unreimbursed medical expenditures, unreimbursed travel costs relating to work (gas, tolls),
2007-02-07 16:51:31 · answer #4 · answered by chicky74 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋