4 Tax Tips to Get Ready for April 2016

The New Year has arrived, but that doesn't mean tax planning is over. There are still plenty of things that individuals can do

to minimize their tax bills.

IRA

U.S. taxpayers have until April 18, 2016 to make a contribution

to either a traditional or Roth IRA and still get the advantage

of deductibility. Those who have SEP or Keogh plans are even

luckier because they can file for an extension and have until Oct.

17, 2016 to fund their plans. Even though there are ways to

delay contributions for tax purposes, it's always a good

idea to fund a plan as soon as possible; consumers get the full advantage of compounding by placing money in the account

early.

ORGANIZATION

Tax-filing time causes many headaches for people who are not organized. While

organization alone will not reduce a tax bill, it will go a long way toward cutting the April deadline stress level. Taxpayers can start out by

gathering everything they'll need, like last year's documents, donation

receipts, and any other official forms that arrived in the mail or as attachments

to financial correspondence.

OFFICIAL TAX FORMS

Don't expect to find hard-copy tax forms at the library or post office. Nowadays, people can

get any tax form from the official IRS website, at 

www.irs.gov. The site offers a comprehensive catalog of tax

tips, official rules and regulations, tips for easy filing,

and an entire library of tax forms for every conceivable

situation. There are also links to sites where taxpayers can obtain forms for their specific

states.

CONSIDER ITEMIZING

It is so simple to take the standard deduction that

many millions of taxpayers do so each year. However, many of them are eligible to itemize but just don't want to go to the trouble

of filling out the extra paperwork. In many cases,

itemizing can save taxpayers many thousands of dollars and is definitely

worth the time.