The Alternative Minimum Tax, known as the AMT, used to work like an ATM for Uncle Sam. Inflation adjustments helped eased the bite, but tax law changes in 2026 could force more filers into the AMT’s clutches.

Letting your money work for you via investments gets a boost next year, with wider capital gains tax brackets. Also affected by the annual inflation bumps are estate planning, gifts you give before you go, and youngsters’ investment earnings.

Medical costs seem to go up every year (or more often!). But the IRS’ annual inflation adjustments to tax-related health care provisions might be able to help you feel better at filing time.

One easy way to cut your tax bill is to claim tax deductions and tax credits. There is a wide variety of these tax breaks, and the amounts generally get annual inflation bumps. Here are 2026’s.

Did you put off filing your 2024 tax return back in April? Well, your absolutely final tax deadline is Wednesday, Oct. 15. Here are some last-minute extended filing tips.

The IRS’ annual inflation increase in the standard deduction amounts makes that deduction option even more appealing. But don’t automatically claim it. Some tax years, it’s worth itemizing.

Let’s get the 2026 tax party started with the tax brackets that will apply to the new year’s income. While the deadline to make most moves affecting 2025 taxes was Dec. 31, it’s still helpful to compare the 2025 and 2026 income tax brackets as we file our 2025 return and implement strategies to cut this year’s taxes.

The IRS’ 34,000 furloughed employees are facing some financial challenges. Their situation also offers us nonfederal workers tips, including tax-related ones, on preparing for similar fiscal crises.

Uncle Sam’s offices are closed because of a political fight over tax help for Affordable Care Act enrollees. Here’s a look at the tax break, who’s affected, and how the tax break battle might end.

Photo by Vlad Chețan October traditionally is the scariest month, and I’m not just talking about the terror that strikes when you run out of candy on Oct. 31 while young ghouls and goblins are still roaming your neighborhood’s streets. There’s also the coming colder weather, which sends a chill along the spines of those like me who prefer warmer weather. And, of course, there is the absolutely final tax filing deadline to meet by Oct. 15 or face late-filing penalties if you discover you didn’t pay enough when you got the Form 1040 extension. This year, the tax deadline has…

Every tax filing season, people need help but can’t afford to pay a tax pro. You can provide that help as a volunteer at no-cost Volunteer Income Tax Assistance and Tax Counseling for the Elderly locations.

The WOTC, administered in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Labor, provides a tax break to employers who hire individuals from certain groups who tend to consistently have trouble getting jobs.

The tax provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) Act also accelerate the termination dates for a variety of other energy-related tax credits. Many home-related ones end Dec. 31, 2025.

Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer. It’s also a time to make some September tax moves to save you some money.

Donald J. Trump has been musing lately about making one of the best tax breaks for homeowners even better.

Photo by olia danilevich   The senior bonus is one of the new tax breaks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that became law on July 4. It’s not tax-free Social Security benefits that Donald J. Trump promised. But the $6,000 maximum tax break, or $12,000 for married jointly filing couples where each spouse is age 65 or older, will provide some tax relief to the country’s senior citizens. The new tax break is available to taxpayers regardless of whether they itemize or claim the standard deduction. The tax bonus also is age-related, not tied to the federal retirement…

The National Hurricane Center’s image of Tropical Storm Andrea. The first named system of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season formed in the central Atlantic Ocean, meaning it’s not a threat to make landfall.   June 1, 2026 note: This post was published almost a year ago with a slightly different headline (Resources to deal with disasters, as 2025 hurricane season gets its first named storm), but its information is still valid. You can read the most recent version of hurricane preparation, both physical and financial/tax moves to make in advance of storms, in Hurricane 2026 preparation and tax tips. And…

Photo by Belle Co … We made it. Tax Day 2025 is finally over for most of the country’s 140 million or so individual tax return filers. Now what? First, take a minute or more to celebrate being done with this annual tax obligation. Then, start thinking about taxes again. Wait! Come back! You did click over here, after all. And to reward your post-Tax Day curiosity, here are seven tasks you should consider. I promise they aren’t that difficult. 1. Adjust your paycheck withholding. Your tax goal each year should be for your paycheck withholding to cover as closely…

Millions of taxpayers already are filling out their 2024 tax returns. Now they just need to know when the Internal Revenue Service will start processing them.

Bet legally, and pay tax on all your winnings — Fall is football and betting season in the United States. Both the college and professional games attract a sizeable amount of wagering. The Internal Revenue Service urges anyone putting a few (or more) dollars down to do so at a legal betting establishment. It’s safer for bettors, and it helps Uncle Sam get what he’s due, since gambling winnings are taxable income.

No place in the world is disaster proof. Mother Nature unleashes her horrors globally and year-round via hurricanes, tornadoes, wild fires, floods, blizzards and more. These special Natural Disasters Resource Pages are the comprehensive collection of Don’t Mess With Taxes blog posts about disasters and the associated tax implications. As long-time blog readers know, I am a weather nut. I made that clear early in my blogging career. My second ever post back on Nov. 15, 2005, the one after unleashing introducing Don’t Mess With Taxes, was Stormy tax policy about, yes, hurricanes. My fascination with weather woes comes naturally.…

Plus, a look at what next year’s inflation bumps mean to estate planning, gifts you give before you go, youngsters’ investment earnings, and more. “Let me tell you about the very rich. They are different from you and me.” F. Scott Fitzgerald didn’t add taxes in his elaboration of those differences in his 1925 short story “The Rich Boy,” but he could have. While most of us middle-income taxpayers get our money working for wages, wealthier individuals tend to let their money work for them as investments. And when they cash out long-term assets, the tax rate on the profits…

The Tax Glossary debuted on the ol’ blog in 2007. Since then, it’s gone through numerous updates and formatting changes, resulting in this version, which wraps up with tax and financial terms for U through Z.

The Tax Glossary debuted on the ol’ blog in 2007. Since then, it’s gone through numerous updates and formatting changes, resulting in this version, which covers tax and financial terms form P through T.

Photo by Alan Cleaver/flickrCC …As noted in the first section (tax terms A through E) of the ol’ blog’s Tax Glossary, trying to decipher the Internal Revenue Service forms and instructions is one of the hardest parts of filing your annual return. You practically have to learn a new, tax-specific language. But Don’t Mess With Taxes is here to help. I’ve gathered some common tax terms and phrases and their plain English meanings in this Tax Glossary. Since the tax code is huge — and keeps growing, thanks (no thanks!) to Congress’ continual fiddling — the amount of tax terms…

The Tax Glossary debuted on the ol’ blog in 2007. Since then, it’s gone through numerous updates and formatting changes, resulting in this version, which covers tax and financial terms form F through J.

The Tax Glossary debuted on the ol’ blog in 2007. Since then, it’s gone through numerous updates and formatting changes, resulting in this version. Check it and your tax term knowledge. And let me know if there’s a term you think should be here and isn’t, or you can add to or clarify a definition that is here.

Tax Day comes four times a year for millions of taxpayers. We (yes, I’m one of them) must make these added payments to Uncle Sam. Here’s a look at these added tax tasks required on the 15th of each April, June, September, and January.

When it comes to paycheck tax withholding, you want to get it just right to avoid a bear of a tax problem. Here’s how to make the appropriate changes.

… The end of the disappearing stream water feature in our backyard. The installation was a home improvement. My work today to shore up a part of it was home maintenance. The differences have tax break implications. (Photo by Kay Bell) …I spent most of today taking care of home repairs that I felt confident doing. It’s not a long list. I am not really a do-it-yourself kind of person when it comes to most things around the house. Still, even though I’ve worked from home for years, being stuck here more than usual because of the COVID-19 pandemic has…

Mother Nature can turn deadly year-round. Tornadoes, hurricanes and even winter storms strike beyond their seasonal boundaries. Prepare beforehand, including by taking a pre-disaster inventory.

Amy Farah Fowler, played by Mayim Bialik, and Sheldon Cooper (as Betsy Ross), played by Jim Parsons, in the Big Bang Theory. Here, in Sheldon’s Fun With Flags podcast, they discuss Old Glory.

Estimated taxes can be confusing, but they are required when you get income that isn’t subject to withholding. Here’s the scoop on the process in this estimated tax primer.

This is the original blog post copy that ran on Monday, March 24, 2014. It was updated on Friday, March 31, 2017. Business tax reform has been getting a lot of attention the last few years, with both President Obama on the Democratic side and House Ways and Means Chairman Rep. Dave Camp on the Republican side pushing for change. While Congress and the White House debate tax reform as it relates to big business, the Internal Revenue Service already has made a change to ease tax filing for many owners of smaller companies. For 2013 returns, individuals who claim…

Today, Oct. 16, is National Dictionary Day. It was created to honor Noah Webster, the publisher of the first dictionary in 1806. Oct. 16 was chosen because it was the day 257 years ago on which Webster was born. Dictionary Day is a day to learn new words with the help of a dictionary. I’m doing my part by updating — OK, creating in large part — a tax dictionary for the ol’ blog.  Photo by eFile989 via Flickr Creative Commons  Many years ago, I posted a mini-glossary of tax terms. Since that day, I’ve meant to put together a…

One of the hardest things about filing your taxes is trying to decipher the forms. You practically have to learn a new, tax- specific language. And the IRS-speak makes that dang VCR manual (yes, a few of us still use those antiquated devices!) seem almost coherent! To help out, Don’t Mess With Taxes is gathering some common tax terms and phrases and their plain English meanings in this post. This is an ongoing list, so don’t be discouraged if the word that’s stumping you isn’t here yet. It soon will be. In fact, just go ahead and e-mail it to…