Category: Taxes Made Simple
-
Amended Returns: When Fixing a Mistake Pays You Back
Missed a credit or deduction? Form 1040-X lets you fix a filed tax return and claim the refund — generally within three years. Here’s how it works.
-
The Child and Dependent Care Credit, Step by Step
Summer day camp can count toward the child and dependent care credit. Here are the qualifying rules, the $3,000/$6,000 limits, and the new 2026 rates.
-
How to Get an IRS Transcript Without Calling Anyone
Mortgage lender or student aid office wants your tax transcript? The IRS gives out five types free, online, no phone call. Here’s which one to pick.
-
Refund Offsets: Why the Treasury Can Keep Your Money
A smaller-than-expected tax refund often means the Treasury Offset Program took a cut for an old debt. How offsets work, your rights, and who to call.
-
SALT Deduction Changes: The New Cap and Who Benefits
The SALT cap jumped from $10,000 to $40,400 for 2026, with an income phase-down above $505,000. Who actually saves money, and the math to check.
-
Charitable Deductions: What Counts and What Doesn’t
New for 2026: a charitable deduction you can claim without itemizing. What counts, what doesn’t, and the receipts the IRS requires to keep it.
-
Tax Counseling for the Elderly: Free Help After 60
The IRS Tax Counseling for the Elderly program offers free tax help for people 60 and older. Here is how TCE works and how to find a site near you.
-
Low Income Taxpayer Clinics: Legal Help for Tax Fights
Low Income Taxpayer Clinics represent people in audits, appeals and collection fights with the IRS for free or a small fee. Here is who qualifies in 2026.
-
The Earned Income Tax Credit: Do You Qualify?
The EITC is a refundable credit worth thousands for working families, and the IRS says about one in five eligible workers never claims it. Here is who qualifies.
-
The New Car Loan Interest Deduction, Explained
The 2025 tax law lets many buyers deduct interest on a new car loan through 2028, no itemizing required. Here are the vehicle, loan, and income tests that decide it.