Bank finance articles and tips

Taxpayers who seek assistance from IRS enrolled agents have access to plenty of information about substantiation of tax deductions. When the IRS audits someone, documentary proof is required to validate the deductible expenses under investigation. Professionals with enrolled agent certification are more familiar than most tax practitioners with consequences from IRS audits.

Surprisingly, many taxpayers who claim questionable deductions have less than adequate record keeping systems. This is particularly troublesome considering the increasing likelihood of IRS audits regarding certain activities and tax deduction categories. The enrolled agent exam addresses the types of expenses that are deductible in specific situations....

One of the basic steps executed with every tax return is determining if there are enough deductions to itemize. The standard deduction is used when total itemized deductions comprise a smaller amount. However, some deductions are really adjustments to income that do not require itemizing.

Teachers, people who moved, divorcees, and individuals repaying student loans are entitled to deduct certain items from taxable income without itemizing. There are about a dozen of these tax-deductible adjustments. In such cases, tax preparer jobs involve taking both the special adjustments to income plus the standard or itemized deductions.