In the federal budget bill passed February 9, Congress revived dozens of expired tax breaks retroactively for 2017. Here are the ones you may be able to use:
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• The tuition and fees deduction. If you paid qualified tuition and related higher education expenses, you may be able to deduct as much as $4,000 of those costs. This can be done on a regular return (without itemizing). The deduction is capped at $4,000 for single filers with adjusted gross income (AGI) of $65,000 or less ($130,000 joint) and at $2,000 for single filers with AGI of $80,000 or less ($160,000 joint). This tuition and fees deduction can be a nice alternative to using the American Opportunity Tax Credit or the Lifetime Learning Credit.
• Mortgage insurance deduction. If you pay mortgage insurance premiums, you can now deduct them as an itemized deduction. This deduction phases out for taxpayers with AGI of $100,000 or more.
• Mortgage debt forgiveness exclusion. If qualifying mortgage debt on your primary residence was discharged or forgiven, you can exclude that amount from your income taxes.
• Energy-efficient home improvement credit. If you purchased energy-efficient home improvements (such as upgrades to windows, or heating and cooling systems), you may be able to take a tax credit equal to 10 percent of the amount paid, up to $500.
• Bonus Tip: If you're eligible for any of these but you've already filed, you may still be able to claim these by filing an amended tax return.

If you think you qualify for any of these, remember to bring all related documentation to your next tax filing appointment. The IRS is now scrambling to figure out how to apply these late changes to the already published 1040 tax form for 2017.

​Your mailbox has probably started filling up with tax forms over the last several weeks and there are likely more to come. Getting these forms organized makes your tax filing easier for everyone involved. Here are some tips on how to handle all the forms you get and to prevent any potential problems.

Check your tax records from last year, and make a list of the forms you received. Add any new accounts, employers, or vendors and check the forms off as you get them. Gathering all your forms is important because the IRS gets copies of each form sent to them as well. Missing one can trigger an IRS correspondence audit, creating extra work and possibly delaying your refund.

​More employers, banks, and others are making their tax forms available to you electronically, so you may not get a paper form in the mail. Be sure to check your email inbox for any missing forms before you file, and don’t forget to check your “junk” or “spam” email folders as well, just in case any tax information accidentally ends up there.

​Double check to see if there are any errors on the forms you receive. If there are, contact the issuer via phone and in writing to get the problem fixed. If you can't get a corrected form, still report everything on your forms to the IRS, but add a correction explaining the error when you file your return. That way you can still file without waiting for the issuer to send you a corrected form.

While getting all your W-2 and 1099 forms is important, there are two crucial forms that you also need before you file:

• 1095 – Proof of health insurance, required under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). If you don't have health insurance, you'll have to pay a fine during tax years 2017 and 2018 (this requirement goes away in 2019). There is an approved delay for sending forms 1095-B and 1095-C until March 2, 2018. This delay is not granted for 1095-As provided to those using the marketplace to purchase insurance.
• 1098-T – Confirmation of tuition and fees paid to qualified educational institutions. If you're taking an education deduction, you'll need to have one of these forms from your accredited school.

As you watch for your forms to arrive, remember to reach out to schedule your tax-filing appointment. An early appointment will help ensure you get all your questions answered ahead of the April 17 filing deadline.

​Scammers were very successful last year with a scheme to snatch W-2 pay stub data from employers. The IRS is warning that it may be one of several techniques scammers utilize this year.

​Fraudsters simply identify employees with access to company payroll data and pretend to be a fellow employee emailing from an outside address. “Hi, I work in accounting. Do you think you could send me the payroll data on file? I’m traveling today and working on preparing my 2017 tax return.”

The IRS said this surprisingly simple tactic worked on more than 200 employers last year and compromised the W-2 information of hundreds of thousands of employees. The stolen data included names, addresses, Social Security numbers, income and withholdings. Scammers then used the data to file returns and claim refunds from the employees' tax withholdings.
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If you’re an employee, it’s hard to defend against this kind of scam because the breach happens to your employer. If you file and get an IRS notice that a return has already been filed in your name, you’ll know you’re a victim.

​If your refund was nabbed by a scammer, the good news is that the IRS will still eventually send you a replacement refund. The bad news is it can take a very long time—six months to a year or longer—for the IRS to investigate your case.

If that doesn’t sound appealing, know that there are a few things you can do to minimize your risk:

1. File early. By filing early you close the window of opportunity for scammers.
2. Request an IRS PIN. This one-time-use number provided by the IRS is entered on your 1040 forms as an added measure of security. Those whose identities have been stolen are automatically placed in the PIN program, but you may also opt-in to it yourself.
3. Minimize excess withholdings. If you had your withholdings calculated properly during the year, you can minimize the amount available for scammers to steal. Check your withholdings throughout the year using the IRS web tool. Unfortunately, it won’t be available for the 2018 tax year until late February, due to the recently passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

​Tax filing season has officially begun. Not many people file this early, but for some taxpayers it makes sense to do so. Here are some reasons you might consider trying to be at the head of the line:

You’re worried about tax identity fraud. One of the most common scams by identity thieves is to impersonate someone, file a return on their behalf, and snatch their refund check. But once you’ve filed, the window of opportunity for identity thieves closes. If you’ve had problems with your identity being stolen in the past, or your information has been compromised, consider filing early.

You want to avoid a dependent dispute. One of the most common reasons a return is rejected is when you claim a dependent who has already been claimed by someone else. This often happens when there is shared custody of a child.

Someone needs a completed return from you. If you anticipate buying a house early in 2018 or making any other transaction that will need a tax return as proof of income, you may want to file early so you can provide current tax information. This is particularly important if you are self-employed and don’t have pay stubs to use as proof of income.

You have a complex problem to work out. If you have a complex tax problem to work out, do yourself a favor and get your tax return appointment scheduled early. Otherwise it’s hard to get the detailed attention you need in the rush just ahead of the April 17 deadline.

You need the refund ASAP. Of course, everyone would like their refund as soon as possible. One thing to remember is that while the IRS starts accepting returns on the 29th, they won’t begin processing paper returns until mid-February. Returns that claim the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit will see processing of their returns further delayed until sometime after Feb. 15. But absent those exceptions, the sooner your tax return is in the queue, the sooner you should receive your refund.