Sunday, April 26, 2009

What are my Insurance Benefits

Both health insurance and dental insurance can be obtained through your employer in most instances. If you can’t get it from them you need to look into coverage on your own. There are many insurance companies now that realize many people are looking for personal insurance policies for themselves and their families and have many different schemes so finding one that suits you should not be difficult.

Life insurance is another type of benefit that you will want to look into. This allows you to pay in a premium and then upon your death your beneficiary will be paid a set amount. Often this policy type gives a great deal of peace of mind to the individual that upon their death their loved ones will have some help in dealing with all the necessary costs and legal expenses.

With so many variations of insurance benefits though you need to be very careful. Make sure you read all of the details of it so you know what you are paying for. There can be many clauses of exemption in policies that can easily be overlooked. Examples of this can be pregnancy not being included on a health insurance policy or suicide not being a valid cause of death to receive a life insurance policy pay out.


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Am I entitled to Tax Benefits?

For low-income families, the Earned Income Tax Credit is a great way for them to get a large chunk of money back when they file their taxes. By completing these forms with your employer you will receive more money in your pay cheque which is a great bonus rather than waiting a year to get it refunded.

Donating items is a great way to help others out and you can also get tax benefits for it. When you donate food, clothing, or even vehicles you need to get a receipt for it. There are rules that apply regarding how much you can deduct though so make sure you discuss this with your tax preparer.

If you work from home you may be able to take additional tax benefits there as well. Often you can make deductions for electric, supplies etc as you are a home office worker. Your tax preparer can assist you with this as well.

It may seem like a daunting task, but you want to get all the verifications you can for your taxes. Take advantage of the various benefits offered to you so you can lower your taxes and research what you are entitled to. Maybe that will make tax time something you look forward to instead of something you dread. That means extra money in your pocket for other things.

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How do I get Tax Refunds

It is very important to be honest about all of the information on your tax return. Should you receive a refund that you do not believe you are entitled to then you need to alert the tax office immediately. There are fines and penalties that will apply to your account should you not do this and they can really add up quickly. Should it be discovered that the information you provided was intentionally fraudulent in order to get a refund, you can face criminal charges as well.

For many the tax refund system is almost a method of savings and they look forward to the end of the tax year and receiving their refund to settle credit card bills or maybe to treat themselves to a holiday of new car. The amount of a tax refund can be from just a few dollars to several thousands of dollars.

The amount of refund a household is entitled to depends on many variables. The number of people in the home, income, expenses, eligible deductions, and tax laws all play into it. In most cases it is not until you have researched and completed all the paperwork that you will know how much you are entitled to. Of course not everyone gets a tax refund and that tends to lead to even more resentment of the entire system for them.

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Information on Avoiding an IRS Audit

Some issues that come up are simple mistakes such as when a divorced couple both claim the same defendants on their tax returns. Other more complicated issues may be a warning sign, such as a self-employed individual having higher outgoing expenses than incoming turnover. This would obviously be cause for investigation, as it would mean that a business is continually operating at a loss and would not be a viable concern.

If you make more than $100,000 per year then your chances of an IRS audit will increase. This is due to a past history of those in this income bracket manipulating the system to show their deductions as higher than they actually are in order to lower their taxes. Yet most people don’t want to limit their income to less than this if they don’t have to just to avoid an IRS audit.

Large amounts of itemized deductions on a tax return or large amounts of contributions to non profit organizations can really highlight your return. These are areas where the IRS is really getting tough because of fraudulent claims. Make sure you are very honest about these amounts on your tax returns.

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What are Refunds & Rebates

It is well worth the effort of sacrificing a few minutes of your time to complete the forms necessary to get these rebates and refunds, after all you are entitled to them. You will also need to pay for an envelope and a stamp but your refund check could end up being for $25 or more. It takes very little effort to complete these forms in their entirety and with a few moments of your time you will get money that is owing to you.

Make sure you read all of the details associated with the refund and the rebate. You will likely have to submit your original receipt as well as your proof of purchase from the item in order to get it. It is always wise to keep a copy on file for your own reference also. Many people just take a picture with a digital camera too as proof that they did indeed get this information and submit it.

Try to get a copy of the completed form that you are sending as well. You will want the address and the phone number to contact them about it if you don’t get your refund and that will be on the form. Many refunds and rebates can take six or eight weeks to process and in that time many people forget about it. It is recommended that you take note of when you should have received your refund in a diary so that if not received then you can chase it up with the appropriate person.

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