The head of the Armed Forces Tax Council\u00a0says he prepares his tax returns himself,\u00a0but he always goes to a military tax center\u00a0to get them double-checked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sometimes it\u2019s not necessarily a mistake\u00a0that they find \u2013 it might be that the service\u00a0member hasn\u2019t taken advantage of a credit\u00a0or deduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some boxes service members\u00a0frequently forget to check on their\u00a0tax-prep list:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Reference materials. <\/b>It’s especially\u00a0important this year to bring in last\u00a0year’s tax return when you go to your\u00a0tax preparer, Kan said. The IRS changed its\u00a0contract for tax software, so even if you’re\u00a0going to the same military tax center you\u00a0went to last year, it’s possible the center\u00a0may no longer have your data.
2. Big numbers. <\/b>The most common\u00a0mistake is entering the wrong Social\u00a0Security number. Be meticulous with\u00a0this. If it’s wrong, that will delay your refund.
3. BIGGER numbers. <\/b>If you’re getting\u00a0your refund deposited electronically,\u00a0make sure you get your bank account\u00a0number correct. “You don’t want your money\u00a0going into someone else’s account,” Kan\u00a0said. “It’s a tremendous feat to get money\u00a0out of someone else’s account when it\u00a0goes to the wrong account.”
4. Don’t skip deductions. <\/b>Make sure\u00a0you take advantage of applicable tax\u00a0credits and deductions. Haircuts and\u00a0uniform items in general are not deductible,\u00a0but, especially with the Guard and Reserve\u00a0component, make sure you include the\u00a0deductions for certain travel expenses\u00a0related to duty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It’s the basics that trip up most tax returns — here’s what to know, what to bring and what to double-check<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":26504,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":15,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3302],"class_list":["post-11480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pay-benefits"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"NJNZOIURAVDK7GYQLJYL2JCWJU","arc_canonical_url":"\/pay-benefits\/2017\/03\/04\/2017-military-times-tax-guide-5-tax-tips-to-remember\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\n