The 2010 Tax Filers Question Thread

[JPhillips]

Hopefully we can get some answers to common tax questions if we all work together.

Here's my first. Does a Catholic school pre-k program count for the child care credit? My wife and I meet all the tests listed on the IRS site, but I don't know if th nature of the program matters.

[cartman]

Here's a tip an ex-IRS auditor told me:

The IRS themselves will often give different answers to the same question. Often times, they have several different places to look to answer your question. If you call in and don't get an answer you like, call back at various times and see if you get different answers. If you do get a response that works for you, before hanging up, get the person's name and ask them what system they used to reference to answer your question, along with any other details you can use as an audit defense. However, if you call in 5 times and get the exact same answer, odds are that isn't going to change with subsequent calls.

[Mike Lowe]

I got the first-time homebuyers credit last year but when I went through all of the Q's on that particular section, I oddly fell through a loophole and I "qualified" for it again haha.

I obviously removed it as there's no way it would be legit but man, I was tempted to try ;-)

[chesapeake]

The religious aspect is irrelevant for tax purposes. If the pre-k would otherwise qualify as a child care provider, the affiliation doesn't matter.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

Here's my first. Does a Catholic school pre-k program count for the child care credit? My wife and I meet all the tests listed on the IRS site, but I don't know if th nature of the program matters.

My understanding (may be wrong, but this is how we are doing our taxes) is pre-k is basically daycare/childcare, while private K+ is not (that's school, not childcare). Before/after school care does qualify for childcare.

Hey, whaddayaknow, just looked it up. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p503.pdf, top of page 7 says basically that. Phew! Logic actually worked for the IRS.

[PurdueBrad]

This is just a very general question. What kind of impact will the birth of our first child have on our taxes?

We usually get back something like 200-300 dollars a year and have changed nothing except that we had the child and we have $3500 in day care costs from last year. Like I said, I know it's kind of a vague, general question but just curious.

[miked]

You get the $1,000 child credit, and whatever the extra dependent adds. I'm not sure about the 3500 in day care costs, as I assume you don't have that taken out pre-tax. Like most things, it probably has to be over a certain threshold and I think both parents must work.