What's New for 2010(p4)

File Form 1040EZ by April 18, 2011. The due date is April 18, instead of April 15, because of the Emancipation Day holiday in the District of Columbia—even if you do not live in the District of Columbia.

You may be able to take the EIC if you earned less than $13,460 ($18,470 if married filing jointly). See the instructions for lines 9a and 9b that begin on page 13.

The following tax benefits have expired.

• The exclusion from income of up to $2,400 in unemployment compensation. All unemployment compensation you received in 2010 is generally taxable.
• Extra $3,000 IRA deduction for employees of bankrupt companies.
• Certain tax benefits for Midwestern disaster areas, including the additional exemption amount if you provided housing for a person displaced by the Midwestern storms, tornadoes, or flooding.

If you claimed the first-time homebuyer credit for a home you bought in 2008, you generally must begin repaying it on your 2010 return. In addition, you generally must repay any credit you claimed for 2008 or 2009 if you sold your home in 2010 or the home stopped being your main home in 2010. See Form 5405 for details. If you have to file Form 5405, you must file Form 1040. You cannot file Form 1040EZ.

If you use a paid preparer to file your return, the preparer is allowed, in some cases, to disclose certain information from your return, such as your name and address, to certain other parties, such as the preparer’s professional liability insurance company or the publisher of a tax newsletter. For details, see Revenue Rulings 2010-4 and 2010-5. You can find Revenue Ruling 2010-4 on page 309 of Internal Revenue Bulletin 2010-4 at www.irs.gov/irb/2010-4_IRB/ar08.html. You can find Revenue Ruling 2010-5 on page 312 of Internal Revenue Bulletin 2010-4 at www.irs.gov/irb/2010-4_IRB/ar09.html.

A new law requires some paid preparers to e-file returns they prepare and file. Your preparer may make you aware of this requirement and the options available to you.

If you are filing a paper return, you may be mailing your return to a different address this year because the IRS has changed the filing location for several areas. See Where Do You File? on the last page.