Use Schedule A (Form 1040) to figure your itemized deductions. In most cases, your federal income tax will be less if you take the larger of your itemized deductions or your standard deduction.

If you itemize, you can deduct a part of your medical and dental expenses and unreimbursed employee business expenses, and amounts you paid for certain taxes, interest, contributions, and miscellaneous expenses. You can also deduct certain casualty and theft losses.

If you and your spouse paid expenses jointly and are filing separate returns for 2010, see Pub. 504 to figure the portion of joint expenses that you can claim as itemized deductions.

Your itemized deductions are no longer limited because of your adjusted gross income (AGI).

You can no longer deduct certain state and local sales and excise taxes paid for a 2010 purchase of a new motor vehicle. However, if you paid these taxes in 2010 for a new motor vehicle you purchased in 2009, you may still be able to deduct these amounts. See the instructions for line 7.

The provision that excludes up to $100,000 of qualified charitable distributions from income has been extended. If you elect, a qualified charitable distribution made in January, 2011, will be treated as made in 2010. For more details, see Pub. 590.

The 2010 rate for use of your vehicle to get medical care is 16.5 cents a mile. The 2010 rate for use of your vehicle to do volunteer work for certain charitable organizations is still 14 cents a mile.

Generally, each personal casualty or theft loss is limited to the excess of the loss over $100 ($500 in 2009). The 10%-of-AGI limit continues to apply to the net loss.

The special limitation rule for an area determined by the President of the United States to warrant federal disaster assistance has expired. See Disaster losses on page A-9.

If you paid for repairs to your personal residence or household appliances because of corrosive drywall that was installed between 2001 and 2008, you may be able to deduct on line 20 those amounts paid. See Form 4684 and its instructions for details.