Deductible Taxes

There are five types of deductible non-business taxes:

• State, local and foreign income taxes
• State, local and foreign real estate taxes
• State, and local personal property taxes
• State and local sales taxes, and
• Qualified motor vehicle taxes

To be deductible, the tax must be imposed on you and must have been paid during your tax year. However, tables are available to determine your state and local general sales tax amount. Refer to the Instructions 1040 (General Inst.) for more information. Taxes may be claimed only as an itemized deduction on Form 1040 (Schedule A).

State and local income taxes withheld from your wages during the year appear on your Form W-2. The following amounts are also deductible:

• Any estimated taxes you paid to state or local governments during the year, and
• Any prior year's state or local income tax you paid during the year.

Generally, you can take either a deduction or a tax credit for foreign income taxes imposed on you by a foreign country or a United States possession. For information regarding the foreign tax credit, refer to Tax Topic 856. As an employee, you can deduct mandatory contributions to state benefit funds that provide protection against loss of wages. Refer to Publication 17 for the states that have such funds.

Deductible real estate taxes are generally any state, local, or foreign taxes on real property. They must be charged uniformly against all property in the jurisdiction and must be based on the assessed value. Many states and counties also impose local benefit taxes for improvements to property, such as assessments for streets, sidewalks, and sewer lines. These taxes cannot be deducted. However, you can increase the cost basis of your property by the amount of the assessment. Refer to Publication 551, Basis of Assets, for more information. Local benefits taxes are deductible if they are for maintenance or repair, or interest charges related to those benefits.

If a portion of your monthly mortgage payment goes into an escrow account, and periodically the lender pays your real estate taxes out of the account to the local government, do not deduct the amount paid into the escrow account. Only deduct the amount actually paid out of the escrow account during the year to the taxing authority.

Deductible personal property taxes are those based only on the value of personal property such as a boat or car. The tax must be charged to you on a yearly basis, even if it is collected more than once a year or less than once a year.

Taxes and fees you cannot deduct on Schedule A include federal income taxes, social security taxes, stamp taxes, or transfer taxes on the sale of property, homeowner's association fees, estate and inheritance taxes and service charges for water, sewer, or trash collection. You may be subject to a limit on some of your itemized deductions including non-business taxes. Please refer to the Instructions 1040 (General Inst.) for the limitations based on the adjusted gross income.

For 2011, you have the option of claiming state and local sales taxes as an itemized deduction instead of claiming state and local income taxes (you can't claim both). If you saved your receipts throughout the year, you can add up the total amount of sales taxes you actually paid and claim that amount. If you didn't save all your receipts, you can choose to claim a standard amount for state and local sales taxes. It's easy if you use the Sales Tax Deduction Calculator on IRS.gov (refer to Publication 600 and Instructions 1040 (General Inst.)).

The optional deduction for state and local sales taxes expires effective 12/31/2011 unless extended. For more information on non-business deductions for taxes, refer to Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax (For Individuals).