Congress let many tax provisions expire on December 31, 2017, making them dead for your already- filed 2018 tax returns.
In what has become much too common practice, Congress resurrected the dead provisions retroactively to January 1, 2018. That’s good news. The bad news is that we have to amend your tax returns to make this work for you.
And you can relax when filing your 2019 and 2020 tax returns, because lawmakers extended the “extender” tax laws for both years. Thus, no worries until 2021—and even longer for a few extenders that received special treatment.
Back from the Dead:
The big five tax breaks that most likely impact your Form 1040 are as follows:
- Exclusion from income for cancellation of acquisition debt on your principal residence (up to $2 million)
- Deduction for mortgage insurance premiums as residence interest
- 7.5 percent floor to deduct medical expenses (instead of 10 percent)
- Above-the-line tuition and fees deduction
- Nonbusiness energy property credit for energy-efficient improvements to your residence
Congress extended these five tax breaks retroactively to January 1, 2018. They now expire on December 31, 2020, so you’re good for both 2019 and 2020
