information with your return. See Qualified Con-
servation Contribution, earlier.
Deduction over $500,000. If you claim a
deduction of more than $500,000 for a contribu-
tion of property, you must attach a Qualified ap-
praisal, which is prepared by a Qualified ap-
praiser, of the property to your return. This
doesn't apply to contributions of cash, qualified
vehicles for which you obtained a CWA, certain
inventory, publicly traded securities, or intellec-
tual property. See Regulations section
1.170A-16(e)(2).
In figuring whether your deduction is over
$500,000, combine the claimed deductions for
all similar items donated to any qualified organi-
zation during the year.
If you don't attach the appraisal, you can't
deduct your contribution, unless your failure to
attach it is due to reasonable cause and not to
willful neglect.
Form 8282. An organization must file Form
8282 if, within 3 years of receiving property for
which it was required to sign a Form 8283, it
sells, exchanges, consumes, or otherwise dis-
poses of the property. The organization must
also send you a copy of the form. However, the
organization need not file Form 8282 to report
the sale of an item if you signed a statement on
Section B of Form 8283 stating that the ap-
praised value of the item, or a specific item
within a group of similar items, was $500 or
less. For this purpose, all shares of nonpublicly
traded stock or securities, or items that form a
set (such as a collection of books written by the
same author or a group of place settings), are
considered to be one item.
How To Get Tax Help
If you have questions about a tax issue; need
help preparing your tax return; or want to down-
load free publications, forms, or instructions, go
to IRS.gov to find resources that can help you
right away.
Preparing and filing your tax return. After
receiving all your wage and earnings state-
ments (Forms W-2, W-2G, 1099-R, 1099-MISC,
1099-NEC, etc.); unemployment compensation
statements (by mail or in a digital format) or
other government payment statements (Form
1099-G); and interest, dividend, and retirement
statements from banks and investment firms
(Forms 1099), you have several options to
choose from to prepare and file your tax return.
You can prepare the tax return yourself, see if
you qualify for free tax preparation, or hire a tax
professional to prepare your return.
Free options for tax preparation. Go to
IRS.gov to see your options for preparing and
filing your return online or in your local commun-
ity, if you qualify, which include the following.
•
Free File. This program lets you prepare
and file your federal individual income tax
return for free using brand-name tax-prep-
aration-and-filing software or Free File filla-
ble forms. However, state tax preparation
may not be available through Free File. Go
to IRS.gov/FreeFile to see if you qualify for
free online federal tax preparation, e-filing,
and direct deposit or payment options.
•
VITA. The Volunteer Income Tax Assis-
tance (VITA) program offers free tax help to
people with low-to-moderate incomes, per-
sons with disabilities, and limited-Eng-
lish-speaking taxpayers who need help
preparing their own tax returns. Go to
IRS.gov/VITA, download the free IRS2Go
app, or call 800-906-9887 for information
on free tax return preparation.
•
TCE. The Tax Counseling for the Elderly
(TCE) program offers free tax help for all
taxpayers, particularly those who are 60
years of age and older. TCE volunteers
specialize in answering questions about
pensions and retirement-related issues
unique to seniors. Go to IRS.gov/TCE,
download the free IRS2Go app for informa-
tion on free tax return preparation.
•
MilTax. Members of the U.S. Armed
Forces and qualified veterans may use Mil-
Tax, a free tax service offered by the De-
partment of Defense through Military One-
Source. For more information, go to
MilitaryOneSource (MilitaryOneSource.mil/
MilTax).
Also, the IRS offers Free Fillable Forms,
which can be completed online and then
filed electronically regardless of income.
Using online tools to help prepare your re-
turn. Go to IRS.gov/Tools for the following.
•
The Earned Income Tax Credit Assistant
(IRS.gov/EITCAssistant) determines if
you’re eligible for the earned income credit
(EIC).
•
The Online EIN Application (IRS.gov/EIN)
helps you get an employer identification
number (EIN) at no cost.
•
The Tax Withholding Estimator (IRS.gov/
W4app) makes it easier for you to estimate
the federal income tax you want your em-
ployer to withhold from your paycheck.
This is tax withholding. See how your with-
holding affects your refund, take-home pay,
or tax due.
•
The First-Time Homebuyer Credit Account
Look-up (IRS.gov/HomeBuyer) tool pro-
vides information on your repayments and
account balance.
•
The Sales Tax Deduction Calculator
(IRS.gov/SalesTax) figures the amount you
can claim if you itemize deductions on
Schedule A (Form 1040).
Getting answers to your tax ques-
tions. On IRS.gov, you can get
up-to-date information on current
events and changes in tax law.
•
IRS.gov/Help: A variety of tools to help you
get answers to some of the most common
tax questions.
•
IRS.gov/ITA: The Interactive Tax Assistant,
a tool that will ask you questions and,
based on your input, provide answers on a
number of tax law topics.
•
IRS.gov/Forms: Find forms, instructions,
and publications. You will find details on
the most recent tax changes and interac-
tive links to help you find answers to your
questions.
•
You may also be able to access tax law in-
formation in your electronic filing software.
Need someone to prepare your tax return?
There are various types of tax return preparers,
including enrolled agents, certified public ac-
countants (CPAs), accountants, and many oth-
ers who don’t have professional credentials. If
you choose to have someone prepare your tax
return, choose that preparer wisely. A paid tax
preparer is:
•
Primarily responsible for the overall sub-
stantive accuracy of your return,
•
Required to sign the return, and
•
Required to include their preparer tax iden-
tification number (PTIN).
Although the tax preparer always signs the
return, you're ultimately responsible for provid-
ing all the information required for the preparer
to accurately prepare your return. Anyone paid
to prepare tax returns for others should have a
thorough understanding of tax matters. For
more information on how to choose a tax pre-
parer, go to Tips for Choosing a Tax Preparer on
IRS.gov.
Employers can register to use Business
Services Online. The Social Security Adminis-
tration (SSA) offers online service at SSA.gov/
employer for fast, free, and secure online W-2
filing options to CPAs, accountants, enrolled
agents, and individuals who process Form W-2,
Wage and Tax Statement, and Form W-2c, Cor-
rected Wage and Tax Statement.
IRS social media. Go to IRS.gov/SocialMedia
to see the various social media tools the IRS
uses to share the latest information on tax
changes, scam alerts, initiatives, products, and
services. At the IRS, privacy and security are
our highest priority. We use these tools to share
public information with you. Don’t post your so-
cial security number (SSN) or other confidential
information on social media sites. Always pro-
tect your identity when using any social net-
working site.
The following IRS YouTube channels provide
short, informative videos on various tax-related
topics in English, Spanish, and ASL.
•
Youtube.com/irsvideos.
•
Youtube.com/irsvideosmultilingua.
•
Youtube.com/irsvideosASL.
Watching IRS videos. The IRS Video portal
(IRSVideos.gov) contains video and audio pre-
sentations for individuals, small businesses,
and tax professionals.
Online tax information in other languages.
You can find information on IRS.gov/
MyLanguage if English isn’t your native lan-
guage.
Free Over-the-Phone Interpreter (OPI) Serv-
ice. The IRS is committed to serving our multi-
lingual customers by offering OPI services. The
OPI Service is a federally funded program and
is available at Taxpayer Assistance Centers
(TACs), other IRS offices, and every VITA/TCE
return site. The OPI Service is accessible in
more than 350 languages.
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