Schedule A—Itemized Deductions is what you will need to fill out to itemize deductions. It’s a single-page, fairly plain tax form that all taxpayers who itemizes deductions must file and attach to their federal income tax returns.
Schedule A can guide you and give you an idea of what kind of expenses are deductible. In a nutshell, you can claim a deduction for the following expenses.
- Medical Expenses
- Interest Paid
- Charitable Contributions
- Casualty and Theft Loss
Along with the itemized deductions shown on Schedule A, you can claim other itemized deductions. You will need to attach other tax forms for claiming any other itemized deduction that isn’t listed on the form.
Schedule A can be filled out online and printed out below. To print out a paper copy, use the printer button on top or download it as a PDF upon filling out.
Should I itemize deductions?
Should you itemize deductions? While you can itemize deductions, you also have the option to take the standard deduction instead.
The standard deduction is increased for the 2024 tax season by $150 for single filers and $300 for married filing jointly. This increase only makes the standard deduction more appealing to taxpayers. Last year, about 9 out of 10 taxpayers took the standard deduction over itemizing. With the COVID-19 crisis, it is expected that more taxpayers will opt for the standard deduction.
If you ever find yourself not being able to decide on whether or not to itemize, know this general rule; only itemize if your itemized deductions is more than the standard deduction. This is how you’re going to get out of the limbo as easy as that.
This rule also applies to other tax provisions as well. For example, if you’re self-employed, you can deduct the vehicle expenses. You have two options for this deduction, either calculate the deduction based on the standard mileage rate or deduct the actual vehicle expenses. What you should do is calculate both deductions and claim the one that gives you the highest deduction.