Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-02-27
BY JAMES MARROW,

Service men and women and their
families get special income tax priv
ileges and exemptions, although,
generally, the rules that apply to
civilians apply to them.
While every one with income of
$500 or more in 1914 must file a tax
return by March Is, the following
Government pay to service people
and their families is exempt from
tax and need. not be reported at all:
The first $500 of active service
pay, rent and subsistence pay, mus
tering-out pay, Government contri-
buttons to monthly family allow
ances, pensions, disability compen-
sation, disability retirement pay for
service-connected disability, bene-
fits and living allowances given war
veterans for education and training
or vocational rehabilitation.
If soldiers only income was from
Army pay he would not need to file
a return on the first S1,999.99 of it
because, with the first ST 500 exempt,
no return would be necessary until
he'd received at least a full $500
more
Civilian Income Counted.
But a soldier who received as
much as $500 from a civilian source
would have to file a return, no
matter how small his Army pay.
Example:
Pvt. Jones Army pay was only
$500, but he had additional civilian
income of $500. He'd have to file a
return on the $500, but not the $500.
Also-if he received, say, 1900 in
Army pay and $500 in civilian in
come, he'd have to file a return on
that $400 civilian money and the
500 Army money over ST, 500.
Most service peoples income is too
small to require filing a return, so
this story is a general outline for
service people and their families.
If you must file. check further on
the various items which servicemen
can deduct or do not need to file at
all. There's no room here to list all
of them
Here's an extremely important
point for serviceman's wife to re-
member: If her husband is filing no
return but she is, because she has
civilian income of $500 or more, she
can claim him as an exemption.
Which means she can lop $500 off
her income before it is taxed. Ex-
ample:
Because his Army pay is too
small, Pvt. Jones doesn't have to
file return. His wife gets an allot-
ment from him and from the Gov
eminent. Neither is taxable in
come. But she works, and last year
earned $4,000.
She files a form W., the with
holding receipt, or the 1040 short
form. If she doesn't claim her hus-
band as an exemption her tax in
the table is $426 If she does claim
him, her tax is only 1926.
Exemption Saves 500.
So-she's saved 500 simply by
writing down her soldier husbands
name as an exemption on her tax
return.
Now, let's see when a serviceman
must file:
IT he's on sea duty or outside the
continental United States on March
Is, he can postpone filing and max
ing any tax payment until the 18th
day of the fourth month after his
return. He doesn't have to ask
permission for this.
If serviceman files but can't
pay his tax because his ability to
pay has been impaired by his mill
tary service, he can ask the internal
revenue collector for a deferment
for period ending not more than
six months after he leaves the
service.
A serviceman who has returned to
this country since December Is.
after 80 days or more of foreign
service or sea duty, does not have
to file return until the 18th day
after the fourth month following
his return.
Ali tax debts are wiped out for a
person who dies in active service
with the armed forces of the United
States or United Nations after De-
cember l, 1871. This means the
taxes are wiped out for the year in
which he died and all previous
years.
Help win the war by saving waste
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