Evening star., 1948-03-01
Your income Tox
fSeuenth OF a Series.)
BY the Assoeiatsd Press

You may save money by watching
your deductions in filing your 1947
income tax return.
Ycu can deduct many expenses
personal or business-from your to-
tai income before it's taxable.
Some income is tax-exempt and
doesn't have to be reported at all.
The size of the deductions will de-
eide for many people the kind of in
come tax form they use.
But you have no choice in the
form If your income was 5000 or
over. In that case you must the
1040 long-form.
II you have to use the 1040 long
form, because your income was $5,-
600 or more, then:
l. You can take the standard
$500 deduction allowed everyone,
even though your deductible ex-
penses are not that much, You
don't have to itemize any of that
$500. Just take it. Or
O.. If your deductible expenses
were over $500, you can claim them
all but must itemize them all.
You May Choose Form.
A person with less than 5000 In
come can choose between the form
he'll use in making his tax return.
l. You can file on form w., the
withholding statement, or on the
1040 short-form. With both you're
automatically allowed a 10 per cent
deduction for expenses. No ques-
tions asked. The 10 per cent
already has been allower for in the
tax table used with those two forms.
2. If your decutions were really
more than 10 per cent of your under
St, 900 income-most peoples aren't
you can use the 104O long form.
There you can claim your deductible
expenses in full but you'll have to
itemize them and work out your own
tax.
Here's income that doesn't have to
be reported because it's tax-free:
Life insurance paid because of the
death Of the insured; inheritance,
gifts, or bequests of money or prop
erty, although the income from them
Is taxable; sickness and injury bene-
fits received through accident or
health insurance or under work.
mems compensation laws; unem-
ployment compensation; social Sc
curity benefits.
Here's tax-free income of service
men and veterans:
Mastering out pay; monthly Gov
ernment allowances to families Of
servicemen; State bonuses to veter-
ans; all benefits under the CT Bill
Of Rights, such as for education and
subsistence; disability pay; disability
retirement pay for service-connected
disability; allowances for uniforms;
subsistence, travelling, quarters; pen
sions to veterans or their families
for war services.
If you have questions about annu-
tiles, ask your internal revenue COL
lector. They're too complicated to
go into here.
Here are expenses tnat can pe de-
ducted:
Contributions to charitable, relig-
ious, scientific, fraternal and 'veter-
ans organizations, and non-pro1t
educational institutions. The total
OF them can't exceed Is per cent of
income and can't be made to indi-
yiduals.
More Deductions. ..--
Here are more:
State income and personal prop
erty and real estate taxes except
taxes which, like paving assess
ments, tend to increase the value Of
your property.
Here are more:
Sales taxes df tax is shown sepa-
rately on price tag); property losses
from fire, theft, storm, auto ac-
cidents; special $500 deduction for
the blind; use of your car for busi-
ness, which includes the cost OF
gasoline, oil grease, repairs, clean