The spooky, scary Halloween season is upon us. Who among us hasn’t at one time or another awakened from a nightmarish deep sleep in the dark at this scary time of the year worrying about the traditional spooky stuff as well as the not so traditional spooky stuff. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving and its story of the Headless Horseman has always been one of my all time favorite Halloween tales but nothing puts me in a Halloween mood more than a haunting reading of Edgar Allan Poe’s the Raven. Of course, the great thing about these traditional Halloween reads is that they are just that tales of legend and lore to put us in just the right mood for this very brief October interlude.

But alas, The Tax Man Cometh isn’t a Halloween story or book, it’s a real alert. Tax Season is unfortunately just around the corner and it’s not too early to spend a little time doing some tax planning, on your own or with a trusted professional advisor. Now and through the end of the year is the right time to consider contributing to your favorite charities, because it’s a way to help in whatever way you can and also if you itemize it will lower your taxable income. Don’t forget that you can also donate non-cash items to non-profit charities. An important related point to remember is to GET A RECEIPT from the charity that documents your donation and be sure that you verify an organization's tax-exempt status and eligibility to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions.

One way to make that verification is to search IRS Publication 78 to review the Cumulative List of Organizations eligible to receive your tax-deductible contributions. The IRS has made an online version of Publication 78 available to assist you in your search for charities eligible to receive your tax-deductible contributions. It’s important to recognize the fact that not all donations to charities are tax deductible. For deductibility the charity has to be deemed eligible by the IRS. There are some charities that are not on the Publication 78 list that are still deductible such as certain churches and their affiliates, group exemption subordinate organizations, governmental units including Indian tribal governments and organizations not filing annual returns due to their size.

So don't lose your head like the headless horseman did because your worrying too much about your taxes, just do some basic tax planning.

I hope you're enjoying Tax Facts on the Taxing Subject of Taxes;
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I wish you and your families a safe and Happy Halloween.

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