J.K. Lasser’s Your Income Tax 2018, Professional Edition 

America’s most trusted tax advice, backed by detailed citations of authoritative tax references

J.K. Lasser’s Your Income Tax Professional Edition 2018 is the tax preparer’s guide to smart tax filing and planning. The Professional Edition not only includes the trusted guidance, clear advice, and money-saving tips featured in Your Income Tax, but also provides citations of tax authorities to help tax professionals easily locate the law, IRS rulings and court decisions that support the text. Fully up to date with the newest changes for 2017 tax returns, expert guidance from J.K. Lasser helps you maximize deductions and shelter income while providing hundreds of examples of how tax laws apply to individual situations. While evolving tax law can get very complex very quickly, this invaluable guide is designed to help you find the answers you need without wading through volumes of the Internal Revenue Code or IRS materials. Special icons call out new laws, IRS rulings, court decisions, filing pointers and planning strategies, allowing you to locate important information without breaking your workflow.

Keeping up with changes to tax law is itself a full-time job–if it’s not your full-time job, let the experts at J.K. Lasser do the legwork for you! Read from beginning to end or dip in and out as needed–this exceptional resource will help you:
* Get expert answers to tough tax situations quickly
* Navigate new laws, court decisions, IRS rulings, and more
* Locate authoritative sources easily with citations of references from the Code, the courts and the IRS.
* Avoid common pitfalls and adopt smart planning strategies for next year

Accessible, down-to-earth tax advice is always appreciated, but professional tax preparers need more–such as authoritative sources to back their advice and clarify tricky situations that their clients may encounter. J.K. Lasser’s Your Income Tax Professional Edition 2018 provides a quick one-stop resource for every tax pro, merging detailed citations with America’s most trusted tax advice for over 65 years.

Table of Content

Legislative Alert for 2018 xxvii

What’s New for 2017 xxix

Key Tax Numbers for 2017 xxxiii

Filing Basics 1

Reporting Your Income 33

Fringe Benefits 52

Dividend and Interest Income 75

Reporting Property Sales 101

Tax-Free Exchanges of Property 146

Retirement and Annuity Income 161

IRAs 197

Income From Real Estate Rentals and Royalties 243

Loss Restrictions: Passive Activities and At-Risk Limits 260

Other Income 288

Claiming Deductions 311

Claiming the Standard Deduction or Itemized Deductions 322

Charitable Contribution Deductions 330

Itemized Deduction for Interest Expenses 354

Deductions for Taxes 371

Medical and Dental Expense Deductions 378

Casualty and Theft Losses and Involuntary Conversions 396

Deducting Job Costs and Other Miscellaneous Expenses 421

Travel and Entertainment Expense Deductions 435

Personal Exemptions 461

Personal Tax Computations 475

Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) 481

Computing the ‘Kiddie Tax’ on Your Child’s Investment Income 489

Personal Tax Credits Reduce Your Tax Liability 495

Tax Withholdings 516

Estimated Tax Payments 523

Additional Medicare Tax and Net Investment Income Tax 529

Tax Savings for Residence Sales 537

Tax Rules for Investors in Securities 552

Tax Savings for Investors in Real Estate 568

Tax Rules for Investors in Mutual Funds 581

Educational Tax Benefi ts 590

Special Tax Rules for Senior Citizens and the Disabled 609

Members of the Armed Forces 621

Planning Alimony and Marital Settlements 639

Other Taxes 646

Gift and Estate Tax Planning Basics 654

Business Tax Planning 663

Retirement and Medical Plans for Self-Employed 693

Claiming Depreciation Deductions 703

Deducting Car and Truck Expenses 720

Sales of Business Property 734

Figuring Self-Employment Tax 741

Filing Your Return and What Happens When You File 749

Filing Refund Claims, and Amended Returns 759

If the IRS Examines Your Return 763

GLOSSARY 965

INDEX 971

About the author

J.K. Lasser Institute has been the premier publisher of consumer tax guides since 1939, when Jacob Kay Lasser first published Your Income Tax. Since then, the guide has been published continuously for over sixty years and read by over 39, 000, 000 people. The J.K. Lasser Institute also publishes several personal finance books such as Small Business Taxes and 1001 Deductions and Tax Breaks. J.K. Lasser Institute spokespeople are regularly sought after as media tax experts. They regularly appear on such broadcast programs as CNBC, CNN, and Bloomberg TV. They are also often featured in numerous periodicals, including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Self Magazine, The New York Times, Newsweek and Reader’s Digest.