Not to the state, not to the federal government. Sometimes it feels like you pay over way too much of your hard-earned money in taxes. Yet, it's the law. But not everyone is required to prepare and file income tax returns. So exactly who gets the honor and the privilege of preparing and filing their annual federal income tax return? Here are some guidelines and minimum requirements for preparing and filing federal income tax returns:

•$8,750 as single filers.

•$11,250 as head of household filers.

•$17,500 as married couples filing jointly and both husband and wife are younger than 65.

If you're 65 and older, you get a little bit more of a break. You only have to file a return if you make at least:

•$10,050 for single filers.

•$12,550 for head of household filers.

•$18,550 for married couples filing jointly where one spouse is age 65 or older.

•$19,600 for married couples filing jointly where both partners are 65 or older.

The IRS has a different set of rules for determining if children have to file income taxes or not. A child may or may not be liable for the filing of an income tax return, depending on the type of income, and how much of it was received. For example, was the income earned (i.e., from a job) or was it unearned (i.e., interest and dividends). The filing thresholds for each type of income is as follows:

•Earned income - a child's return must be filed if the earned income is more than $5,350.

•Unearned income - a child's return must be filed if the unearned income is more than $850.

Now here's a little confusing twist: if the child has both earned and unearned income, but each piece doesn't reach the threshold for that particular type of income as described above, then the total income must be looked at in order to determine if the child needs to prepare an income tax return or not. If this is the case, a return must be filed if his or her gross income exceeds either $850 or if the dependent's earned income (up to $3,050) plus $300 is more than that $850 amount.

It gets a little bit confusing, but it is important to take pencil and paper and figure these numbers out carefully. No one wants to get a letter from the IRS down the line asking for a tax return.

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J. September writes about financial matters and the impact they can have on each one of us.

Source: www.articlesbase.com