Lowering your federal income tax liability through deductions is the goal of deduction planning. You should take all deductions to which you are entitled, and time them in the most efficient manner.
As a starting point, you’ll have to decide whether to itemize your deductions or take the standard deduction. Generally, you’ll choose whichever method lowers your taxes the most. If you itemize, be aware that some of your deductions may be disallowed if your adjusted gross income (AGI) reaches a certain threshold figure. If you expect that your AGI might limit your itemized deductions, try to lower your AGI. To lower your AGI for the year, you can defer part of your income to the next year, buy investments that generate tax-exempt income, and contribute as much as you can to qualified retirement plans.
Because you can sometimes control whether a deductible expense falls into the current tax year or the next, you may have some control over the timing of your deduction. If you’re in a higher federal income tax bracket this year than you expect to be in next year, you’ll want to accelerate your deductions into the current year. You can accelerate deductions by paying deductible expenses and making charitable contributions this year instead of waiting until next.
