Publication 554 |
2000 Tax Year |
Introduction
In general, the federal income tax laws apply equally to all
taxpayers regardless of age. However, certain provisions give special
treatment to older Americans.
While some items are discussed in this publication because of their
interest to older Americans, they apply to taxpayers generally and are
explained in detail in other publications of the Internal Revenue
Service (IRS). References to these free publications are included for
the convenience of readers who need more information on specific
subjects.
Specific tax benefits for older Americans.
Specific tax benefits are available to older Americans and are
listed here.
- Higher gross income threshold for filing. You
must be age 65 or older to get this benefit. (You are considered 65 on
the day before your 65th birthday.)
- Higher standard deduction. If you do not itemize
deductions, you are entitled to a higher standard deduction if you are
age 65 or older at the end of the year.
- Credit for the elderly or the disabled. If you
qualify and meet the age requirements, you may benefit from the credit
for the elderly or the disabled. To determine if you qualify and how
to figure this credit, see Credit for the Elderly or the
Disabled, later.
Ordering publications and forms.
To order free publications and forms, see How To Get Tax Help,
near the end of this publication.
Large print tax forms.
For easier reading and to practice preparing your return, you may
order large print tax forms. Use them as worksheets to figure your
tax, but do not file them. Call 1-800-829-3676
and order:
- Publication 1614, which contains Form 1040,
Schedules A, B, D, E, EIC, and R, and Form 1040-V, and their
instructions, or
- Publication 1615, which contains Form 1040A,
Schedules 1, 2, 3, and EIC, and their instructions.
When you file your actual return, do not send the large print tax
forms to IRS. Use the standard forms.
Table 1. 2000 Filing Requirements Chart for Most Taxpayers
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for
the Elderly (TCE).
These programs help older, disabled, low-income, and
non-English-speaking people fill in and file their returns. Call the
telephone number listed in the forms instructions for your city or
state for the location of the volunteer assistance site near you.
For the location of an American Association of Retired Persons
(AARP) Tax-Aide site in your community, simply call
1-888-227-7669 or
1-877-227-7844. When prompted, enter your
5-digit zip code. Or, you can visit their web site on the Internet at
www.aarp.org/taxaide/home.html.
Comments and suggestions.
We welcome your comments about this publication and your
suggestions for future editions.
You can e-mail us while visiting our web site at
www.irs.gov/help/email2.html.
You can write to us at the following address:
Internal Revenue Service
Technical Publications Branch
W:CAR:MP:FP:P
1111 Constitution Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20224
We respond to many letters by telephone. Therefore, it would be
helpful if you would include your daytime phone number, including the
area code, in your correspondence.
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