Publication 17: Your Federal Income Tax; Publication 17 Additional Material

This is archived information that pertains only to the 2003 Tax Year. If you
are looking for information for the current tax year, go to the Tax Prep Help Area.

Table of Contents

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Tax Table-1

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Tax Table-2

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Tax Table-3

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Tax Table-4

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Tax Table-5

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Tax Table-6

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Tax Table-7

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Tax Table-8

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Tax Table-9

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Tax Table-10

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Tax Table-11

Tax Table-12

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Tax Rate Schedule

Your Rights as a Taxpayer

The first part of this section explains some of your most important rights as a taxpayer. The second part explains the examination, appeal, collection, and refund processes.

Declaration of Taxpayer Rights

Protection of your rights.

IRS employees will explain and protect your rights as a taxpayer throughout your contact with us.

Privacy and confidentiality.

The IRS will not disclose to anyone the information you give us, except as authorized by law. You have the right to know why we are asking you for information, how we will use it, and what will happen if you do not provide requested information.

Professional and courteous service.

If you believe that an IRS employee has not treated you in a professional, fair, and courteous manner, you should tell that employee's supervisor. If the supervisor's response is not satisfactory, you should write to the IRS area director or the center where you filed your return.

Representation.

You may either represent yourself or, with proper written authorization, have someone else represent you. Your representative must be a person allowed to practice before the IRS, such as an attorney, certified public accountant, or enrolled agent. If you are in an interview and ask to consult a representative, we must stop and reschedule the interview in most cases.

You can have someone accompany you at an interview. You may make sound recordings of any meetings with our examination, appeal, or collection personnel, provided you tell us in writing 10 days before the meeting.

Payment of only the correct amount of tax.

You are responsible for paying only the correct amount of tax due under the law—no more, no less. If you cannot pay all of your tax when it is due, you may be able to make monthly installment payments.

Help with unresolved tax problems.

The Taxpayer Advocate Service can help you if you have tried unsuccessfully to resolve a problem with the IRS. Your local Taxpayer Advocate can offer you special help if you have a significant hardship as a result of a tax problem. For more information, see Contacting your Taxpayer Advocate under How To Get Tax Help.

Appeals and judicial review.

If you disagree with us about the amount of your tax liability or certain collection actions, you have the right to ask the Appeals Office to review your case. You may also ask a court to review your case.

Relief from certain penalties and interest.

The IRS will waive penalties when allowed by law if you can show you acted reasonably and in good faith or relied on the incorrect advice of an IRS employee. We will waive interest that is the result of certain errors or delays caused by an IRS employee.

Examinations, Appeals, Collections, and Refunds

Examinations (Audits)

We accept most returns as filed. If we inquire about your return or select it for examination, it does not suggest that you are dishonest. The inquiry or examination may or may not result in more tax. We may close your case without change; or, you may receive a refund.

The process of selecting a return for examination usually begins in one of two ways. First, we use computer programs to identify returns that may have incorrect amounts. These programs may be based on information returns, such as Forms 1099 and W–2, on studies of past examinations, or on certain issues identified by compliance projects. Second, we use information from outside sources that indicates that a return may have incorrect amounts. These sources may include newspapers, public records, and individuals. If we determine that the information is accurate and reliable, we may use it to select a return for examination.

Publication 556, Examination of Returns, Appeal Rights, and Claims for Refund, explains the rules and procedures that we follow in examinations. The following sections give an overview of how we conduct examinations.

By mail.

We handle many examinations and inquiries by mail. We will send you a letter with either a request for more information or a reason why we believe a change to your return may be needed. You can respond by mail or you can request a personal interview with an examiner. If you mail us the requested information or provide an explanation, we may or may not agree with you, and we will explain the reasons for any changes. Please do not hesitate to write to us about anything you do not understand.

By interview.

If we notify you that we will conduct your examination through a personal interview, or you request such an interview, you have the right to ask that the examination take place at a reasonable time and place that is convenient for both you and the IRS. If our examiner proposes any changes to your return, he or she will explain the reasons for the changes. If you do not agree with these changes, you can meet with the examiner's supervisor.

Repeat examinations.

If we examined your return for the same items in either of the 2 previous years and proposed no change to your tax liability, please contact us as soon as possible so we can see if we should discontinue the examination.

Appeals

If you do not agree with the examiner's proposed changes, you can appeal them to the Appeals Office of IRS. Most differences can be settled without expensive and time-consuming court trials. Your appeal rights are explained in detail in both Publication 5, Your Appeal Rights and How To Prepare a Protest If You Don't Agree, and Publication 556, Examination of Returns, Appeal Rights, and Claims for Refund.

If you do not wish to use the Appeals Office or disagree with its findings, you may be able to take your case to the U.S. Tax Court, U.S. Court of Federal Claims, or the U.S. District Court where you live. If you take your case to court, the IRS will have the burden of proving certain facts if you kept adequate records to show your tax liability, cooperated with the IRS, and meet certain other conditions. If the court agrees with you on most issues in your case and finds that our position was largely unjustified, you may be able to recover some of your administrative and litigation costs. You will not be eligible to recover these costs unless you tried to resolve your case administratively, including going through the appeals system, and you gave us the information necessary to resolve the case.

Collections

Publication 594, The IRS Collection Process, explains your rights and responsibilities regarding payment of federal taxes. It describes:

What to do when you owe taxes. It describes what to do if you get a tax bill and what to do if you think your bill is wrong. It also covers making installment payments, delaying collection action, and submitting an offer in compromise.
IRS collection actions. It covers liens, releasing a lien, levies, releasing a levy, seizures and sales, and release of property.

Your collection appeal rights are explained in detail in Publication 1660, Collection Appeal Rights.

Innocent spouse relief.

Generally, both you and your spouse are responsible, jointly and individually, for paying the full amount of any tax, interest, or penalties due on your joint return. However, if you qualify for innocent spouse relief, you may not have to pay the tax, interest, and penalties related to your spouse (or former spouse). For information on innocent spouse relief and two other ways to get relief, see Publication 971, Innocent Spouse Relief, and Form 8857, Request for Innocent Spouse Relief (And Separation of Liability and Equitable Relief).

Claims for Refund

You may file a claim for refund if you think you paid too much tax. You must generally file the claim within 3 years from the date you filed your original return or 2 years from the date you paid the tax, whichever is later. The law generally provides for interest on your refund if it is not paid within 45 days of the date you filed your return or claim for refund. Publication 556, Examination of Returns, Appeal Rights, and Claims for Refund, has more information on refunds.

If you were due a refund but you did not file a return, you must file within 3 years from the date the return was originally due to get that refund.

How To Get Tax Help

You can get help with unresolved tax issues, order free publications and forms, ask tax questions, and get more information from the IRS in several ways. By selecting the method that is best for you, you will have quick and easy access to tax help.

Contacting your Taxpayer Advocate.

If you have attempted to deal with an IRS problem unsuccessfully, you should contact your Taxpayer Advocate.

The Taxpayer Advocate independently represents your interests and concerns within the IRS by protecting your rights and resolving problems that have not been fixed through normal channels. While Taxpayer Advocates cannot change the tax law or make a technical tax decision, they can clear up problems that resulted from previous contacts and ensure that your case is given a complete and impartial review.

To contact your Taxpayer Advocate:

Call the Taxpayer Advocate toll free at
1–877–777–4778.
Call, write, or fax the Taxpayer Advocate office in your area.
Call 1–800–829–4059 if you are a
TTY/TDD user.
Visit the web site at www.irs.gov/advocate.

For more information, see Publication 1546, The Taxpayer Advocate Service of the IRS.

Free tax services.

To find out what services are available, get Publication 910, Guide to Free Tax Services. It contains a list of free tax publications and an index of tax topics. It also describes other free tax information services, including tax education and assistance programs and a list of TeleTax topics.

Internet. You can access the IRS web site 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at www.irs.gov to:

E-file. Access commercial tax preparation and e-file services available for free to eligible taxpayers.
Check the amount of advance child tax credit payments you received in 2003.
Check the status of your 2003 refund. Click on “Where's My Refund” and then on “Go Get My Refund Status.” Be sure to wait at least 6 weeks from the date you filed your return (3 weeks if you filed electronically) and have your 2003 tax return available because you will need to know your filing status and the exact whole dollar amount of your refund.
Download forms, instructions, and publications.
Order IRS products on-line.
See answers to frequently asked tax questions.
Search publications on-line by topic or keyword.
Figure your withholding allowances using our Form W-4 calculator.
Send us comments or request help by e-mail.
Sign up to receive local and national tax news by e-mail.
Get information on starting and operating a small business.

You can also reach us using File Transfer Protocol at ftp.irs.gov.

Fax. You can get over 100 of the most requested forms and instructions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, by fax. Just call 703–368–9694 from your fax machine. Follow the directions from the prompts. When you order forms, enter the catalog number for the form you need. The items you request will be faxed to you.

For help with transmission problems, call 703–487–4608.

Long-distance charges may apply.

Phone. Many services are available by phone.

Ordering forms, instructions, and publications. Call 1–800–829–3676 to order current–year forms, instructions, and publications and prior year forms and instructions. You should receive your order within 10 days.
Asking tax questions. Call the IRS with your tax questions at 1–800–829–1040.
Solving problems. You can get face-to-face help solving tax problems every business day in IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers. An employee can explain IRS letters, request adjustments to your account, or help you set up a payment plan. Call your local Taxpayer Assistance Center for an appointment. To find the number, go to www.irs.gov or look in the phone book under “United States Government, Internal Revenue Service.”
TTY/TDD equipment. If you have access to TTY/TDD equipment, call 1–800–829– 4059 to ask tax or account questions or to order forms and publications.
TeleTax topics. Call 1–800–829–4477 to listen to pre-recorded messages covering various tax topics.
Refund information. If you would like to check the status of your 2003 refund, call 1–800–829 4477 for automated refund information and follow the recorded instructions or call 1–800–829–1954. Be sure to wait at least 6 weeks from the date you filed your return (3 weeks if you filed electronically) and have your 2003 tax return available because you will need to know your filing status and the exact whole dollar amount of your refund.

Evaluating the quality of our telephone services. To ensure that IRS representatives give accurate, courteous, and professional answers, we use several methods to evaluate the quality of our telephone services. One method is for a second IRS representative to sometimes listen in on or record telephone calls. Another is to ask some callers to complete a short survey at the end of the call.

Walk-in. Many products and services are available on a walk-in basis.

Products. You can walk in to many post offices, libraries, and IRS offices to pick up certain forms, instructions, and publications. Some IRS offices, libraries, grocery stores, copy centers, city and county government offices, credit unions, and office supply stores have a collection of products available to print from a CD-ROM or photocopy from reproducible proofs. Also, some IRS offices and libraries have the Internal Revenue Code, regulations, Internal Revenue Bulletins, and Cumulative Bulletins available for research purposes
Services. You can walk in to your local Taxpayer Assistance Center every business day to ask tax questions or get help with a tax problem. An employee can explain IRS letters, request adjustments to your account, or help you set up a payment plan. You can set up an appointment by calling your local Center and, at the prompt, leaving a message requesting Everyday Tax Solutions help. A representative will call you back within 2 business days to schedule an in-person appointment at your convenience. To find the number, go to www.irs.gov or look in the phone book under “United States Government, Internal Revenue Service.”

Mail. You can send your order for forms, instructions, and publications to the Distribution Center nearest to you and receive a response within 10 workdays after your request is received. Use the address that applies to your part of the country.

Western part of U.S.:
Western Area Distribution Center
Rancho Cordova, CA 95743–0001
Central part of U.S.:
Central Area Distribution Center
P.O. Box 8903
Bloomington, IL 61702–8903
Eastern part of U.S. and foreign addresses:
Eastern Area Distribution Center
P.O. Box 85074
Richmond, VA 23261–5074

CD-ROM for tax products. You can order IRS Publication 1796, Federal Tax Products on CD-ROM, and obtain:

Current-year forms, instructions, and publications.
Prior-year forms and instructions.
Frequently requested tax forms that may be filled in electronically, printed out for submission, and saved for recordkeeping.
Internal Revenue Bulletins.

Buy the CD-ROM from National Technical Information Service (NTIS) on the Internet at www.irs.gov/cdorders for $22 (no handling fee) or call 1–877–233–6767 toll free to buy the CD-ROM for $22 (plus a $5 handling fee). The first release is available in early January and the final release is available in late February.

CD-ROM for small businesses. IRS Publication 3207, Small Business Resource Guide, is a must for every small business owner or any taxpayer about to start a business. This handy, interactive CD contains all the business tax forms, instructions and publications needed to successfully manage a business. In addition, the CD provides an abundance of other helpful information, such as how to prepare a business plan, finding financing for your business, and much more. The design of the CD makes finding information easy and quick and incorporates file formats and browsers that can be run on virtually any desktop or laptop computer.

It is available in early April. You can get a free copy by calling 1–800–829–3676 or by visiting the web site at www.irs.gov/smallbiz.

Written tax questions.

You can send your written tax questions to your IRS office. You should get an answer in about 30 days. If you do not have the address, you can get it by calling 1–800–829–1040. Do not send tax questions with your return.

Braille tax materials.

A variety of Braille tax products can be ordered at no charge by calling the IRS at 1–800–829–3676. You can also download accessible products by visiting the Accessibility section of the IRS web site at www.irs.gov.

Braille tax materials are available for review from Regional Libraries for the Visually Impaired in conjunction with the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. To locate your nearest library, call 1–800– 424–8567. Braille materials currently available for review include this publication, Publication 334, Tax Guide for Small Business, and Forms 1040, 1040A, and 1040EZ. All of these products come with related schedules, instructions and tax tables.

Free help in preparing your return.

Free help in preparing your return is available nationwide from IRS-trained volunteers. The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA)program is designed to help low-income taxpayers and the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) program is designed to assist taxpayers age 60 or older with their tax returns. Some locations offer free electronic filing. See IRS e-file in chapter 1 for information on electronic filing.

Call the IRS 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, call 1–888–227–7669 or visit their Internet Web Site at www.aarp.org/taxaide.

Where To File

Note. Use this table only if you are an individual taxpayer filing your own return.

		AND use the zip code below according to the form you are filing and whether you are enclosing payment
		Form 1040		Form 1040A		Form 1040EZ
IF you live in...	THEN send your return to...	No payment enclosed	Payment enclosed	No payment enclosed	Payment enclosed	No payment enclosed	Payment enclosed
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, West Virginia	Internal Revenue Service Center Atlanta, GA	39901–0002	39901–0102	39901–0015	39901–0115	39901–0014	39901–0114
Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming	Internal Revenue Service Center Fresno, CA	93888–0002	93888–0102	93888–0015	93888–0115	93888–0014	93888–0114
Arkansas, Colorado, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas	Internal Revenue Service Center Austin, TX	73301–0002	73301–0102	73301–0015	73301–0115	73301–0014	73301–0114
Connecticut, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania	Internal Revenue Service Center Philadelphia, PA	19255–0002	19255–0102	19255–0015	19255–0115	19255–0014	19255–0114
Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin	Internal Revenue Service Center Kansas City, MO	64999–0002	64999–0102	64999–0015	64999–0115	64999–0014	64999–0114
Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont	Internal Revenue Service Center Andover, MA	05501–0002	05501–0102	05501–0015	05501–0115	05501–0014	05501–0114
Ohio, Virginia	Internal Revenue Service Center Memphis, TN	37501–0002	37501–0102	37501–0015	37501–0115	37501–0014	37501–0114
American Samoa	Internal Revenue Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19255–0215 USA
Puerto Rico (or exclude income under Internal Revenue Code section 933)	Internal Revenue Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19255–0215 USA
Guam — permanent resident	Department of Revenue and Taxation, Government of Guam, P.O. Box 23607 GMF, GU 96921
Guam — nonpermanent resident	Internal Revenue Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19255–0215 USA
Virgin Islands — permanent resident	V.I. Bureau of Internal Revenue, 9601 Estate Thomas, Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, VI 00802
Virgin Islands — nonpermanent resident	Internal Revenue Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19255–0215 USA
Any location and have an APO, FPO, or foreign address	Internal Revenue Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19255–0215 USA
Any location and file Form 2555, 2555–EZ, or 4563	Internal Revenue Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19255–0215 USA
Any location and are a dual-status alien	Internal Revenue Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19255–0215 USA

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Publication 17Additional Material

Publication 17
Additional Material