Love is in the air.

Happy Valentines Day.

I hope everyone is enjoying the day and treating their significant other or those around them really good.

Will is doing just that as he is away this week to Hawaii for some time off.  So I am the lone partner this week.

This week we just want to emphasize that there are many personal tax credits available to everyone when we are discussing personal taxes. We urge you to be aware of them and take advantage to reduce your annual taxes.

Here are a few:

Childcare Expenses: You can claim up to $7,000 of childcare expenses for a child born in 2004 or later and up to $4,000 for children born between 1994 and 2003. Childcare expenses include payments made to caregivers, daycare or day homes, day camps and day sport schools where the goal is to care for the child, boarding schools, and educational institutions that charge for child care services.
This is above the Child Tax benefit you may qualify for and the basic amount for children born 1993 and later.

Child Fitness Amount:  You can claim up to $500 for amounts paid for a child under the age of 16 for amounts paid to a prescribed program of physical activity.

Public Transit:  You can claim the total cost of public transit passes for yourself and children under the age of 19.

Home Buyers Amount:  If you had purchased a new house in 2010 and it is your first home purchase you may qualify for a $5,000 credit.

Remember many of these are non refundable tax credits and the actual tax dollars you get credit for are 15% of the credit.

These are just a few examples of personal tax credits available.  There are many more to consider, so make sure you are not missing any and aware of those that apply to you when completing your 2010 personal tax return.