The easiest and most straightforward way to reduce your income tax liability is to invest your money in an individual retirement account. Contributions to an IRA are made with pre-tax dollars, which lowers your total taxable income. You can even donate your money to charity to reduce your tax bill. While the IRS does not give a tax deduction for donations, some charities do. Donating to charity can reduce your tax bill by thousands of dollars a year.
Paying taxes is a necessary part of life, but the bill can make you feel down. Luckily, there are several ways to minimize your taxes. While taxes are an unavoidable part of life, there are ways to protect your income from the wrath of the taxman. Using a retirement account to defer your income can reduce your taxable income by a substantial amount. Also, you can defer income taxes on your other earnings by contributing to an employee benefit account. Taking advantage of capital loss deductions can further reduce your tax liabilities. And remember that interest income from municipal bonds is generally not federally taxable.