yes.. but if u have spent more than 5000 on day care
expenses, then there is some tax benifet to u.. if u have 1
kid.. then 3000-5000.. = -2000.. nothing even if u have
spent more than 5000.

if you have 2 kids.. then 6000-5000 = 1000.. and some
calculation later.( dependant on my AGI).. gave me a factor
of .2. so 200$... was the extra credit I got.. since I had
spent close to 7800 on my day care expenses for my 2
kids......

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing is intended for educational purposes only > << and does NOT constitute legal OR professional advice. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting > << messages to this newsgroup are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >

<gsanyer[at]yahoo.com> wrote:

- quote -

What do you mean deduct it on your tax return?
As long as you spent at least 5000 on qualified child care,
none of it is in your income for income tax, because first
of all none of it is in box 1 on the W2 , Also it is not
subjected to Fica, ( Social Security and Medicare Taxes) so
you don't pay that either on the 5000.

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing is intended for educational purposes only > << and does NOT constitute legal OR professional advice. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting > << messages to this newsgroup are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >

- quote -

You can't deduct ANY of the $5000 on your tax return, and
you cannot use any of it as qualified expenses for the child
care credit, because it has already been deducted from your
taxable income by your employer. It is not included in the
wages reported on your W-2, so you were able to spend the
whole $5000 on child care without paying tax on it. That's
the advantage of the FSA. It allows you to pay your child
care expenses with tax-free income. And it doesn't even
appear on your tax return. You can't deduct it again,
because it has already been deducted.

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing is intended for educational purposes only > << and does NOT constitute legal OR professional advice. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting > << messages to this newsgroup are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >

sanyer[at]yahoo.com wrote:

- quote -

The FSA should have been funded with pre-tax income.
Therefore, there is nothing further to deduct on your income
tax forms.

--
Vic Roberts
Replace xxx with vdr in e-mail address.

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing is intended for educational purposes only > << and does NOT constitute legal OR professional advice. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting > << messages to this newsgroup are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >

gsanyer[at]yahoo.com wrote:

- quote -

The way the DCA (this is what I am used to calling what you
are referencing, there are two accounts, a Medical FSA,
covering co-pays, and items that insurance doesn't cover,
and Dependant care FSA, called by some programs, DCA) works
is you have money held, pre-tax, and submit reimbursement
requests through the year for those expenses. The 2441
reconciles those reimbursements and is used to calculate the
child care credit. For many, the DCA will negate a potential
child care credit, and for others, in a high tax bracket, no
CC credit would be available, so the DCA is $5K pretax
money. If the CC credit is available to you, then it may be
better. DCA money is pre tax, as well as pre-FICA, so you
need to run your own numbers to determine the pro or con of
your decision.

JOE

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing is intended for educational purposes only > << and does NOT constitute legal OR professional advice. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting > << messages to this newsgroup are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >

gsanyer[at]yahoo.com wrote:

- quote -

The $5,000 has already been deducted by reducing the amount
of income reported in Box 1 of your W-2. Congress decided it
would be inappropriate to allow both an effective deduction
(the FSA) and a tax credit for the same dollars spent.

Whether the FSA is a good idea for you or not depends your
specific facts and circumstances.

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing is intended for educational purposes only > << and does NOT constitute legal OR professional advice. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting > << messages to this newsgroup are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >

My employer offers an FSA for dependent care with an $5000
max contribution limit. I happily contributed to it last
year only to find out as I was filing my taxes that there is
no way for me to deduct all of the $5000 in my tax return (I
don't see how anyone would be able to take advantage of an
employer FSA if I interpret line 20 on Form 2441 correctly).
Does this mean that there is no point in participating in
an employer FSA and it is always easier to just take the
child care credit?

<< ================================================== ===== > << The foregoing is intended for educational purposes only > << and does NOT constitute legal OR professional advice. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting > << messages to this newsgroup are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2006) - All rights reserved. > << ================================================== ===== >