TAXSPEAK: AMT Expense Availability

Many taxpayers in prior years have been subject to the Federal Alternative Minimum tax,
the so-called “heads I win, tails you lose tax”, where the taxpayer pays the higher of
the tax calculated the “regular” way or the AMT way.

IRS Form 6251 is a detailed schedule that shows, line by line, differences between
various income and expense categories. Many of these differences seem esoteric.
Listed below, however, is a table that shows whether various Schedule A – Itemized Deductions
are available in each calculation.

SCHEDULE A EXPENSE AVAILABILITY	REGULAR TAX	ALT MIN TAX

State And Local Income Tax, if applicable	YES	NO

State And Local Sales Tax, if applicable	YES	NO

Mortgage Interest	YES	YES

Investment Interest	YES	YES

Medical Expenses	YES	YES

Charitable Contributions	YES	YES

Unreimbursed Employee Business Expenses	YES	NO

Tax Preparation Fees	YES	NO

Other Investment Expenses	YES	NO

Tyler Lynch