8 Big U.S. Tax Law Changes for 2010 Tax Returns:Beat the AMT and Don't Get Your Homebuyer Tax Credit Audited

The U.S. Congress made dozens of changes to the tax laws in 2010 that Americans must wrestle with as they prepare to send their tax returns to the Internal Revenue Service by the April 18 deadline (the usual April 15 deadline was delayed for 2011 by a holiday in the District of Columbia). These changes were spread throughout the year, starting with the reform of the health care system last February and ending with the extension of the Bush-era tax cuts in December. This Hub identifies the Top Eight Tax Law Changes for individuals.

1) The Alternative Minimum Tax was patched again. Congress also raised the exemption amount to $47,450 for single filers and $72,450 for married couples who file jointly. That essentially spares about 21 million American families from being surprised with a tax bill due to this ``stealth tax'' that was originally created to deny deductions to high-income people who were avoiding income tax by using loopholes. As it is, only about 4.1 million American households will pay it for 2010, about the same as last year. Families with large numbers of children who live in states with high income and property taxes are most likely to face it. Large write-offs for medical costs and college tuition credits also are common AMT triggers.

2) Jobless benefits became fully taxable again. A special law in 2009 that let you avoid tax on the first $2,400 in unemployment benefits expired for 2010. All jobless benefits count as income for tax purposes now.

3) Speaking of medical costs, the health care law changed the rules to allow parents to deduct medical expenses they pay on behalf of adult children under the age of 27. Just be careful not to trigger the AMT!

4) If you adopted a child last year, Congress gave you more tax relief. Not only did it increase the credit to $13,170, it also made the credit refundable, meaning the government will send you a check for the difference if that amount exceeds your total tax liability.

5) In addition to renewing the Bush tax cuts, Congress also extended a half-dozen other special benefits for individuals. These include a deduction for state and local sales taxes in lieu of income taxes (although this will benefit only itemizers, as the additional standard deduction for sales taxes that existed in 2009 was allowed to lapse for 2010. Other breaks include a special $250 deduction for teachers who spend their own money fixing up their classrooms, and relaxed rules for donating proceeds from an Individual Retirement Account directly to charity.

6) But many temporary tax breaks were allowed to expire. The biggest was a special standard deduction for real estate property taxes, which saved taxpayers about $2.4 billion a year. It had been most helpful for those with no mortgage or a small mortgage, especially senior citizens, who can't itemize deductions.

7) New records-sharing requirements for those who claimed the homebuyer tax credit in 2010 take effect.. You must show the IRS a copy of a sales contract that was signed before July 1, 2010 and have closed the sale before Oct. 1, 2010. The credit was worth up to $8,000 for first-time homebuyers and up to $6,500 for longtime homeowners (those who lived in their previous homes for at least five years) who moved. An aside on this: People who took advantage of an earlier version of the first-time homebuyer credit in 2008 have to begin repaying that benefit on their 2010 tax return. That 2008 credit was worth up to $7,500 and must be paid back in annual installments over the next 15 years.

8) Kathy Kristof of CBS Marketwatch find a hidden tax break for the self-employed: You can also lower your self-employment taxes for Social Security and Medicare by deducting premiums. This deal is good for 2010 only. According to Kristof, that's a 15.3 percent savings -- if you pay $9,000 a year in premiums, you'll save an extra $1,377 in self-employment taxes. Premiums have always been deductible for income tax purposes.To claim it, you must write the deduction in on line 3 of the Form SE. It's a little tricky, but it's worth the effort.

It's also worth noting that the tax deal President Barack Obama reached with Congress in December also cut your payroll taxes by 2 percentage points for 2010 alone. That benefit should start showing up in paychecks in February. If it hasn't, get in touch with your payroll office. For someone who makes $50,000 a year, that's worth about $1,000, or about $83 a month.