Don't Mess With Taxes

Turkeys take top billing this month, but be careful.
You don't want to make or deal with any tax turkeys in this 11th month of the year.

November has arrived. This penultimate month is full of holidays, the most notable being Thanksgiving.

Quick confession: The hubby and I aren't big Turkey Day fans. It's not that we're not grateful for all we have. It's that we don't like turkey very much.

Instead, we embrace our West Texas roots and have barbecue and all the fixings on the fourth Thursday of each November. And the hubby does make pumpkin pie.

Tax traditions, too: November also is a good month to make some tax moves that will make you thankful at filing time next year.

Yes, things are starting to get hectic. The holiday season is underway. And many folks finally are traveling again after hunkering down for literally years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

But try to work some tax planning into your November schedule. The savings they could produce will make next April's Tax Day feel like Thanksgiving all over again.

This page of collected November tax tips will give you some ideas on how to deal with your Internal Revenue Service responsibilities. It also will offer some suggestions on how to lessen those tax requirements.

As always, the tips will be added here as soon as they are highlighted in the upper right corner of the ol' blog. That way you don't have to worry if you miss a few on their featured days. You'll find them and their links below.

Now, let's get to dishing out some items from our November tax tips menu.

1. 2023 inflation adjustments, starting with next year's income brackets — Yes, you did see this tip in October. But since inflation still is top of mind for most folks, it bears repeating. It also gets this early mention because I'm still completing the ol' blog's annual 10-part tax inflation series. The annual feature highlights the Internal Revenue Service's annual adjustments to 60+ tax provisions. The first post focused on the 2023 income tax bracket adjustments, which mean more money for you, not the IRS in the coming tax year. That first installment has a directory of the remaining 9 posts on 2023's inflation changes. Those items also will periodically show up as tips through November, as well as into December and early January 2023 when they take effect. (Nov. 1, 2022)
2. November tax moves — Get your tax ducks, uh, turkeys in a row this month. Some November tax moves could keep you from running a-fowl (Sorry, not sorry.) of the tax code. Others could help you hatch some tax savings. (Nov. 2, 2021)
3. 6 tax & financial tips for lottery winners — Sure, the odds of winning the full $1.6 billion Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million. But just in case your numbers do come up, here are some tax and financial tips once you recover from the realization of suddenly being ultra rich, since you'll likely take the immediate cash payout of $782.4 million. (Nov. 4, 2022)
4. Hurricane season 2022 continues; stay ready — In case you forgot, hurricane season doesn't officially end until Nov. 30. Mother Nature knows, and she's stirred up Subtropical Storm Nicole that's forecast to strengthen and hit Florida. Don't be fooled by the "sub" prefix; these systems can do damage, too, especially to areas still dealing with the effects of deadly Hurricane Ian. So be safe, and be ready. (Nov. 7, 2022)
5. Reconstructing lost tax, financial records — Preparing for a disaster can be a hassle, but it generally is easier than reconstructing records. If, however, worse comes to worst and you have to rebuild lost or damaged tax and financial records, these tips should help. (Nov. 10, 2022)
6. Beware post-disaster repair and disaster scams — Hurricane season 2022 is winding down (we hope), but disaster related scams continue. These crooks come out in force after every catastrophe. So in the wake of Hurricane Nicole's landfall this week, beware scammers who target property owners needing repairs, as well as individuals who want to help storm victims recover. (Nov. 11, 2022)
7. Make the most of tax-favored workplace perks — It's workplace benefits enrollment season at many companies. Here are 7 things to think about as you make your coming year's benefits choice, including the tax advantages of several workplace perks. (Nov. 14, 2022)
8. COVID credits can be claimed via Free File through Nov. 17 — If you're one of the 9 million families who didn't have to file and therefore missed coronavirus pandemic tax relief payments, do so now. The Internal Revenue Service is making Free File available through Thursday, Nov. 17, so you can claim the payments electronically at, as the name indicates, no cost. (Nov. 16, 2022)
9. Designating a tax representative — Sometimes, you want someone else to talk to the Internal Revenue Service about your taxes. The IRS says that's OK, as long as you follow the agency's rules on authorizing a tax representative. (Nov. 18, 2022)
10. Gift cards: great as holiday gifts, not as tax payments — Do buy gift cards as holiday gifts for family and friends. Do NOT buy them when a tax scammer instructs you to do so to pay a fake Internal Revenue Service bill. This is just one scam that pops up year-round. Don't fall for it or other scams and identity theft schemes that involve taxes or, this time of year, holiday shopping. (Nov. 21, 2022)
11. Holiday shopping (and tax time) security tips — Most of us are online most of the time, but our connectivity increases during the holidays. And at tax filing time. That's why the IRS Security Summit has some online shopping and tax filing tips to help secure and protect your identity (and money!) from con artists and other criminals. (Nov. 28, 2022)

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Well, we're almost done with 2022, but not quite.

Yes, you can click on the December link below, but you'll just be greeted (again) by that nay-saying guy's GIF, instead of helpful advice from the Internal Revenue Service and the ol' blog.

Until the final month of the year arrives, you can always check out the tax season tips already collected in the previous 10 months' special page links below.

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