Your Children

• If you provide support for your children, you can claim them as exemptions when you do your taxes. Keep in mind that you need to supply the IRS with the Social Security number of every exemption you claim, including minor children and even babies.
  
  

Mortgage Interest

• If you have a mortgage on your home, you can claim the amount of interest you pay when you file your taxes. This deduction is only available if you itemize your taxes, so it is a good idea to run the numbers first to make sure that itemizing will benefit you. The company that services your mortgage should send you a statement each year that clearly shows the amount of interest you paid, and that can make it easier to file your taxes and get the credit you deserve.
  
  

Other Taxes

• If you itemize your deductions, you can deduct the state and local taxes you paid, so be sure to keep all your receipts during the year. If you own your own home, you can also deduct the property taxes you paid, so be sure to keep those receipts as well. Again, these deductions are available only to taxpayers who itemize their deductions, and it is always a good idea to compare the total of your itemized deductions to the standard deduction provided by the IRS.
  
  

Health Care Costs

• If you are covered by a high deductible health plan, or HDHP, you can open a health savings account and take a tax deduction for the amount you contribute. You may also be able to write off the amount of your health insurance premiums if you are not eligible for a health care plan where you work. In addition to those tax breaks, you can include your health care expenses when you itemize your taxes, provided your total medical expenses are at least 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income. In order to qualify as a tax deduction, those medical expenses must not have been reimbursed by your employer or your health care plan.
  
  

IRA Accounts

• If you qualify for a traditional individual retirement account, you can take a deduction for the amount you put in. Contributing to an IRA pays you a double benefits, so it is important to consider such an account no matter what your income level. When you contribute to an IRA, you get an immediate tax benefit in the form of a generous tax deduction. You also get the ability to invest and have your investments grow on a tax-deferred basis. You only pay taxes on that money when you take it out in retirement, and the money is free from taxes while it grows all those years.