More Than 50% of Americans Passed This Tax Quiz — Can You?

When it comes to finances, there’s a lot that Americans don’t understand — especially when it comes to taxes. After all, the tax code is long and convoluted, and many aspects of it change every year. Even if you consider yourself fairly well informed, there are likely important details about filing your taxes that you’re unfamiliar with.

Although accountants and software do a lot of the heavy lifting these days when it comes to personal taxes, you should still understand how taxes work so you can help avoid missteps that could cost you money.

Here’s a quick, six-question quiz that focuses on some of the most important aspects of filing personal taxes.

Last updated: Feb. 18, 2021

Is the standard deduction for a single filer for the 2020 tax year:

• $8,000
• $10,200
• $12,400
• $15,000
• $20,000
• $24,800

Tax filers who choose not to itemize their deductions can take a standard deduction. This is the amount subtracted from your income before your taxes are calculated.

All tax filers get a larger standard deduction this year than they did last year. The standard deduction for a single taxpayer for the 2020 tax year was $12,200.

Answer options:

• W-10
• W-2
• W-4
• W-5
• W-7
• W-8
• W-9

The IRS loves its tax forms, and the names can be confusing. But if you get paid by an employer, you should get one of these forms in January to tell you how much you earned and how much was withheld for taxes.

Most people know that a W-2 is the form issued by your employer to report wages and tax withholding. However, some workers, such as independent contractors, never see a W-2 and may be unaware of it, as they receive 1099s instead.

Answer options:

• Salaries
• Income from house property
• Profits and gains of a business or profession
• Capital gains
• Lottery winnings
• Welfare payments
• Gifts and bequests

Income can come from more places than your job. It’s important to know what is taxed as income so you don’t end up with a nasty surprise at tax time.

Welfare payments are not considered taxable income. Gifts or bequests may be subject to gift or estate tax, but that is the obligation of the estate or the donor — not of the beneficiary.

Answer options:

• March 15
• March 20
• April 15
• April 18
• April 20
• May 15
• May 20

Tax Day is scheduled for the same day each year unless that date falls on a weekend day or a holiday. Do you know what day that is, and if that’s the day it falls on next year?

April 15 is the deadline for filing federal tax returns, as well as most state returns. In 2021, that date falls on a Thursday. Regardless of whether or not your state filing deadline is April 15, your federal return must still be filed by April 15th.

You can request more time to file your income tax return. The IRS will give you an extra six months to complete your return if you ask them nicely. But does that mean you don’t have to pay the tax you owe until October?

It’s common to believe that extending your due date for filing also extends your due date for paying, but that’s not the case.

You can request an extension to file your tax return, but any tax you owe is still due by the April 15th filing deadline. This means you need to estimate how much income you made and estimate how much tax you will owe. If you have not had sufficient tax withheld, you need to pay the amount you think you’ll owe along with your request for an extension.

Filing your taxes is difficult, but tax filing software can make it easier. Do you always have to pay for your tax filing software or does the IRS offer free software?

The IRS offers Free File Software at no cost to taxpayers with income below $72,000. If your income is above that amount, you can still use the free fillable forms offered by the IRS. These forms will do the calculations for you, but you have to know what information goes on each line, and how to arrive at that information.

If you got all the right answers, good for you! You should be able to sail through tax time with little difficulty. If you didn’t, you might want to enlist some help when it comes time to fill out those forms.

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John Csiszar contributed to the reporting for this article.