Taking effect immediately on January 1, 2013, the Medicare surtax will be imposed on a taxpayer's "net investment income" (NII) and will generally apply to passive income. The Medicare surtax also will apply to capital gains from the disposition of property. However, the Medicare surtax will not apply to income derived from a trade or business, or from the sale of property used in a trade or business. For individuals, the Medicare surtax is based on the lesser of the taxpayer's NII or the amount of "modified" adjusted gross income (MAGI) (AGI with foreign income added back) above a specified threshold.

The MAGI thresholds are:

·         $250,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly or a surviving spouse;

 ·        $125,000 for married taxpayers filing separately; and

·         $200,000 for single and head of household taxpayers.

NII includes:

·         Gross income from interest, dividends, annuities, royalties, and rents, provided this income is not derived in the ordinary course of an active trade or business;

·         Gross income from a trade or business that is a passive activity;

·         Gross income from a trade or business of trading in financial instruments or commodities; and

·         Net gain from the disposition of property, other than property held in an active trade or business.

The alternative minimum tax (AMT) rates (26 and 28 percent on the excess of alternative minimum taxable income over the applicable exemption amount) are not scheduled to change in 2013. However, exposure to the AMT may change as a result of the scheduled sunset of the regular tax rates. Because the determination of AMT liability requires a comparison between regular tax and AMT computations, the higher regular tax rates post-2012 may help lower AMT exposure by the same amount.

However, taxpayers should not ignore the possibility of being subject to the AMT, as this may negate certain year-end tax strategies. For example, if income and deductions are manipulated to reduce regular tax liability, AMT for 2012 may increase because of differences in the income and deductions allowed for AMT purposes.

As in past years, taxpayers are waiting to see if Congress will enact an AMT "patch" for 2012. The last patch, which provided for increased exemption amounts and use of the nonrefundable personal credits against AMT liability, expired after 2011.

Higher income taxpayers may also be subject to the return of the personal exemption phaseout and the so-called Pease limitation on itemized deductions. Both of these provisions were repealed through 2012. However, they are scheduled to return after 2012 unless the repeal is extended.

Revival of the personal exemption phaseout rules would reduce or eliminate the deduction for personal exemptions for higher income taxpayers starting at "phaseout" amounts that, adjusted for inflation, would start at $267,200 AGI for joint filers and $178,150 for single filers.

In addition, return of the Pease limitation on itemized deductions (named for the member of Congress who sponsored the legislation) would reduce itemized deductions by the lesser of:

·         Three percent of the amount of the taxpayer's AGI in excess of a threshold inflation-adjusted amount projected for 2013 to be $178,150 ($89,075) for a married individual filing separately), or

·         80 percent of the itemized deductions otherwise allowable for the tax year.

American Opportunity Tax Credit. In 2009, congress enhanced the Hope education credit and renamed it the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC). The temporary enhancements, including a maximum credit of $2,500, availability of the credit for the first four years of post-secondary education, and partial refundability for qualified taxpayers, are scheduled to expire after 2012. Under current law, less generous amounts will be available with the revived Hope education credit.

Coverdell Education Savings Accounts. Similar to IRAs, Coverdell Education Savings Accounts (Coverdell ESAs) are accounts established to pay for qualified education expenses. Under current law, the maximum annual contribution to a Coverdell ESA is $2,000, and qualified education expenses include elementary and secondary school expenses. Unless extended, the maximum annual contribution for a Coverdell ESA is scheduled to decrease to $500 after 2012.

Employer-Provided Education Assistance. Under current law, qualified employer-provided education assistance of up to $5,250 may be excluded from income and employment taxes. However, the 2010 Tax Relief Act only made the exclusion available through 2012.

Student Loan Interest. Individual taxpayers with MAGI below $75,000 ($150,000 for married couples filing a joint return) may be eligible to deduct interest paid on qualified education loans up to a maximum deduction of $2,500, subject to income phase out rules. The enhanced treatment for the student loan interest deduction is scheduled to expire after 2012.

Higher Education Tuition Deduction. The above-the-line higher education tuition deduction expired after 2011. The maximum $4,000 deduction was available for qualified tuition and fees at post-secondary institutions, subject to income phaseouts.  

 Taxpayers who claim the child tax credit need to plan for its scheduled reduction after 2012. Absent Congressional action, the child tax credit, at $1,000 per eligible child for 2012, will be $500 per eligible child, effective January 1, 2013.

Before 2012, qualified taxpayers could deduct state and local general sales taxes in lieu of deducting state and local income taxes. The 2010 Tax Relief Act last extended the optional itemized deduction for state and local general sales taxes, which had been available since 2004, to tax years 2010 and 2011. Unless extended again, the deduction for state and local general sales taxes will not be available for tax year 2012 and beyond.

For the period 2007 through 2011, premiums paid for qualified mortgage insurance could be treated as qualified residence interest and deducted as an itemized deduction, subject to certain restrictions. Renewal of this tax break into 2012 is uncertain at this time.

Two incentives, the residential energy property credit, and the residential energy efficiency credit, are designed to reward taxpayers who, on the consumer level, make qualified energy improvements. The residential energy property credit expired after 2011. The residential energy efficiency credit is scheduled to expire after 2016.   

Code Sec. 179 expensing.  Code Sec. 179 gives businesses the option of claiming a deduction for the cost of qualified property all in its first year of use rather than claiming depreciation over a period of years. For 2010 and 2011, the Code Sec. 179 dollar limitation was $500,000 with a $2 million investment ceiling. The dollar limitation for 2012 is $139,000 with a $560,000 investment ceiling. Under current law, the Code Sec. 179 dollar limit is scheduled to drop to $25,000 for 2013 with a $200,000 investment ceiling.