It is that time of the year - time to file your taxes.
Having grown up pretty much oblivious to taxes, including the very concept of taxes, often, am in a bit of shock & agony, each time I see a shopping bill or a paycheck.
Don't get me wrong, after about 7 years of living in a tax paying nation – and paying taxes, I understand tax monies help run towns, cities and a nation. However, I sort of feel rather appalled Uncle Sam can pretty much walk away with say about 40%of my income (almost 50% if a bonus). Tax cuts are often promised, however, given the tax cut jargon politicians dish out an election season, the only nation (that I know of) who actually cut taxes in recent years, is Canada.
Being single doesn't help, 'cause, single people, get taxed at the highest bracket. The government doesn't care being single is perhaps hard enough, nope - they've got to make you pay up just for being single - or perhaps it's Uncle Sam's message to singletons - shack up or pay up. What can hurt as well, is if you are in the middle income sect, 'cause the rich, relatively, is taxed less – the low income doesn’t get taxed much or at all.
Often, I find myself asking - where all the tax monies go? And perhaps this is sort of opening Pandora’s Box of nasty questions. For instance, Social Security in the United States is a form of tax, which is used as a source of pension income for retires, as an anti-poverty program, a widow's survivor benefit, a disability check and so on (never mind it also rewards married couples more than single people, yup! sucker for being single again). However what gets my goat, is that people who are well & healthy enough to work and make a living, drive a Lexus towards the social security office and collect benefits – go figure?
Anyway, I filed my tax returns today. Fortunately I didn't owe any more, in fact had a modest refund. So am quite happy about that, never mind the sizeable chunk that's missing.
Have you filed your taxes yet?
9 comments:
Nah, cos (as you know) living here = no tax, at least directly. Hubs has even been de-registered as a tax payer at home, as he's worked outside of the country for so long, but if/when we go home, he'll do the 'right' thing & start coughing up again..........maybe............
It is that time of the year - time to file your taxes.
LOOOOOOOL. Nope!
But anyway, Rosh, there's no such thing as 'tax-free'.So, you don't pay tax in a place like Dubai, but if I add up all I pay for private health insurance, private pension plan, private transport and private schooling and private this and private that - it's actually a bigger proportion of my income than I ever paid in taxes 'back home'.
As long as I get something in return I don't mind paying.
Well, we pay Zakat, and those are our taxes. Except it all depends on an individual tho does it not, whether he wants to pay or not. its not like UNCA SAM is going to be breathing down our necks.
(At the risk of repeating myself (See I*maginate)
All the things I could do
If I had a little money
Its a rich mans world
(just so you do not get out of touch with the whole 70's music scene)
(hahahahhaha!!!!!)
I don't tax lol.
"Being single doesn't help,"
hmmm the alternatives? ;-)
'shack up or pay up' lool, this is funny, hmmm so you know what to do :P
Nope, whether here or where i come from, never done it, inshallah i never have to.
hahaha. taxes. loool. (salik)
40% tax, now that is too much !!
I am just curious, the amount you pay as tax, do you think the government services you use justify it? How do you pay taxes? Is it 40% of what is left after you have paid all your bills or they use your gross income as a basis for that?
Hey everyone thanks for you comments :)
DJ: short response: Nope, I don't even know where they spent the monies...probably on homeland security or some crap?
Yikes habib, lol you asking me a tax question :) Like you, I was born/bred in a tax free country. I have a tax accountant, who does my taxes :)
OK, that said - taxes are withheld every pay period from your paycheck. The following year, prior to tax file deadline (which is usually April 15th) you've got to file your taxes - as in assess, how much your tax (Federal, state etc) should have been v/s how much was with held by the govt on your paycheck. Depending on such assessment, you either gets some monies back (a tax refund) or you pay more taxes.
Hope I explained that fairly OK?
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