This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• Itemize on Schedule A only when total deductions exceed the standard deduction, which for 2025 is $15,750 for single filers.

• Medical expense deductions are limited; only the amount exceeding 7.5% of your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) is deductible.

• The State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction, including property and income or sales taxes, is capped at $10,000 per household annually.

• Home mortgage interest is only deductible on acquisition debt up to $750,000 for mortgages taken out after December 15, 2017.

• Bunching is an exam-tested strategy where taxpayers consolidate deductible expenses into one year to surpass the standard deduction threshold.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• The moving expense deduction is exclusively for active-duty Armed Forces members on a Permanent Change of Station (PCS); civilian moving costs are not deductible.

• The old distance and time tests do not apply to qualifying military moves.

• Deductible costs are unreimbursed expenses for moving household goods and personal travel, including lodging and transportation mileage.

• An extremely common exam trap is the inclusion of meals; the cost of meals during a move is never deductible.

• Use the mnemonic "PCS: Pack, Cars, Sleep" to remember the move must be a Permanent Change of Station and deductible costs include moving goods (Pack), transportation (Cars), and lodging (Sleep), but not meals.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• The Educator Expense Deduction is an 'above-the-line' adjustment, not an itemized deduction.

• An 'eligible educator' must teach in a K-12 school for at least 900 hours per school year.

• The deduction is capped at $300 per educator, with a $600 limit for married couples if both spouses are qualifying educators.

• Qualifying expenses include classroom supplies and professional development, and are only deductible if unreimbursed.

• Common exam traps involve non-eligible educators (like preschool teachers) and misinterpreting the $600 limit for married couples.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• The student loan interest deduction is an "above-the-line" adjustment, available even if you don't itemize.

• The maximum deduction is the lesser of $2,500 or the actual interest paid per return, per year.

• The deduction is subject to strict Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) phase-out rules that are frequently tested.

• Only the person legally obligated to repay the loan can claim the deduction, regardless of who actually makes the payment.

• A loan only qualifies if it was for an eligible student, enrolled at least half-time, at an eligible educational institution.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• The 2025 IRA contribution limits ($7,000) and the age 50+ catch-up provision ($1,000).

• How "active participant" status on a W-2 is the first critical step in determining deductibility.

• The Modified AGI phase-out ranges that limit deductions for active participants.

• The critical contribution deadline which is the tax return's original due date, not the extended due date.

• How spousal IRA rules allow non-working spouses to contribute and the unique deductibility rules that apply.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• HSA contributions for 2025 are capped at $4,300 for self-only and $8,550 for family coverage, with a $1,000 catch-up for those age 55 and over.

• Eligibility requires coverage under a High-Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) and you cannot be enrolled in Medicare or be claimed as a dependent.

• HSAs offer a triple tax advantage: tax-deductible contributions, tax-free growth, and tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical expenses.

• Using HSA funds for non-qualified expenses before age 65 results in the distribution being taxed as ordinary income plus a 20% penalty.

• The 20% penalty on non-qualified distributions is waived if the account holder is age 65 or older, becomes disabled, or dies.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• Always multiply net self-employment earnings by 92.35% before applying any tax rates.

• The 15.3% SE tax combines a 12.4% Social Security tax up to the wage base limit ($176,100 for 2025) and a 2.9% Medicare tax with no income limit.

• The deduction for one-half of the SE tax is an adjustment to income on Schedule 1, not a reduction of the SE tax itself.

• W-2 wages count first toward the Social Security limit, reducing the amount of SE income subject to the 12.4% SS tax component.

• The 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax is a separate tax for high earners and is not part of the standard 15.3% SE tax calculation.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• Adjustments to income, or "above-the-line" deductions, reduce your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI), the most critical number for determining tax benefits.

• A lower AGI can increase eligibility for numerous tax credits and deductions that have income limitations.

• The exam frequently tests specific deduction limits, such as the $300 for educator expenses and the $2,500 for student loan interest.

• A common exam trap for the self-employed is knowing to deduct only one-half of the self-employment taxes paid, not the full amount.

• You can claim adjustments to income even if you also take the standard deduction, unlike itemized deductions.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• U.S. persons are subject to tax on their worldwide income, no matter where they reside.

• Form 2555, the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, applies only to earned income like salaries, not to investment income like dividends or interest.

• You cannot claim the Foreign Tax Credit (Form 1116) for taxes paid on income you've already excluded with Form 2555.

• An FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) filing is required if the combined value of all foreign financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the year.

• The FBAR is a reporting form filed separately with FinCEN, not the IRS, and has significant penalties for non-compliance.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep

This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams.

In this episode you will learn:

• The IRS classifies virtual currency as property, meaning its use to buy goods or services is a taxable disposition.

• Gains and losses from cryptocurrency transactions are reported on Form 8949 and Schedule D.

• Income from mining is taxable as ordinary income at its fair market value on the date mined and may be subject to self-employment tax.

• The basis in mined cryptocurrency is the amount included in income upon its creation.

• The digital asset question on Form 1040 must be checked "yes" for most activities beyond simply buying and holding with U.S. dollars.

For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep