Tax filing in 2014: 7 new rules and 9 wacky deductions

Tax filing season is here, so it's time to ensure you're ready to get the most out of your filing. Read on for new rules for 2014, plus several surprising deductions.

12. Deduction: bingo

Tina Fineberg / AP / File
Mary Clanton (left) and Nieves Chorchado (center) study their bingo cards as Alicia Cabrera calls out the numbers during a game of bingo at the Henry Street Settlement Senior Services Center on New York's Lower East Side in this 2003 file photo. Bingo losses can be included in tax deductions, as long as they don't surpass the amount of reported winnings for the year.

Yes, bingo can be deducted from your tax bill: Bingo-playing taxpayers can deduct the amount lost in a given year, up to the amount that was won. This deduction requires a detailed diary of winnings and losses.

The Internal Revenue Service allows taxpayers to deduct losses for other types of wagering, too. They must keep a detailed diary of the kind of wager, where they placed it, who they were with, and how much they won or lost.

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About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

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