In the good ol’ United States of America, we love our servicemen and women and we try to treat them right.  One way we honor them is by making sure that the Tax Code is chock-full of tax benefits especially for the military.  And it’s not just fluff; these are good, practical benefits that are routinely acknowledged by the IRS.

Here are some popular tax benefits available to active members of the US Armed Forces:

1. Some unreimbursed moving expenses are deductible in connection with a permanent change of station
2. Military pay while serving in a combat zone is not taxable
3. Military personnel get automatic extensions on many IRS deadlines, including the filing of a personal income tax returns, which could also delay collection of back tax debt
4. The cost and upkeep of uniforms is deductible under certain circumstances
5. Joint returns don’t need to be filed by both spouses when one is deployed (kind of a lame benefit, but a benefit nonetheless)
6. Certain unreimbursed travel expenses available to reservists traveling away from home
7. Subsistence allowances paid to ROTC students participating in advanced training are not taxable
8. Certain expenses associated with transitioning back to civilian life (i.e., job search) are deductible
9. FREE TAX PREP!

See IRS Pub 3 (Armed Forces’ Tax Guide) for more information.