The United States (US) has a very intricately detailed tax system, that involves collecting from many, by many different methods, in order to pay different levels of government. Continue and you will be learning about how tax credits in the United States work.
Taxes are not voluntary, and are either direct or indirect. One definition is that they are burdens laid upon individuals or property owners to support the government.
The Internal Revenue Code, or Federal Tax Code is regulated by the IRS. The IRS is regulated by and is a part of the Treasury Department.
The main goal of the law is to provide finances for the federal government. Another, is to accomplish goals on social, economical and political levels. An example would be the tax credit given to homeowners, and not provided to those who rent homes and apartments.
US Employers collect payroll taxes to be paid to the federal government from their employees through payroll deductions and make payments to the government. If you are self employed, you must make your own payment. As an individual, you choose what your deductions will be, based on guidelines. It will never come out exactly right, but usually will be within a good range at the end of the year. Certain individuals may decide to deduct more, while others choose to withhold less, based on their own circumstances. Most will fall in the middle range. Federal income taxes are called progressive taxes because the more you earn, the more you are taxed, and so on. It reduces the tax on people who make less and moves it to those who make more.
The EITC is a poverty reducing program in the US. It was created to benefit low income workers and shift the load of the US payroll taxes to higher income workers. The economist estimate that each dollar paid out to a low income worker generates as substantial return on the original in the locale where they live. The EITC was enacted in 1975, and has continue to be extended by legislation ever since then.
Final Thoughts
If you have ever felt that you were being heavily taxed and heavily represented, maybe that is true, but it would appear that our government is doing what it can for the benefit of everyone. There are some countries besides the US that have similar programs to the EITC. You will be ready for next April because you took the time to discover how tax credits in the United States work.
Learn more about tax credit sales and Missouri AHAP Tax Credits.