Tax Changes You Need to Know for 2011

With tax season 2010 already in full swing, it's easy to overlook some important tax changes for 2011. Here's some of what you can look forward to with respect to personal income taxes during the year:

• Payroll Tax Holiday. As we reported earlier, there's a one-year payroll tax holiday in effect for 2011. This means that taxpayers subject to FICA (Social Security and Medicare) taxes will see a tax break of 2% in their paychecks during the year. The break is tied to Social Security payroll taxes, which means the benefit ends when you hit the Social Security cap during the year, which is $106,800 for 2011. Taxpayers who don't pay into the Social Security system during the year will not receive a benefit.