Here are some important facts to help in filing 2011 income tax returns:Tax filing deadlineYou’ve got a few extra days, thanks to a weekend and a holiday in the nation’s capital. Returns are due Tuesday, April 17, because April 15 is a Sunday.Also, Monday, April 16, is called Emancipation Day in Washington, D.C. By law, D.C. holidays affect tax deadlines the same way as a federal holiday would. Ohio taxes are also due on April 17 and most municipalities follow the federal deadlines.Filing extensionYou can get a six-month extension to Oct. 15 by filling out Form 4868 by April 17. You will owe interest on any taxes not paid by April 17.Free filingTaxpayers with adjusted gross incomes of $57,000 or less can access free federal tax preparation software and file returns online for free through a partnership between the IRS and the Free File Alliance using the IRS website, www.irs.gov/freefile.Some programs might charge a fee to e-file state returns. If you made more than $57,000, you can still use Free File, but it is via a form and not by access to a software program. RefundsThe IRS will split a refund into three different accounts or you may apply up to $5,000 of the refund to purchase Series I U.S. Savings Bonds. Electronic filing combined with direct deposit speeds up the wait for refunds. Taxpayers who complete a paper form and don’t opt for direct deposit typically will get a check in the mail in about six weeks. E-filers who don’t use direct deposit typically get a check in about three weeks. Those who e-file and use direct deposit could see refunds in as little as 10 days. Last year, about 70 percent of individual returns were e-filed. About 90 percent of refunds are issued within 21 days. To check on the status of your refund, go to www.irs.gov and find “Where’s My Refund?’’ on the site or call 800-829-1040, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. An automated refund hot line is also available at 800-829-1954.IRS forms and publicationsLast year, the IRS discontinued automatic mailing of prepared tax packets because of the continued growth of electronic filing, or e-filing. Taxpayers who want to file a paper return may print out the forms and instructions online at www.irs.gov. Forms are also available at some area libraries and post offices, or you can ask for assistance at a library to print online forms. Forms may also be ordered at 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676). The line is staffed Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.If you are filing a paper return, you could be mailing it to a different address this year because the IRS has changed the filing location for several areas. See IRS Publication 17, Where To File, for a list of IRS addresses.Tax helpThe IRS website has links to lots of topics, including YouTube video tax tips and audio podcasts on various tax topics. From the home page, click on “individuals’’ and topics will be on the left side. You can also get help by calling 800-TAX-1040 (800-829-1040) for individuals, 800-829-4059 (TDD) and 800-829-4933 for businesses. Lines are usually staffed Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.What’s new• Standard mileage rates: Mileage rates for business use are 51 cents a mile before July 1, 2011, and 55.5 cents per mile after June 30, 2011. For medical or moving mileage, it is 19 cents/mile before July 1, 2011, and 23.5 cents a mile after June 30, 2011. Miles driven for charitable purposes are 14 cents a mile all year. • Exemption amount: The amount you can deduct for each exemption is $3,700 for 2011 — an increase of $50 from 2010.• Health savings accounts (HSAs) and Archer Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs): Beginning in 2011, a qualified medical expense is a medicine or drug that: (1) is insulin; (2) requires a prescription, or (3) is an over-the-counter medicine or drug that you get a prescription for.• First-time home buyer credit: If you have to repay the ($7,500) credit for homes bought in 2008, you might be able to do so without attaching Form 5405. To claim the first-time home buyer credit for 2011, you (or your spouse, if married) must have been a member of the uniformed services or foreign service or an employee of the intelligence community on qualified official extended duty outside of the United States for at least 90 days after Dec. 31, 2008, and before May 1, 2010. • Saver’s credit: The Retirement Savings Contribution Credit, or “Saver’s Credit,” of $1,000 ($2,000 if filing jointly) is available to eligible taxpayers who voluntarily contribute to a retirement account if their 2011 adjusted gross income (AGI) is not more than: $56,500 ($57,500 in 2012) for married filing jointly, $42,375 ($43,125 in 2012) for head of household or $28,250 ($28,750 in 2012 for single, married filing separately, or qualifying widow(er). • Alternative minimum tax (AMT) exemption amount increased: The AMT exemption amount has increased to $48,450 ($74,450 if married filing jointly or a qualifying widow(er); $37,225 if married filing separately). • Health-related benefits may be included on W-2s: If the cost of employer-sponsored health coverage is provided by the employer, it would be reported on Form W-2 in Box 12, using Code DD, for the employee’s information only and is not taxable.• Schedule L: Standard Deduction for Certain Filers is no longer in use. See Publication 17, chapter 20.• Schedule M — Making work pay credit: This credit has expired and cannot be claimed on a 2011 return. Schedule M is no longer in use. • Self-employed health insurance deduction: This deduction is no longer allowed on Schedule SE (Form 1040). However, it can still be taken on Form 1040, line 29. • Form 4506T-EZ, Short Form Request for Individual Tax Return Transcript: Form 4506T-EZ was created to order a tax return transcript to help taxpayers trying to obtain, modify or refinance a home mortgage. Transcripts may also be mailed to a third party, such as a mortgage institution, if specified on the form. You must sign and date the form giving your consent for the disclosure. • 2011 Cut in Payroll Taxes (currently set to expire at end of February 2012): The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act Of 2010 provides a two percentage point payroll tax cut for employees, reducing their Social Security tax withholding rate from 6.2 percent to 4.2 percent of wages paid. This reduced Social Security withholding will have no effect on the employee’s future Social Security benefits.Betty Lin-Fisher can be reached at 330-996-3724 or blinfisher@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/blinfisher and see all her stories at www.ohio.com/betty