Ideal candidates would be those who can afford to pay a little more now with the hope of long-term savings down the road, helped out a little by the tax savings on the initial investment.
Because of the AMT, some people are not able to take advantage of the tax cuts that Bush made available.
No self-respecting tax practitioner would sign on to any of these.
Compared to some other tax issues, like passive loss rules and stuff like that, it's not all that complicated, but people involved in things like passive loss rules can usually afford to pay for some sophisticated help.
In spite of all the talk about simplicity, in fact the tax code has gotten more complicated every year.
By splitting up a large distribution and taking part in December and part in January, you may avoid moving to a higher tax bracket in either year, and keep more of your Social Security benefits from being taxed as well.
The odds of winning the grand prize are less than one in 146 million, but it's a sure bet that if you do win a big jackpot, you're going to also have a big tax bill, with more than one-third of your winnings going to the IRS.
You don't have a filing requirement because you don't have a tax due. But if you had withholding, you've paid tax. It's worth your while to file a return to get your money back.