It is computed separately from your regular income tax and you only pay the AMT if it is greater.

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Some of your savings should be earmarked to cover such expenses, so as not to stifle the flow of your regular income needs.

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But the first, important step to dealing with this issue is getting your regular spending and income in balance so that you are no longer adding to the problem.

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Bonds do provide regular income and, depending on your needs, holding a longer-term bond may still make a lot of sense.

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Also, one should consider what your personal finance situation is: Is there regular reasonably reliable income?

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Including the new tax when you compare your regular tax liability against potential AMT would protect many high-income taxpayers from having to pay the alternative tax.

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The amount of the gain will be added to your income and taxed exactly as if you received it via a regular paycheck.

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This will give you an opportunity to convert money from your regular IRA to a Roth IRA while in a lower-than-normal federal and state income-tax bracket, says Mr. Baldwin.

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And for those of you who frequent Las Vegas or take a chance on state lottery tickets on a regular basis, the Internal Revenue Service requires that you report the full amount of your gambling winnings as income on line 21 of your 1040.

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