Nobody wants to think about taxes during the holiday season. Still, one of the best New Year's resolutions you can make is to take some critical tax moves now that will pay off come April 2020.  

You don’t have much time left, but you can make these moves quickly enough to count. So, let’s get started.

Maximize Charitable Contributions

Nonprofits typically receive tons of cast-offs during the holiday season as people try to make way for all the Christmas stuff they expect to receive. If you’re one of them, make it a point to grab a receipt when offered. You may not get much bang from your buck here, but it’s a start.

However, with the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, it’s less likely you will itemize your deductions. Many are taking the standard deduction instead, and it does simplify things. On the other hand, strategic donations to charity can help you increase the deduction past the standard. 

One way to make it work is to bunch your deductions, donating several years' worth of charitable giving in a single year. You can do this on your own or put money in a donor-advised fund where you can make a contribution and deduction now, and the funds are distributed later.

Before you donate, make sure the organization you support is an actively tax-exempt 501(c)(3) entity. Keep detailed records of your contributions and document the value of any non-monetary gift. If the value is over $250, you must also obtain written acknowledgment from the charity showing whether you received anything in return for your donation. It will be used to reduce the deduction you claim on your taxes.

Here’s something you might not have thought about. If you volunteer and perform services for a charity while using your vehicle, you can deduct the mileage from your taxes. You can also deduct travel expenses if you go on a trip with a charitable organization, and you are considered to be "on duty in a genuine and substantial sense throughout the trip."

Finally, you can avoid capital gains taxes on stock appreciation by donating them to a charity. Ask your tax professional for help.

Harvest Those Tax Losses

Speaking of stocks, tax loss harvesting is a thing now. Actually, it's always been a thing, but now it has a cool name. Tax-loss harvesting is selling loser stocks and securities or investment property that is underperforming for a loss. Then you take the loss off your taxes. 

Investment losses offset taxable gains dollar for dollar. If you set off all your gains with losses, you get out of paying capital gains taxes for the year. Also, you can deduct any additional losses by up to $3,000 in other income. Anything more than that can be carried over to deduct next year, and the year after that, and the year after that, until it’s gone.

One caveat: investment gains are taxed differently depending on how long you owned the investments. If you sell a stock after holding it less than a year, you are taxed at the normal income tax rate. However, if you owned the stock for more than a year, it is taxed up to 20% depending on your status and bracket when filing.

Long-term losses offset long-term gains, and short-term losses offset short-term gains. Sell accordingly.

You can deduct up to $25,000 of real estate losses per year as long as your adjusted gross income is below $100,000, and you actively participate in the management of the property.

Max Out Those IRAs, Roths, and 401Ks

Contribute as much as possible, up to the limit, in pretax dollars through your company 401K or an IRA. IRAs and 401Ks grow tax-deferred until you begin taking distributions, so you save more during your working years. 

With 401Ks in 2019, you can contribute up to $19,000 or $25,000 if you are over 49 years old. If you haven’t maxed out your contributions, see if you can increase it through the end of the year.  As an added bonus, many employers match 401K funds, doubling your contributions. 

For traditional IRAs, you can contribute up to $6,000. If you are over 50, you can contribute up to $7,000. In many cases, you can contribute to an IRA for the current tax year up until Tax Day of next year. You get a bit more time to offset some of your taxes this way.

For the self-employed, a Keogh plan may be a good choice for funding your retirement. You have to establish it by December 31 to be qualified for 2019 taxes. 

Alternatively, consider setting up a SEP IRA, where you can stash up to $56,000 for 2019. There is no catch-up period, but there isn't a year-end deadline either. You could set up the SEP-IRA right before Tax Day 2020 and get a break on 2019 taxes.

Take the Maximum Required Distributions from your IRA

If you reach the age of 70 1/2 by April 1, 2020, you are required to start taking distributions from your IRA. If you don’t, the IRS can and will penalize you with a 50% excise tax on the amount you should have withdrawn. 

The amount is based on your age, life expectancy, and how much was in the account on January 1. Withdrawals must be made by December 31 to avoid it. Consider asking the IRA custodian to withhold taxes at the time of distribution. Withholding taxes is voluntary, but if you don’t, you will have to remember to pay quarterly estimated tax payments throughout the year.

If you invested in Roth IRAs, there are no worries about tax upon distribution. Remember, you already paid taxes on the money you put in, unlike an IRA or 401K.

Empty Your Flexible Spending Account

Did you set aside money in an FSA this year? Make sure you use it all, or you forfeit the leftovers. Some employers adopted an IRS rule allowing a grace period through March of the following year. In any case, find a way to use up the rest. 

Go to the pharmacy to stock up or visit the eye doctor or dentist before December 31.

There ya go - five tax-saving moves to make now, before the end of the year (mostly). What are you waiting for? And while you’re at it, start planning for taxes next year, so you don’t have to rush at the end of it like this.