• A wide range of tax deductions are available for personal expenses.Jeffrey Hamilton/Digital Vision/Getty Images
  
  The Internal Revenue Service provides taxpayers with the option to calculate deductions on the basis of individual expenses as an alternative to taking the standard deduction amount. Taxpayers that choose to calculate deductions must comply with the rules and requirements for each individual deduction. Failure to correctly determine each deduction can result in a rejection by the IRS and an increase the amount of tax owed.
  
  

Investment Interest

• Taxpayers who use loan proceeds to purchase investment property can take a tax deduction for the amount of interest paid on the loan. The amount of interest that can be deducted is limited to the net investment income earned during the year. Net investment income is calculated by subtracting all investment expenses (other than interest) from the total investment income earned during the tax year. In cases where investment interest exceeds net investment income, the excess can be carried forward and deducted in successive tax years.
  
  

Casualty and Theft

• Losses to taxpayer property caused by theft, vandalism, weather or car accidents may be deducted on a tax return. Individual losses must exceed $500 to be included in the deduction. Additionally, the sum of individual losses that exceed $500 must be greater than 10 percent of adjusted gross income. If both requirements are not met, none of the losses will be eligible for a deduction. Losses that occur in an area that the president of the United States has provided federal disaster assistance for will not be subject to the 10 percent limitation.
  
  

Moving Expenses

• Amounts paid to move to a new residence may be deductible if incurred within a year of starting a new job in that area. The new job location must be at least 50 miles farther from the former home than the prior job was from that home. Additionally, you must be employed for a minimum of 39 weeks in the first 12-month period at the new location. Taxpayers can deduct the expense prior to meeting the 39-week requirement. However, if the requirement is not met by the next tax year, the deduction must be reversed.
  
  

Job Searching Expenses

• You can deduct the costs of finding a new job if the employment sought is related to a profession in which you have been previously engaged. A deduction will be disallowed if you seek a new occupation or career, if there is a substantial period of unemployment since the most recent employment, or if you are seeking a job for the first time. Deductible expenses include headhunter agency fees, the costs to prepare and mail resumes and transportation costs incurred to travel to a prospective employer. The total deductible job searching expenses are included in miscellaneous deductions. The total of miscellaneous deductions can be deducted to the extent that they exceed 2 percent of adjusted gross income.