teeth whitening - definitely, I got reimbursed for that (although it was years ago, maybe it changed).
massage - if it's for back pain,- for sure. If it's just for relaxation -not.
It also covers vitamins, supplements ( not , of course,for bodybuilding.....), herbs, acupuncture, other complimentary treatments not covered by insurance.

I believe that vitamins, herbs, and supplements might also require a note fromone's physician... but there's still a long list of other OTC drugs and medical care items eligible for reimbursement.

Кто-нибудь знает? если во время безработицы вложить деньги на 401К, эти деньги уменьшают гросс-деньги, т.есумму с которой начисляются налоги?

you can't contribute to 401K or 403B if you are not employed - those are employer -run plans. You can have IRA, SEP-IRA ( if you are self-employed) , or Roth IRA. Any investment company (Fidelity, TRowe Price, etc...) has all the information on those on their site.

Are you saying that you can deduct form your taxes medically-related expenses? LIke, if you pay for a hospital out of pocket, you can deduct it???

that's not what we were saying... but you (well, probably not you) can deduct (if you itemize)medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income.

Маша, I think you can deduct your medical expenses on your income tax without having FSA, but I believe it has to be over 7K or so..

or maybe it's percentage of your income.. not sure.. asked that questions many years ago..

It is exactly how Lina stated. You deduct the amount exceeding 7 or so % of your gross income. So, say, if your income is 100K, and you spent 10K on medical expenses, you can deduct 3K ( or 2,5 if it's 7,5%) . FSA is simply a way to save on taxes by putting money into it pre-taxed. You can also put money into it for childcare - same rules apply. HSA work the same way. Many medical insurances with high deductibles allow people to have HSA ( Health spending account)

Some info.
FSA (flexible spennding account)-tax-exempt account, unspent funds are forfeited.
HSA (health saving account)-money withdrawn to cover qualified medical expensed is tax-free; money withsrawn for other than healthcare expenses after payment of income tax plus a 15%penalty; unused funds is roll-over from year to year.
HCRA(health care reimbursement account)-tax-exempt account, unused funds are forfeited.
HRA(health reimfursement arrangement)-used in hight deducible insurance policy, can used unspended money for future years.

Maybe not everyone knows, but for insurance that you pay for your own house, you can get additional credit in taxes.

Пришло время готовить бумажки для отчёта по таксам 2010. Кто-нибудь знает, что новенького *в этом году?

Я набрал достаточно поинтов чтобы получать SS benefits . Могу ли отказаться платить SS Taxes ?

Ничего себе... вам тут расскажи! :) *Просто так? Нет уж. Когда я иду к адвокату, он почему-то с меня денег много берёт за консультации. А почему я должен экономить кому-то деньги, да забесплатно? Наивные такие, просто любители халявы...
Хотите сэкономить? Нужно делиться и никак иначе.