---
title: There's Still Time to Shrink Your Tax Bill
description: Put a little away for retirement and reduce what you owe the IRS.
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published: '2016-04-01T21:15:49.000Z'
modified: '2024-02-23T10:12:53.000Z'
section: Taxes
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![last minute shrink your tax bill.00_00_11_24.Still001](https://img.money.com/2016/03/last-minute-shrink-your-tax-bill-00_00_11_24-still001.jpg)

If you’ve run the numbers and find that you’re facing a big tax bill this year, don’t despair. You may have one more chance to shrink it.

Right up until the tax-filing deadline – which is April 18th this year — you can put as much as $5,500 into an individual retirement account for 2015. If you’re 50 or older, that maximum is $6,500.

As long as you earn less than the IRS limits, your contribution to a traditional IRA will lower your taxable income — and therefore cut your tax bill.

If you and your spouse aren’t covered by retirement plans at work, you can typically deduct the full amount of your IRA contributions. With a workplace plan, you’re entitled to at least a partial deduction if your income is less than $118,000 for couples, $71,000for singles.

If you are self-employed or run your own business, you can stash away extra cash in a [SEP-IRA](https://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Retirement-Plans-FAQs-regarding-SEPs-Contributions) or [Solo 401(k)](https://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/One-Participant-401\(k\)-Plans) for 2015 right up until the tax deadline.

**Read Next: Here's the Easiest Way to Cut Your Tax Bill Now**

And if you have a high-deductible health insurance plan, you can top off the health savings account that goes with it until April 18th. Single people can save $3,350 in an HSA for 2015. With family coverage, you put away $6,650. You don’t owe taxes on your contributions to an HSA, the funds grow tax-free, and the money you withdraw for medical costs is tax-free too.

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