Hi

Could you please help me understand the itemized deductions.

I came to the US in July 2005 and electronically filed my taxes for 2005.
But lot of my friends tell me that if I use itemized deductions, I can get more refund.

I was in the US for the entire 2006 till Nov.. From Nov mid - Jan mid I was in India for a vacation. We stay in a rented house and do not own a house. I commute by bus daily to the office. My visa is a L1B visa. And I get salary here after medicare and SSN tax deduction. Could you please let me know if I can file for itemized deductions.

Thanks in anticipation

First, if you filed electronically in 2005, you filed INCORRECTLY. You needed to file a Form 1040NR or 1040NR-EZ, and those forms cannot be filed electronically.

Second, you really cannot itemize unless you own a house on which you are making mortgage payments (or you live in a high tax area like New York City).