Chances of Being Audited Are Small

— -- Your chances of being audited are actually very small.

"The latest numbers show that overall, only one of every 150 returns gets audited. And fewer than one in 600 taxpayers actually have to sit down face-to-face with an auditor," said Kevin McCormally of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine.

According to McCormally, you will grab the IRS' attention only if the picture you paint of yourself on your return seems strange when compared to what other taxpayers are reporting — like claiming that you gave half of your income to charity.

New York tax consultant Ginger Broderick agrees.

"Most people donate 10 percent of their gross revenue. If it's more than that, they might get looked at by the IRS," she said.

Broderick added: "Most of the audits that do come through are questionnaires. So for example, I had one that said, 'You have this type of deduction on the tax return, can you please provide us with more information?' And all we did was submit some receipts, copies, and a letter to explain the deduction that was on the return."

Click here for interactive tax explainers and calculators