Tax filing and tax returns are a perfect time to reexamine your tax situation and decide if some changes are in order.
If the IRS believes you owe them money for unpaid taxes, you might grudgingly acknowledge the IRS is correct. But in situations where you disagree, you have certain legal rights to contest or dispute the IRS.
Continue reading “How to Dispute a Tax Bill from the IRS”
The 2023 tax season has begun, so it’s that time of the year when you get your tax documents ready for filing your return for 2022 income. Whether you prepare your taxes yourself or have a specific tax professional that you use each year, it doesn’t hurt to be aware of some tips when filing your taxes. These pointers can save you money, make the tax filing process easier or both.
Continue reading “Top Five Tips for Filing Your 2023 Taxes”
The year is almost over, but the time to make financial decisions that could affect your taxes in 2022 and/or 2023 is about to begin. Below are a few tasks and considerations to look into before January 1 arrives.
Continue reading “End of Year Tax Planning Guide for 2022”
Every year, the IRS releases its “Dirty Dozen” list of tax scams for taxpayers to watch out for. In this blog post, we identify and explain a few of the more notable scams that have made this list.
Continue reading “2022 Tax Scams the IRS Is Warning You About”
If you get behind on your taxes, you will accrue a tax debt. Tax departments and agencies have special tools to make sure you pay unpaid taxes. Two of the most powerful include the tax lien and tax levy. Let’s take a look at what these are and how they work.
Continue reading “What Are Tax Liens and Levies and How Do You Get Them Removed?”
For the typical taxpayer, they have until around April 15 to file their income tax returns for the prior tax year. The deadline for the 2021 tax year was April 18, 2022. Yet sometimes there are reasons why a tax filer can’t get their tax returns to the IRS by this deadline.
Continue reading “2021 Tax Extension Filers: Why to File As Soon As Possible”
Form 1040 is the standard IRS form when it comes to filing federal income taxes as an individual. Over the years, Form 1040 has been modified to reflect changes in tax law and IRS practice. In some years, Form 1040 saw more changes than other years. The changes from the 2020 Form 1040 to the 2021 Form 1040 aren’t major, but there are still plenty of updates. Let’s take a look at three of the more notable changes for the upcoming tax filing season.
Continue reading “2022 Cha-ch-cha Changes to the 1040! How This Impacts You”
2020 has been quite the year. While it may have felt like the year of the coronavirus would never end, it’s December, which means it’s time to reexamine your tax situation and decide if some changes are in order. This blog post will examine a few tips when you start planning for the 2021 tax season.
Continue reading “2021 Tax Plan: End of Year Tax Planning for 2020”
Tax season is about to start, which means it’s that time of year where you need to be on the lookout for tax documents such as W-2s and 1099s. But what other documents and information do you need to have ready to complete your tax return over the next few months? That precise answer depends on your unique tax situation, but the following guide will provide a good overview of what you might need to have ready when you or your tax preparer files your tax return this year.
Tax season is here again with the dreaded April 15 deadline fast approaching. Some of the more proactive taxpayers out there have already filed their 2016 tax returns and maybe already have their tax refund checks, too. But for those who haven’t yet done the deed, here are a few pointers about filing your return this year.
By now, taxpayers should have all the necessary tax documents to file their taxes, such as any 1099 forms for contract work and W-2 forms for payroll work. These forms are usually sent by employers or clients in late January. If you don’t receive these documents, keep in mind it does not relieve you from the responsibility of declaring your income in your tax return. Also, if you already know what your income is (this can often be readily determined by looking at your invoices and pay stubs), you technically don’t need your W-2 or 1099 forms.
The deadline to file your federal tax return is the same every year: April 15. An exception to this rule is when April 15 falls on a holiday or weekend. In that case, the tax filing deadline is actually the next business day. So the deadline for filing your 2016 taxes is Monday, April 17, right? Nope. April 17 is the Washington DC Emancipation Day holiday. Therefore, the actual deadline for filing your taxes this year is April 18.
Luckily, the IRS allows taxpayers to obtain an extension by submitting Form 4868 with their tax payment. However, taxpayers should still pay as much of their 2016 tax bill as they can by April 18. This is due to the fact that even though the IRS may grant an extension to file the return, they do not grant an extension to submit the tax payment.
So even if the IRS grants a tax filing extension, the taxpayer will still have to pay interest and late-payment penalties if their entire tax bill isn’t paid by April 18. The tax extension doesn’t sound so advantageous after all, and is all the more reason to get your taxes prepared and filed on time.
There are two primary methods of filing your federal tax return. The first is the good ol’ fashioned way of mailing it in. If you do this, don’t forget to sign the return. When filing as a married couple, your spouse will need to sign as well. Keep in mind that when mailing in your return, it will often slow down the speed in which you get a tax refund check. On the other hand, it may theoretically decrease the odds of you getting audited, since the IRS must spend more time and effort to examine a paper return versus an electronic return.
The alternative way to file is electronically. It’s usually more accurate and faster with respect to the time it takes to get your tax refund check. By filing electronically, a taxpayer can expect a tax refund check several weeks sooner than if they filed through the mail with a paper return.
Taxpayers have an extra few days to file their taxes this year with a deadline of April 18. By now, taxpayers should be well on their way to preparing and submitting their 2016 tax returns. And if you need more time to file, you can often get an extension. But understand that the extension only applies to filing your return, not actually paying your taxes.