When Doing Your Own Taxes, Don't Forget to......

To contact us Click HERE

When doing your owntaxes, don’t over look an entry because you don’t understand it, or worst,because you think you understand it and you just move passed it.  Each question has an ending result.
One of the realreasons the IRS doesn’t complain about all the incorrect taxes which are filedby taxpayers preparing their own taxes, is because the software companies havemade it easy for you to make mistakes in the IRS favor.
Always remember thiswhen doing your taxes.  It may take justone click to increase your refund by hundreds of dollars.  For the most part, the consumer software doesan excellent job on non-technical tax returns, meaning, if you only have one W2 andlittle else to report, the major consumer software does a great job.
If you have aSchedule A, look at the bottom of the Schedule A 1040 Tax Form.  You will find Line 21 – Job Expenses.  If you understand which items you can writeoff, then go for it.  If this puzzles youin any way, you need a tax professional. 
This one lineincludes over 18 different expenses for your work which you were not reimbursedfor. Everything from Union Dues to your cell phone because you were on call orwas expected to use your cell phone to complete your work, to the cost of your uniforms and or the maintenance of your uniforms.  It includes your still toe boots, if you are required to wear on your job, as well as your helmet and some tools which are used for your work.  If you are an entertainer who needs that special makeup, which holds up under the heavy lighting, then you need a tax professional.  This is not a line that you just want to fluff.
Every year Congressvotes in 90 to 150 new tax laws, and the consumer software companies usuallyalways get it right, but they don’t always have the time to program thesoftware to ensure that “you” get it right.
If you have a simple,easy to do, tax return, then by all means, save yourself some money and do yourown tax return.  Of course you do knowabout the tax credits you may qualify for if you earn under a certain amounteach year?  Read every question, answereach question, take your time. 

Lost Your W2, or Didn't Receive Your W2, What to Do

To contact us Click HERE
 If you misplaced your W2  or moved and didn't receive your W2, or your Employer mailed to the wrong address, here is what to do: 

It’s a good idea to have all your tax documents together before preparing your 2012 tax return. You will need your W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, which employers should send by the end of January. Give it two weeks to arrive by mail.

If you have not received your W-2, follow these three steps:

1. Contact your employer first. Ask your employer – or former employer – to send your W-2 if it has not already been sent. Make sure your employer has your correct address. 2. Contact the IRS. After February 14, you may call the IRS at 800-829-1040 if you have not yet received your W-2. Be prepared to provide your name, address, Social Security number and phone number. You should also have the following information when you call: • Your employer’s name, address and phone number;• Your employment dates; and• An estimate of your wages and federal income tax withheld in 2012, based upon your final pay stub or leave-and-earnings statement, if available. 3. File your return on time. You should still file your tax return on or before April 15, 2013, even if you have not yet received your W-2. File Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, in place of the W-2. Use the form to estimate your income and withholding taxes as accurately as possible. The IRS may delay processing your return while it verifies your information. If you need more time to file you can get a six-month extension of time. File Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File US Individual Income Tax Return. If you are requesting an extension, you must file this form on or before April 15, 2013.

If you receive the missing W-2 after filing your tax return and the information on the W-2 is different from what you reported using Form 4852, then you must correct your tax return. File Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return to amend your tax return.
Forms and instructions are available at IRS.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).

Additional IRS Resources:

• Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement
• Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

Filing Your Own Taxes? Here's How to Determine Your Filing Status

To contact us Click HERE
 
If you are filing your own taxes for the first time, getting your filing incorrect would cause your entire return to be incorrect.  This is NOT how you want to start off your relationship with the IRS.  The IRS sent out an announcement telling taxpayers how to determine their filing status.

--------

It’s important to use the correct filing status when filing your income tax return. It can impact the tax benefits you receive, the amount of your standard deduction and the amount of taxes you pay. It may even impact whether you must file a federal income tax return.

Are you single, married or the head of your household? There are five filing statuses on a federal tax return. The most common are "Single," "Married Filing Jointly" and "Head of Household." The Head of Household status may be the one most often claimed in error.

The IRS offers these seven facts to help you choose the best filing status for you.

1. Marital Status. Your marital status on the last day of the year is your marital status for the entire year. 2. If You Have a Choice. If more than one filing status fits you, choose the one that allows you to pay the lowest taxes. 3. Single Filing Status. Single filing status generally applies if you are not married, divorced or legally separated according to state law. 4. Married Filing Jointly. A married couple may file a return together using the Married Filing Jointly status. If your spouse died during 2012, you usually may still file a joint return for that year. 5. Married Filing Separately. If a married couple decides to file their returns separately, each person’s filing status would generally be Married Filing Separately. 6. Head of Household. The Head of Household status generally applies if you are not married and have paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home for yourself and a qualifying person. 7. Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child. This status may apply if your spouse died during 2010 or 2011, you have a dependent child and you meet certain other conditions.IRS e-file is the easiest way to file and will help you determine the correct filing status. If you file a paper return, the Interactive Tax Assistant at IRS.gov is a tool that will help you choose your filing status.

IRS's Tool, "Where's My Refund

To contact us Click HERE
 
Not to worry the IRS is on time with refunds.  And if you are a little worried you can read their statement on using the "Where's My Refund" Ninety percent of all taxpayers are receiving a refund within 21 days when they file electronically using the direct deposit option.  Below are some special tips to help lower your blood pressure:
----------
The IRS alerted taxpayers and the tax community it is experiencing high traffic on Where's My Refund as more tax returns come in. The heavy volume of refund inquiries means that the IRS anticipates both "Where's My Refund?" on IRS.gov and the refund feature on the IRS2go phone app will have limited availability during busier periods.

Due to the large number of inquiries and to avoid service disruptions, the IRS strongly urges taxpayers to only check on their refunds once a day. IRS systems are only updated once a day, usually overnight, and the same information is available whether on the internet, IRS2go smartphone app or on IRS toll-free lines. While "Where's My Refund" is updated nightly, your account will not change that frequently.

The IRS is seeing a good start to the filing season, and tax refunds are being issued timely. Nine out of 10 taxpayers typically receive refunds in less than 21 days when they use e-file with direct deposit.
The IRS expects to see the number of tax returns -- and related refund inquiries --steadily increase around the President's Day holiday week.

Here are some tips to help taxpayers with their refund questions:

• Have the right tax information ready before using any of the IRS refund tools. This includes Social Security number, filing status and refund amount.

• You don't need to check Where's My Refund more than once a day as your information will not change.

• To avoid system delays, the best time to check on refunds is evening and weekends.

• There is no need to call the IRS about your refund; the telephone service has the same information that is available on Where’s My Refund.

When Doing Your Own Taxes, Don't Forget to......

To contact us Click HERE

When doing your owntaxes, don’t over look an entry because you don’t understand it, or worst,because you think you understand it and you just move passed it.  Each question has an ending result.
One of the realreasons the IRS doesn’t complain about all the incorrect taxes which are filedby taxpayers preparing their own taxes, is because the software companies havemade it easy for you to make mistakes in the IRS favor.
Always remember thiswhen doing your taxes.  It may take justone click to increase your refund by hundreds of dollars.  For the most part, the consumer software doesan excellent job on non-technical tax returns, meaning, if you only have one W2 andlittle else to report, the major consumer software does a great job.
If you have aSchedule A, look at the bottom of the Schedule A 1040 Tax Form.  You will find Line 21 – Job Expenses.  If you understand which items you can writeoff, then go for it.  If this puzzles youin any way, you need a tax professional. 
This one lineincludes over 18 different expenses for your work which you were not reimbursedfor. Everything from Union Dues to your cell phone because you were on call orwas expected to use your cell phone to complete your work, to the cost of your uniforms and or the maintenance of your uniforms.  It includes your still toe boots, if you are required to wear on your job, as well as your helmet and some tools which are used for your work.  If you are an entertainer who needs that special makeup, which holds up under the heavy lighting, then you need a tax professional.  This is not a line that you just want to fluff.
Every year Congressvotes in 90 to 150 new tax laws, and the consumer software companies usuallyalways get it right, but they don’t always have the time to program thesoftware to ensure that “you” get it right.
If you have a simple,easy to do, tax return, then by all means, save yourself some money and do yourown tax return.  Of course you do knowabout the tax credits you may qualify for if you earn under a certain amounteach year?  Read every question, answereach question, take your time. 

Lost Your W2, or Didn't Receive Your W2, What to Do

To contact us Click HERE
 If you misplaced your W2  or moved and didn't receive your W2, or your Employer mailed to the wrong address, here is what to do: 

It’s a good idea to have all your tax documents together before preparing your 2012 tax return. You will need your W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, which employers should send by the end of January. Give it two weeks to arrive by mail.

If you have not received your W-2, follow these three steps:

1. Contact your employer first. Ask your employer – or former employer – to send your W-2 if it has not already been sent. Make sure your employer has your correct address. 2. Contact the IRS. After February 14, you may call the IRS at 800-829-1040 if you have not yet received your W-2. Be prepared to provide your name, address, Social Security number and phone number. You should also have the following information when you call: • Your employer’s name, address and phone number;• Your employment dates; and• An estimate of your wages and federal income tax withheld in 2012, based upon your final pay stub or leave-and-earnings statement, if available. 3. File your return on time. You should still file your tax return on or before April 15, 2013, even if you have not yet received your W-2. File Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, in place of the W-2. Use the form to estimate your income and withholding taxes as accurately as possible. The IRS may delay processing your return while it verifies your information. If you need more time to file you can get a six-month extension of time. File Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File US Individual Income Tax Return. If you are requesting an extension, you must file this form on or before April 15, 2013.

If you receive the missing W-2 after filing your tax return and the information on the W-2 is different from what you reported using Form 4852, then you must correct your tax return. File Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return to amend your tax return.
Forms and instructions are available at IRS.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).

Additional IRS Resources:

• Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement
• Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

Filing Your Own Taxes? Here's How to Determine Your Filing Status

To contact us Click HERE
 
If you are filing your own taxes for the first time, getting your filing incorrect would cause your entire return to be incorrect.  This is NOT how you want to start off your relationship with the IRS.  The IRS sent out an announcement telling taxpayers how to determine their filing status.

--------

It’s important to use the correct filing status when filing your income tax return. It can impact the tax benefits you receive, the amount of your standard deduction and the amount of taxes you pay. It may even impact whether you must file a federal income tax return.

Are you single, married or the head of your household? There are five filing statuses on a federal tax return. The most common are "Single," "Married Filing Jointly" and "Head of Household." The Head of Household status may be the one most often claimed in error.

The IRS offers these seven facts to help you choose the best filing status for you.

1. Marital Status. Your marital status on the last day of the year is your marital status for the entire year. 2. If You Have a Choice. If more than one filing status fits you, choose the one that allows you to pay the lowest taxes. 3. Single Filing Status. Single filing status generally applies if you are not married, divorced or legally separated according to state law. 4. Married Filing Jointly. A married couple may file a return together using the Married Filing Jointly status. If your spouse died during 2012, you usually may still file a joint return for that year. 5. Married Filing Separately. If a married couple decides to file their returns separately, each person’s filing status would generally be Married Filing Separately. 6. Head of Household. The Head of Household status generally applies if you are not married and have paid more than half the cost of maintaining a home for yourself and a qualifying person. 7. Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child. This status may apply if your spouse died during 2010 or 2011, you have a dependent child and you meet certain other conditions.IRS e-file is the easiest way to file and will help you determine the correct filing status. If you file a paper return, the Interactive Tax Assistant at IRS.gov is a tool that will help you choose your filing status.