by NFS | Apr 11, 2011 | Archives
The tax filing deadline is just around the corner. The IRS offers 10 tips for taxpayers still working on their tax returns:
1. File Electronically IRS e-file: It’s safe. It’s easy. It’s time. IRS e-file is now the norm; not the exception. The number of e-filed Form 1040 tax returns is approaching 1 billion after 20 years of safe, secure service. In 2010, 99 million people – 70 percent of all individual taxpayers – used IRS e-file to electronically transmit their tax returns to the IRS.
2. Check the Identification Numbers Carefully check identification numbers — usually Social Security numbers — for each person listed. This includes you, your spouse, dependents and persons listed in relation to claims for the Child and Dependent Care Credit or Earned Income Tax Credit. Missing, incorrect or illegible Social Security numbers can delay or reduce a tax refund.
3. Double-Check Your Figures If you are filing a paper return, you should double-check that you have correctly figured the refund or balance due.
4. Check the Tax Tables If you are filing using the Free File Fillable Forms or a paper return, double-check that you have used the right figure from the tax table.
5. Sign Your Form You must sign and date your return. Both spouses must sign a joint return, even if only one had income. Anyone paid to prepare a return must also sign it.
6. Mailing Your Return If you are mailing a return, find the correct mailing address at http://www.irs.gov. Click the Individuals tab and the “Where to File” link under IRS Resources on the left side.
7. Mailing a Payment People sending a payment should make the check payable to “United States Treasury” and should enclose it with, but not attach it to, the tax return or the Form 1040-V, Payment Voucher, if used. The check should include the Social Security number of the person listed first on the return, daytime phone number, the tax year and the type of form filed.
8. Electronic Payments Electronic payment options are convenient, safe and secure methods for paying taxes. You can authorize an electronic funds withdrawal, or use a credit or a debit card. For more information on electronic payment options, visithttp://www.irs.gov.
9. Extension to File By the April 18th due date, you should either file a return or request an extension of time to file. Remember, the extension of time to file is not an extension of time to pay.
10. IRS.gov Forms, publications and helpful information on a variety of tax subjects are available at http://www.irs.gov/.
by NFS | Apr 10, 2011 | Archives
Are you expecting a tax refund this year? Here are 10 things the IRS wants you to know about your refund.
1. Refund Options You have three options for receiving your individual federal income tax refund: direct deposit, U.S. Savings Bonds or a paper check. You can now use your refund to buy up to $5,000 in U.S. Series I Savings Bonds in multiples of $50.
2. Separate Accounts You may use Form 8888, Allocation of Refund (Including Savings Bond Purchases), to request that your refund be allocated by direct deposit among up to three separate accounts, such as checking or savings or retirement accounts. You may also use this form to buy U.S Savings Bonds.
3. Tax Return Processing Times If you file a complete and accurate paper tax return, your refund will usually be issued within six to eight weeks from the date it is received. If you filed electronically, your refund will normally be issued within three weeks after the acknowledgment date.
4. Check the Status Online The fastest and easiest way to find out about your current year refund is to go to IRS.gov and click the “Where’s My Refund?” link at the IRS.gov home page. To check the status online you will need your Social Security number, filing status and the exact whole dollar amount of your refund shown on your return.
5. Check the Status By Phone You can check the status of your refund by calling the IRS Refund Hotline at 800–829–1954. When you call, you will need to provide your Social Security number, your filing status and the exact whole dollar amount of the refund shown on your return.
6. Check the Status with IRS2Go IRS2Go is a smartphone application that lets you interact with the IRS using your mobile device. Apple users can download the free IRS2Go application by visiting the Apple App Store. Android users can visit the Android Marketplace to download the free IRS2Go app. Simply enter your Social Security number, which will be masked and encrypted for security purposes, then select your filing status and the exact whole dollar amount of your refund shown on your return.
7. Delayed Refund There are several reasons for delayed refunds. For things that may delay the processing of your return, refer to Tax Topic 303 available on the IRS website at http://www.irs.gov, which includes a Checklist of Common Errors When Preparing Your Tax Return.
8. Larger than Expected Refund If you receive a refund to which you are not entitled, or one for an amount that is more than you expected, do not cash the check until you receive a notice explaining the difference. Follow the instructions on the notice.
9. Smaller than Expected Refund If you receive a refund for a smaller amount than you expected, you may cash the check. If it is determined that you should have received more, you will later receive a check for the difference. If you did not receive a notice and you have questions about the amount of your refund, wait two weeks after receiving the refund, then call 800–829–1040.
10. Missing Refund The IRS will assist you in obtaining a replacement check for a refund check that is verified as lost or stolen. If the IRS was unable to deliver your refund because you moved, you can change your address online. Once your address has been changed, the IRS can reissue the undelivered check.
by NFS | Apr 8, 2011 | Archives
There is potential for a government shutdown after midnight on Friday due to a lack of budget approval. If this occurs, the IRS has stated that the April 18 tax deadline remains in effect. All taxpayers should continue to file their returns and pay their taxes as normal. The IRS plans to continue accepting all tax returns, both electronic and paper. Refunds will continue to be processed normally for electronically filed tax returns and most taxpayers will not see delays for e-filed returns. However, taxpayers should expect delays for paper tax refunds.
If you have any questions – please let me know.
by NFS | Apr 7, 2011 | Archives
Estimated tax is a method used to pay tax on income that is not subject to withholding. You may need to pay estimated taxes during the year depending on what you do for a living and what type of income you receive.
These six tips from the IRS will provide you with a quick look at estimated taxes and how to pay them.
- If you have income from sources such as self-employment, interest, dividends, alimony, rent, gains from the sales of assets, prizes or awards, then you may have to pay estimated tax.
- As a general rule, you must pay estimated taxes in 2011 if both of these statements apply: 1) You expect to owe at least $1,000 in tax after subtracting your tax withholding (if you have any) and credits, and 2) You expect your withholding and credits to be less than the smaller of 90% of your 2011 taxes or 100% of the tax on your 2010 return. There are special rules for farmers, fishermen, certain household employers and certain higher income taxpayers.
- For Sole Proprietors, Partners and S Corporation shareholders, you generally have to make estimated tax payments if you expect to owe $1,000 or more in tax when you file your return.
- To figure your estimated tax, include your expected gross income, taxable income, taxes, deductions and credits for the year. Use the worksheet in Form 1040ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals for this. You want to be as accurate as possible to avoid penalties. Also, consider changes in your situation and recent tax law changes.
- The year is divided into four payment periods, or due dates, for estimated tax purposes. Those dates generally are April 15, June 15, Sept. 15 and Jan. 15.
- Form 1040ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals, provides all you’ll need to pay estimated taxes. This includes instructions, worksheets, schedules and payment vouchers. The easiest way to pay estimated taxes, however, is electronically through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System or EFTPS. You can also pay estimated taxes by check or money order using the Estimated Tax Payment Voucher or by credit or debit card.
by NFS | Apr 6, 2011 | Archives
Washington, D.C. – The Senate voted Tuesday to repeal the expanded 1099 information reporting requirements in last year’s health care reform and small business laws, sending the repeal to President Obama’s desk.
The repeal legislation, offered by Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., was known as the Comprehensive 1099 Taxpayer Protection and Replacement of Exchange Subsidy Overpayments Act of 2011. Unlike the repeal vote earlier this year, the Senate and House bills contained similar language and offsets.
Senator Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, hailed Senate passage of the amendment, which passed by a vote to 87 to 12.
“The 1099 health care mandate is an albatross around the necks of American small businesses, forcing them to bear the brunt of the Obama Administration’s big-spending, tax-hiking, debt- increasing agenda,” said Hatch, who joined with Johanns last fall to launch the 1099 repeal effort. “I commend Senator Johanns for his ongoing leadership on this vital issue. Removing this costly regulatory burden from the backs of these entrepreneurs will allow them to do what they do best: create good-paying jobs.”
The 1099 provision required businesses, charities and state and local governments to file a 1099 form with the Internal Revenue Service to report annual purchases from other companies above $600.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., praised passage in the House of H.R. 4 1099 repeal legislation.
“The 1099 IRS reporting provision enacted in the Democrats’ 2010 health law quickly became the poster child for a government that is too big, too intrusive and too out of touch with small businesses,” said Camp. “After a nearly year-long battle, today’s vote is a major victory for America’s small businesses and the workers they employ. The Senate made the right choice in passing the bipartisan, common sense solution crafted by the House. The President should sign this into law immediately and work with us to find other ways to reduce the heavy burden of federal mandates, regulations and paperwork that takes employers’ time, energy and resources away from creating jobs.”
While both the Senate and House proposed competing versions of repeal legislation in the last Congress, the two chambers were never able to agree on a unified solution to provide small businesses with much-needed relief. H.R. 4, introduced by Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Calif., incorporated new language authored by Camp, R-Mich., repealing the onerous new Form 1099 information reporting requirements that were imposed on small businesses to pay for the health care law. The bill also would repeal an additional Form 1099 information reporting requirement on owners of rental real estate; and reduce improper overpayments of insurance exchange subsidies established under the health care law.
Upon final passage in the House, the Lungren-Camp 1099 repeal received 314 votes in the House—including 76 Democrats—last month and passed the Senate with a bipartisan vote of 87 to 12.
American Institute of CPAs president and CEO Barry Melancon praised passage of the bill.
“Today’s overwhelming vote by the Senate to repeal onerous information reporting requirements is a victory for taxpayers,” he said in a statement. “The AICPA had advocated strongly for the repeal of these reporting requirements because the increased burden on taxpayers and the time consuming process the IRS would have to use to reconcile millions of forms is too costly. We urge the President to quickly sign the repeal legislation into law.”
National Society of Accountants executive vice president John Ams described the 1099 reporting requirements as a “nightmarish regulation.” “Congress finally listened to the voice of actual experience rather than people in ivory towers,” Ams said. “For that, we are grateful. People on the ground making a living every day could see this would be a big problem and would not increase the revenue Congress was expecting. All it would do is cost businesses money and increase the burden on the IRS.”
By Michael Cohn, Accounting Today
by NFS | Apr 5, 2011 | Archives
Thank you to Pat Coleman @ The Wrentham Times for his write-up on NFS!
http://ping.fm/DnqYY
