Tax day is almost here.
This year, all federal and state returns must be filed by the April 15 deadline. If you’re dreading doing your taxes, you’re not alone.
Nearly a third of Americans admit to procrastinating and waiting until the last minute to file their paperwork.
Tomas Pueyo, a tax manager at AAFCPA’s, says being accurate is as important as making the deadline. Don’t overlook opportunities for tax deductions. They can reduce the amount of tax you owe or increase the amount of your return.
“The renewable energy credits that are available out there … making small improvements to your homes,” said Pueyo. “If you bought a car, too — an electric car that might be able to qualify — you can get up to $7,500 on your tax return, essentially.”
E-filing is the fastest way to get your return to the IRS. If you accidently sent your paperwork with an error, taxpayers must contact the IRS as soon as possible.
“If you have any significant errors, I would recommend just to amend the tax return. If it’s probably a math error, or you were off and within $20, $30, I would just wait for the IRS to issue a revision,” suggested Pueyo. “If you under-reported your tax liability, you might have to pay any additional interest on the liability if you didn’t make a payment.”
If you need more time to complete your return, you can file for an extension. This will give you until October 15 to file without penalties.
“If you have to make a payment before the original tax due date, you should probably just do that and compile as many documents as you can so you can file that extension with the IRS. It’s just like a special form that you have to file,” Pueyo said.
And as the deadline nears, scammers are ready to take advantage of Americans scrambling to get their returns filed. Ignore urgent-looking text or email messages that claim to be from the government or a tax preparation service.
“Make sure that any messages that you’re getting are from either your CPA or somebody that you’ve been working with in the past,” said Pueyo. “And don’t click any links out there because there are a lot of scams right now.”
