Avoiding common tax-filing mistakes

April 8, 2008

Today is a tax-season milestone. There’s just one week left until your 1040 is due.

Yep, you’ve put off filing for 14 weeks. While you’ve been enjoying all this time tax-free, a major problem with delaying filing until the last minute is that when you do finally get around to filling out the paperwork, you might be in such a hurry that you make a costly mistake.

To help you avoid that, here are 10 common tax errors to be on the lookout for:

  • Tax_tip_icon_pencil_point
    Entering the wrong account in connection with direct deposit of your refund.
  • Claiming the wrong hybrid credit.
  • Not counting all your charitable contributions.
  • Missing out on the PMI deduction.
  • Overlooking  unearned income.
  • Making math miscalculations. 
  • Misentering or forgetting Social Security numbers.
  • Ignoring IRS mailing material.
  • Forgetting signatures.
  • Missing the filing deadline.

Details on each of these errors can be found in this story I wrote for Bankrate.

Some other bloggers also offer their takes on common tax mistakes:

So even though time is short, slow down a bit so that you don’t end up making one of these mistakes and costing yourself in the process.

Share:

The More Tax Posts tab at the top of this page will take you to, well, more tax posts. You also can search below for a tax topic. 

Latest Posts
6 tax moves to consider this June

June 3, 2026

Definitely take a break this June. But taxes don’t take vacations. So, you also should…

Read More
Tax Season 2026 Continues!

We made it. Tax Day 2025 is finally over. For most of us. When the filing season started on Jan. 26, millions who were expecting refunds filed immediately. Most of us got our returns to the Internal Revenue Service by April 15. But plenty of taxpayers also got extensions. They are looking at an Oct. 15 filing deadline.

Those procrastinating filers aren’t a problem. In fact, the IRS appreciates taxpayers who take time to fill out their 1040 forms correctly. It also is grateful that tax submissions are spread out a bit, especially now that the IRS is a leaner agency. Processing returns is easier when they arrive throughout the year instead of in massive bunches.

But enough about Uncle Sam’s tax collection issues. The focus now is on all y’all who filed for extensions, giving you another six months to complete your return. Since your new mid-October due date will be here before you know it, let’s get started now on meeting it.

The ol’ blog is here to help you finish up your extended Form 1040. You can start with January’s tax tips page, which has links to the rest of the year’s tips by-month collections. You also can peruse various tax categories for more tailored advice by clicking on the More Tax Posts drop-down menu at the top of this (and every) page.

And to make sure you don’t miss your new filing deadline, the count-down clock below will let you know just how much time you to file by Oct. 15. At the latest.e. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)

Comments