The parents of these youngsters are as happy as their offspring, thanks to the Advance Child Tax Credit payments. But some moms and dads still have questions about the money. With the delivery of the second Advance Child Tax Credit (AdvCTC) payments last week, the Internal Revenue Service now has sent out roughly $30 billion to around 36 million families. That dollar amount will continue to grow as half of the tax credit, which was bumped up for the 2021 tax year, is mailed or directly deposited at the middle of the coming months. But this weekend, as we mark…

Photo by Juan Pablo Serrano Arenas from Pexels On Friday, the second of this year's Advance Child Tax Credit payments were directly deposited to accounts of families who signed up to get the tax relief measure that way. Those awaiting an actual paper Treasury Department check should see them arrive in their snail mail boxes in a few days. In most cases, the money, which is a prepayment of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) is welcome. But in some instances, the early money could cause payback problems for families whose tax situations changed this year. Child Tax Credit benefits and bump…

IRS image   Last fall, the Internal Revenue Service announced that it was adding QR, or Quick Response, codes to some of the notices it sends taxpayers. Specifically, the codes are going on tax due notices. The goal, says the IRS, is to make it easier for taxpayers to deal with the notices. Recipients of the QR coded correspondence can use their smartphones to scan it and go directly to IRS website. From there, they can access their taxpayer account, set up a payment plan, or contact the Taxpayer Advocate Service. Basically, the digital option eliminates the tax middleman or…

Thoreau's Cove, circa 1908, on Walden Pond near Concord, Massachusetts. (Photo from the U.S. Library of Congress via Wikimedia Commons) Nature is a healing touchstone for many. That was especially evident when we reduced our socializing due to COVID-19. A walk in a park was a way to get out of our self-imposed lockdowns and stay safely distant from others while embracing the environment. Many people went further as the coronavirus pandemic continued, moving from crowded cities to suburban or urban retreats where they could work from home. They found, in a fashion, their own modern day Walden Ponds. At…

No, that money from the Internal Revenue Service that just showed up in your bank account or snail mail box is not another COVID-19 economic impact payment. It's the result of the IRS working through tax returns that were filed before a new tax law that excludes a chunk of unemployment benefits from taxation. This week, the IRS announced that another 1.5 million taxpayers will get these unemployment-income-related refunds. The IRS says the average refund going out now is $1,686. COVID relief for the out-of-work: This is the latest round of refunds made to comply with changes in the American…

Millions of filers are still working on 2020 tax returns, some due to extensions, others filing for the first time to get various COVID-19 economic impact payments. But time, tide and taxes wait for no man or woman. Or the Internal Revenue Service, which has revised the individual Form 1040 and its three schedules for the 2021 tax year. Form 1040: Aside from the usual year notations, there are some line number reference that have changed in connection with items that are transferred to the 2021 Form 1040 from the form’s three schedules. That’s no surprise since, as noted a…

Just about a month ago, the Internal Revenue Service reportedly had a backlog of more than 35 million individual and business returns that required manual processing. That was up from 29 million back in April. Last week, however, the IRS said it's essentially caught up with early season individual filings. Hey, don't shoot the messenger. That's the official word from the IRS, via its special IRS Operations During COVID-19: Mission-critical functions continue webpage. In a July 23 update to a portion of the What You Can Expect section of that site, the tax agency says it "is opening mail within…

It's no surprise that, after facing a ginormous backlog of paper tax forms that piled up when the Internal Revenue Service closed most of its campuses during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, the agency is looking to force more electronic filings. Proposed regulations published in today's Federal Register add seven forms to the IRS list of returns that businesses must, once a certain filing threshold is reached, submit electronically. The move is made possible by a provision of the Taxpayer First Act (TFA), which became law in July 2019 and included a variety of changes designed to…

Everybody needs some help now and then. On Friday, July 23, and Saturday, July 24, the Internal Revenue Service is providing assistance to those in 16 metropolitan areas who need to file a 2020 tax return so they can get various COVID-19 relief payments. The first of six scheduled Advance Child Tax Credit (AdvCTC) payments hit bank accounts and U.S. Postal Service boxes last week. The bulk of these initial payments — the Internal Revenue Service says it sent out $15 billion to about 35 million families — were dispersed automatically. The recipients, who had previously filed returns or used…

TurboTax won't be a Free File option when the 2022 tax filing season arrives. Taxpayers who used TurboTax to complete and e-file their returns at the Internal Revenue Service's Free File website are going to have to find a new program in 2022. The popular tax software is leaving the Free File program next filing season. It will, however, remain on the IRS.gov site for use by taxpayers who got an extension until Oct. 15 to finish their 2020 returns. TurboTax is the second major tax software provider to leave the Free File Alliance, the nonprofit coalition of tax software…

July has become a big month for the Internal Revenue Service. Last year, in the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic, July 15 was the delayed regular tax return filing deadline. This year, July 15 is the kickoff date for Advance Child Tax Credit payments and resumption of some IRS collection and enforcement efforts. This summer month also a welcome time for folks who early in 2021 filed tax returns reporting all their 2020 unemployment benefits. The IRS announced today that around 4 million of those taxpayers are about to get refunds for their tax overpayments. Where the IRS has taxpayers'…

July 15 is a big day for the Internal Revenue Service and taxpayers. Millions of families will start getting Advance Child Tax Credit payments this Thursday. It's also the day the IRS resumes additional collection and enforcement actions that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, had been suspended. "The majority of compliance operations are already running normally after being suspended to provide pandemic-related relief during the People First Initiative April 1, 2020, through July 15, 2020," notes the IRS on a recent update to its mission critical functions web page. However, says the agency, it kept its systemic and automated lien…

Kickback apparently has discontinued its bottled cold coffee with CBD, but still offers the cannabis chemical in ready-to-drink teas and ground coffee. (Photo by Deceptitom via Wikipedia) It's been one of those weeks. That's why when I woke up late this morning – OK, early afternoon — I thought (was hoping) it was Saturday. Once the caffeine kicked in, I discovered that maybe I should be using another energy booster. Cannabidiol, or CBD as it's commonly called. CBD is the second most prevalent of the active ingredients in the Cannabis sativa plant, also known as marijuana or hemp. As recreational…

Knowing whether a group is a tax-exempt organization is important, not just from Uncle Sam's revenue collection (or not) perspective, but also from a public standpoint. Donors who want to deduct charitable gifts need to know that the group to which they're giving is legit in the Internal Revenue Service's eyes. These public charities are referred to as 501(c)(3) organizations, getting their name from the section of the tax code that created them. However, there are several other tax-exempt classifications under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c). They are granted, for example, to groups that have charitable, educational, religious, or similar…

Your youngster might not have enjoyed the Fourth of July fireworks (I'm right there with you, kiddo, when it come to the noise!), but your son or daughter could make you eligible for Advance Child Tax Credit payments starting this month. Hello, July! Yeah, I know my welcome to the first full month of summer is a bit late. But admit it. You don't really focus on the month either until after July 4th. Since it's the midpoint of the tax year, July usually is a great time to look into some tax saving tasks (more on this a bit…

What's the result when the worst things happen? Too often, it's terrible people taking advantage of good people. This occurs with alarming regularity in the tax world following tragedies and disasters. Con artists use horrible events to convince compassionate individuals to donate to groups that will help out the victims. What really happens all too often is the caring donors become victims, too. Fake charities are just one type of scam in today's third installment of the IRS' Dirty Dozen for 2021. This category of tax ruses in which dishonest people trick others into doing something illegal often includes fraudulent…

Photo by 竟傲 汤 from Pexels Texas is pretty much open. Even my local grocery store, which for almost a year had required masks of shoppers and employees alike, now says the health safety protocol is optional. I'm vaccinated but still wear mine. I will as long as any of the store's employees are masked. I'm covering my nose and mouth for them, since they've had to be exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic from the get-go. When the young man at the register and the older woman in deli and all the store employees stocking shelves and produce sections and bagging groceries…

Here's some good news to kick off you weekend. Most U.S. taxpayers say cheating on taxes is wrong. Of the taxpayers who participated in the Internal Revenue Service's 2020 Comprehensive Taxpayer Attitude Survey (CTAS), 87 percent said it is not at all acceptable to cheat on their income taxes. Even more, 94 percent, believe it is a civic duty to pay their fair share of taxes. Another 91 percent said everyone who cheats on their taxes should be held accountable. The combination online-telephone survey was conducted from Aug. 24, 2020, through Sept. 24, 2020, by Pacific Consulting Group (PCG). PCG collected…

Need help filing a 2020 tax return so you can get Advance Child Tax Credit payments? The IRS and community groups in 12 metro areas are holding events to help you do just that. In a few weeks, the Internal Revenue Service will start sending out advance payments of the Child Tax Credit. The early credit amounts will go out automatically to taxpayers who, based on their 2019 or 2020 tax filing data in the IRS system, qualify for the family-friendly tax break. But not everyone who's eligible for the Child Tax Credit, which generally will be $300 a month…

Millions are awaiting Advance Child Tax Credit payments, which will start going out in July, but only to those for whom the IRS has info in its system. If you haven’t had to file a return for a while, the agency has a new online tool you can use to register for the payments. Some folks don’t have to send the Internal Revenue Service a Form 1040 every year. The reason, though, is not necessarily a welcome one. They don’t have to file because they don’t make enough money to require telling Uncle Sam about it. And since the COVID-19…

ProPublica’s recent article on how little — sometimes nothing — that rich people pay in taxes was not a revelation. It’s long been known that the tax code is full of loopholes, which aren’t necessarily illegal. Equally acknowledged is that the super wealthy can afford high-dollar tax professionals to find and put these tax breaks to work. Still, the trove of Internal Revenue Service information from, per the investigative journalism nonprofit, “the tax returns of thousands of the nation’s wealthiest people, covering more than 15 years” has captured the fancy of all us fellow and much less well-off taxpayers. It’s…

Photo by Min An from Pexels Among the many welcome events that are returning as we continue to move beyond complete COVID-19 lockdown are weddings. Congratulations and best wishes to all the brides and grooms out there who finally are enjoying their long-planned celebrations. My gift to all y'all newlyweds is a few words of marital tax advice. With apologies for the spare gift wrapping, here are some tax tasks you need to take care of now, or at least as soon as you get back from your honeymoon. 1. Make sure everyone knows your new name. After marriage, some spouses…

Are you ready for Tax Day take two? It’s June 15 and it’s almost here. That mid-June day is the annual deadline for millions of U.S. taxpayers who are living outside the country. That includes members of the armed forces stationed abroad. It’s also the due date for the current year’s second estimated tax payment. And this year, even more taxpayers will participate. June 15, 2021, is the first Tax Day for millions who literally endured disastrous situations earlier this year. Here’s the scoop for all these folks now facing impending June tax obligations. U.S. taxpayers living abroad: Every year,…

Unemployment benefits were a lifesaver for many Americans who saw their jobs eliminated during the height of coronavirus pandemic. Now some of those unemployment insurance (UI) recipients are getting another boost from the benefits thanks to a change in how the COVID-related funds are taxed. The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) deemed up to $10,200 per taxpayer in unemployment compensation as tax-free. ARPA became law on March 11, meaning some filers submitted their 2020 returns and paid tax on all the UI benefits they got last year before the change took effect. Rather than make those folks redo…

June’s arrival, especially now that many coronavirus limits are being lifted, means the start of summertime fun. But it’s also a good month to make some key tax moves before heading off to your favorite recreational pursuits. We did it! Survived Tax Day 2021 … unless you’re among the millions who got an extension to file or live in a state where the deadline to submit 2020 tax returns was even further delayed. In that case, one of the things you need to take care of this month is filing your taxes. Here more on that and four other tax…

Including some amended filing considerations that are affected this year by COVID-19 law changes. Photo by Ann H from Pexels It's been a week since Tax Day 2021. Those of us who submitted our tax returns have just been enjoying being done with the Internal Revenue Service for another year. But maybe we should give Uncle Sam's tax collector a little more thought before we finally wrap up this tax season. Here are 5 tax matters you need to consider so that you can completely clear your 2020 tax year decks. 1. Check your refund status: This is the biggie every…

You just finished filing your taxes last week. That included, for most Americans, state tax returns, too. And for some, the news was not good, especially on the state tax front. Residents of 42 states and Washington, D.C., face state and local taxes on at least some of the income, either earned (usually from jobs) or unearned (usually investment income). For some, the dollars handed over to their state and local tax collectors are more troubling than their federal tax amounts. High state taxes, both corporate and individual, usually is cited as a key reason lower-tax states like my native…

While most of us dealt with our 2020 taxes this past Monday, May 17, taxpayers in six states have several more weeks, and in some cases, months to file their returns. The same is true for state filings due in those states with new federal filing deadlines. Plus, a couple of states acted independently of the Internal Revenue Service to give their residents more time to deal with state and local filings. Here's a quick look at this year's remaining tax calendars when it comes to dealing with 2020 returns. 6 states get federal disaster filing delays: Six states endured…

President Joe Biden this week reinstated a long-standing White House tax tradition. Biden and the First Lady, as well as the Vice Presidential couple, made public their annual tax return filings on Tax Day, May 17 this year. (White House Facebook image) Monday was Tax Day 2021. Yes, it was just more than a month later than usual. But one tax thing did return to normal this year. The President and Vice President of the United States released their tax returns to the public. Tax sharing by Biden: The 2020 tax year joint filing by President Joe and First Lady…

P.S. — The IRS commish says thanks to those who did file on May 17. Wow. Those extra 32 days to get your taxes done sure went fast. So quickly, in fact, that you flat-out missed the May 17 tax filing deadline. Don't panic, but don't procrastinate any longer. The Internal Revenue Service is serious about wanting your tax forms and, of course, any taxes you owe. If you miss the annual deadline, regardless of exactly when it falls, then you'll likely end up facing three main filing-related penalties, the harshest of which is for not filing at all. Below…

It's finally here! Tax Day 2021! Yeah, I know most of y'all aren't that excited. Either you're done with your 2020 return (good for you) or you're struggling to finish it (you can do it!) or, for a variety of reasons (including disaster declarations; so sorry you had to deal with that), you have more time to file. Today, though, is still a critical deadline for millions of taxpayers, especially those who taxes. Facing the prospect of having to write the U.S. Treasury a check (or send Uncle Sam an electronic payment) is one of the main reasons folks procrastinate…

The time left until tomorrow’s Tax Day is tick, tick, ticking away. If you’re feeling like silent movie legend Harold Lloyd, hanging on by your fingernails as you try to finish your Form 1040, take a break by filing for an extension instead. In a survey earlier this tax filing season by Credello, more than three-quarters of respondents said they know what they’re doing when it comes to filing their taxes. Oh, really? Not that I’m questioning the poll participants’ honesty, but taxes are not really the area where you want to fake it ’til you make it. If you…

Tax Day 2021 has moved to Aug. 2 for Tennessee taxpayers in 23 counties that were hard hit by tornadoes, other storms, and flooding. Satellite view from GOES-16 showing the storm system responsible for the tornado outbreak across much of the southern United States on March 25, 2021. (Image courtesy National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration via Wikipedia Commons) As we enter the final weekend of the regular tax-filing season, millions of taxpayers have yet to file their returns. Some are simply uber-procrastinators. Others, however, don't have to worry about meeting Monday's May 17 deadline thanks to extra time granted by…

Still trying to put your 2020 tax return puzzle together? The following 10 tips could help you find any missing pieces. If you're spending your weekend working on your 2020 tax return, you are not alone. Millions of people every year put off this annual tax task until the very last minute. Tax procrastination happens even in years like this one when the deadline is later than usual. It also happens even when people are going to get a refund. I know! Go figure. Whatever your reason for waiting, I'm not judging. But I do want to offer some tips…

The 2020 tax return filing deadline for most U.S. taxpayers literally is just days away. If you're scrambling to meet the May 17 due date, don't be in such a hurry that you cheat yourself out of some tax savings. You can claim deductions, either by itemizing if that gives you more than your standard deduction amount or by claiming some income adjustments, most of which are still referred to (by me, at least!) as above-the-line deductions, that reduce the amount of income that's taxed. There also are tax credits, which are even better because they directly reduce what you…

Reviewed and updated May 15, 2021 Tax Day 2021 for most U.S. taxpayers is just a week away. Procrastinators' focus obviously is on finishing up those 1040s. But there are some other tax tasks that, if they apply to your tax situation, you should take care of or at least consider by May 17. 1. Contribute to an IRA: Putting as much as you can into an individual retirement arrangement, or account as most of us call it, is always a smart move. The IRA will grow over the years, giving you some cash when you're ready to call the…

Among the many numbers critical to tax filing is the deadline returns are due. That's not always the same for all taxpayers. This year we have three due dates for filers in five states. I love tax visuals. There are tons of fun tax graphics (yes, I used "fun" and "tax" in the same sentence) out there, many from the Internal Revenue Service. I just ran across another one, an infographic from WalletHub. A very long infographic that, since I'm awarding it this weekend's Saturday Shout Out, you'll find at the end of this comparatively brief post. But before you…

Crayons aren’t just for kids any more. Adult coloring books abound, including one created just for accountants. With Tax Day 2017 just days away, perhaps no one is feeling the pressure more than tax professionals. Tax preparers, for the second consecutive filing season, are dealing not only with the regular rush of taxes, but also with new COVID-19 pandemic prompted laws. Multiply that by how many clients they have, add what’s happening in their (and their clients’) lives, and the solution equals, among other things, stress that’s off the charts. Helpful timeouts: While it might seem counter intuitive to those…

Even before 2017's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) greatly increased the standard deduction amounts, most people chose to use the standard deduction amount. But one thing that the latest tax reform law didn't change is the ability for many to get some added deductions without itemizing. These used to be called, at least by the tax community, above-the-line deductions. They got that moniker because pre-TCJA they appeared in the last section of the old long Form 1040, just above the last line of that form's first page where your adjusted gross income (AGI) was entered. (A handful also were…

One of the many reasons that people hate taxes is that after the hassle of filing, then comes the fear that a Form 1040 mistake will mean an audit. The sort-of good news for taxpayers is that the Internal Revenue Service hasn't been auditing as many people in recent years. The agency has had other things to worry about, like doing its myriad jobs with fewer staff and less money. Then there's COVID-19, with added pandemic payments that the IRS is tasked with distributing. Things could be changing, though. More people are getting vaccinated, meaning the end of the coronavirus…

Princess Bride impatience via Giphy.com Aside from having to fill out a tax return, the most annoying thing for most people each year is waiting for their tax refunds. The complaint is continually atop the list of taxpayer complaints. The frustration of waiting for the Internal Revenue Service to deliver their tax cash probably is why so many folks fall for tax refund myths. Don’t! These fabrications, six of which are listed below, won’t help you get your money any sooner, and some could actually cost you more. Myth 1: Calling my tax professional or the Internal Revenue Service will get me my…

Every tax season is challenging. Often, it's because Congress has fiddled with tax laws, presenting new learning curves for both taxpayers and the preparers they hire to lead them through the Internal Revenue Code. Problems during the last two years, however, can be blamed on COVID-19. Not only did the pandemic produce new laws, there have been delayed deadlines and health-related closures that created processing problems for the Internal Revenue Service. The latest 2021 filing season hurdle, for both taxpayers and the IRS, is the amount of tax returns the agency says must be processed by hand. The IRS is…

Spring has come and gone here in Central Texas. We’re heading into a stretch when afternoon high temperatures are going to push 90 degrees. But it’s still a good time for some spring cleaning, especially since it’s going to too hot to be outdoors. And especially if you decided to get your taxes done well ahead of the May 17 Tax Day 2021 deadline. Over the years, I’ve posted my post-filing record retention recommendations. My tax document record keeping suggestions following last year’s also-delayed Tax Day still are good, even if I say so myself. True, if you need but…

UPDATE, Oct. 5 , 2021: Yes, you are experiencing tax déjà vu. But if you're one of the millions of taxpayers who got an extension to file your 2020 return back in May, and then put off doing so until now, literally just days until the final Oct. 15 due date, then you need this reminder. As you finally fill out your Form 1040, don't make any of these dozen tax filing mistakes. Every tax-filing season is different. One thing is constant, though. Taxpayers, and sometimes even the tax preparers they hire, make mistakes on 1040 forms. Hey, we're only…

Rather than heavy equipment, the IRS needs legislative and fiscal help to close its $1 trillion Tax Gap.

We made it through April 15, 2021. The problem, though, is that for most individual taxpayers and the tax pros who handle their filings, yesterday wasn't really Tax Day. That's still more than a month away. Or, to be precise per [shameless plug] the clicking away countdown clock in the ol' blog's right column, 31 days and some odd hours away. Those extra days and hours until the new 2021 Tax Day on May 17, regardless of how well-intentioned (but incomplete), also should be added to the overall compliance burden taxpayers face every tax season. COVID tax complications: OK, maybe…

Since the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) was enacted on March 11, the Internal Revenue Service has distributed approximately 159 million COVID-19 economic impact payments (EIPs). Those deliveries come to more than $376 billion. This third round of coronavirus pandemic payments, worth up to $1,400 per person, has been going out in batches. Recipients include taxpayers who've filed 2020 returns, Social Security recipients, and veterans and their families. Still, there are some folks who aren't on the IRS' EIP delivery list. These are, for the most part, people who haven't file a tax return because they're not legally required to…

For the second consecutive year, millions of individual taxpayers aren’t freaking out about their taxes as April 15 nears. That’s because for the second consecutive year, the annual Tax Day has been postponed. But still, some folks are crashing right about now to get their 2020 filings done. That’s because the Internal Revenue Service decision to move Tax Day 2021 from mid-April to May 17 applies only to individuals who must file income tax returns, aka the IRS’ 1040 forms series. And some of these still have an April 15 deadline if they must pay estimated taxes for the 2021 tax year. What’s…

It's likely to be déjà vu all over again for IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig, testifying here in March before a House tax panel, when he goes before the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, April 13. Not to get your tax deadline hopes up too much, but Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Chuck Rettig is testifying tomorrow, April 13, before the Senate Finance Committee (SFC). The The last time he talked to lawmakers, it was in March to Representatives on the Ways and Means (W&M) Oversight Subcommittee. It was then that Rettig put the kibosh on the possibility that the IRS would…

Sometimes it's worth the extra time and effort to file an amended tax return. In its regular email to tax professionals last week, the Internal Revenue Service remined them that their clients who filed 2020 returns before the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) excluded a portion of unemployment from tax don't need to file amended returns. The IRS says it will recalculate the tax liability of these filers, taking into account the tax they paid on $10,200 per person in unemployment benefits before ARPA's March 11 enactment date. If the early-filing taxpayers are due a refund, the IRS will automatically…

If it feels like you just filed required federal forms about your overseas financial holdings, you’re probably right. Last year, as we all were working to adjust to the myriad tax (and life) changes precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, lots of tax deadlines got pushed back. Some way back. One of those was the filing extension for Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, usually referred to as FBAR. Some individuals didn’t have to submit this document until Dec. 31, 2020. Now FBAR filers are facing a new deadline. Next week. On Thursday, April 15. That’s right. The…

UPDATE, Friday, April 9, 2021: Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-Pennsylvania) has introduced H.R. 2437, a bill that would postpone the due date for first-quarter 2021 estimated tax payments to May 17, 2021. Thanks to the San Diego CPA firm GPW for the tip via Twitter, along with the observation that if Smucker's bill does pass, it likely will be very close to the filing wire. The Internal Revenue Service has dashed hopes that it would true-up 2021's annual tax filing deadline and the year's first estimated tax payment. Many in the tax community had been hoping (and lobbying and complaining and…

May 17 is the deadline this year to file your 2020 tax return and pay any tax you owe. It’s also the last day that 1.3 million people can claim their portion of more than $1.3 billion in taxes they overpaid during 2017 but never collected as tax refunds. If you’re one of those non-filers, you need to file that 2017 return and claim your refund by May 17. Federal law says that if a taxpayer doesn’t file an old return within three years of its original due date — and that was April 15, 2018 for those 2017 tax…

While the Internal Revenue Service is working on recalculating taxes paid on unemployment benefits by early filers, other taxpayers are dealing with potential tax bills on money they didn't get. They are victims of unemployment insurance fraud. And their numbers increased last year as millions of people filed for the jobless assistance in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. To help people dealing with unemployment identity theft, the Department of Labor (DoL) has launched a new website. Alerted by mail: Many don't learn that unemployment benefits have been fraudulently collected in their names until they receive something in the mail.…

You lost your job last year and collected unemployment. You knew that the benefits are taxable income, so when you filed your 2020 tax return earlier this year, your calculations made sure that Uncle Sam got his piece of your unemployment money. Then along came the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), signed into law on March 11, and its provision excluding a portion of jobless benefits from tax. How do you get your overpaid unemployment taxes back? This week, the Internal Revenue Service followed up on its earlier announcement that filers shouldn't amend their 2020 returns because of the new…

You’re married. You got married on Dec. 31. You’re a parent. You take care of an aging parent. You’re a single dad. You’re divorced. You got divorced on Dec. 31.

Ah, college days. Studying, working between and after classes and now trying to avoid becoming a tax scam victim. (Photo by Tim Gouw via Unsplash) Many college students shoehorn jobs into their study schedules to help pay for their continuing educations. In addition to pocketing that cash throughout the year, many of these young workers also look forward at filing time to tax refunds from their jobs. So do crooks. The Internal Revenue Service today warned of an ongoing phishing scam in which the perpetrators are targeting education institutions, including students and staff with email addresses ending in the .edu…

Updated Wednesday, April 7, 2021 Just days after the Internal Revenue Service's March 17 announcement that it was moving the 2021 tax filing deadline from April 15 to May 17, most states that collect some type of personal income tax followed the federal tax agency's lead. The IRS decided that filers could use more time to file and pay their 2020 taxes since we're all still dealing to some degree with the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. That "we" includes the IRS, which faces a backlog of 2019 returns (and 2020 filings, too, since the tax season opened in…

As COVID-19 continues to control to at least some degree our lives, federal and state tax officials are offering tax benefits to those who take steps to control and lessen the effects of the persistent pandemic. Photo: Anna Tarazevich from Pexels If you still itemize deductions, the Internal Revenue Service today announced that you can count a few more purchases toward your Schedule A medical claims. Of course, the additions are because of COVID-19. Specifically, the IRS says in Announcement 2021-7 that the costs of personal protective equipment, aka PPE, purchased for the primary purpose of preventing the spread of…

Princess Bride impatience via Giphy.com You're due a tax refund. Plus, your 2020 tax situation means you can claim the rest of the COVID-19 related Recovery Rebate Credit that you didn't automatically get last year. So, of course, you filed on Feb. 12, as soon as the Internal Revenue Service started accepted returns. Now you're wondering, why the heck you haven't yet received your refund. Unusual overload: The bad news is that the IRS is still dealing with backlogs, primarily of mailed correspondence, created when it had to shut down its offices last year as part of coronavirus precautions. The IRS' mountain of…

IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig's testifying on March 18, 2021, before the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight.  Watch the full hearing at the Ways and Means' hearings YouTube channel.  When large swaths of the world shut down last year in response to COVID-19, it helped make the literal life-or-death medical situation less devastating (relatively speaking). But the coronavirus closures also created damaging economic fallout. Businesses shuttered their doors, some permanently. Associated companies took hits. Employees lost their jobs. In the United States, federal coronavirus relief legislation provided some help. However, it also produced unwelcome side effects. Surprise unemployment taxes:…

Some people got less COVID-19 relief money because the IRS took some to pay other debts. Every year, some taxpayers find the tax refunds the Internal Revenue Service sends them are less than they expected. The usual reason for the shortfall is that the federal refund amounts were offset by other debts, such as unpaid taxes, student loans or delinquent child support. That situation cropped up last year when the Recovery Rebate Credit was created as part of COVID-19 relief legislation. The rebates were paid in advance to millions of taxpayers. And in some, but not all, instances, economic impact…

The tax world is full of instances that are different from the real world. There are quarterly estimated tax payments that don't align with our standard calendar quarters. There are birthdays that are considered having been celebrated earlier when we get older. And now there are financial transactions that aren't financial transactions, at least when it comes to cryptocurrency. IRS has crypto questions: Cryptocurrency, often referred to generally as bitcoin (the Kleenex tissue of virtual money), has been a target of the Internal Revenue Service for years. Most recently, the agency has focused on getting taxes due on crypto transactions.…

This year's annual federal tax return filing deadline has been moved from April 15 to May 17. Yep, for the second consecutive year, our 1040 forms won't have to be in or on their way to Uncle Sam's tax collector until after the traditional deadline. And yes, COVID-19 is the reason, largely because of tax law changes and backlogs related to the pandemic. But many of those who had urged an automatic delay for Tax Day 2021 are not impressed by the IRS action. Sure, we now have a bit more time to file our personal returns, but little more.…

DonkeyHotey via Flickr Around 90 million COVID-19 economic impact payments have been distributed in less than a week since the bill authorizing them was enacted. Those payments total more than $242 billion, according to the Internal Revenue Service. In announcing the relief payment data today, the IRS also noted that more payments per the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) will be going out in the coming weeks. All funds available today: Most of this first batch of payments, dubbed EIP3 since they are the third such pandemic financial relief effort, were sent by direct deposit. While some of these deposits hit…

Updated on March 21, 2021, to reflect that the IRS plans to automatically calculate any tax refunds due unemployment recipients who already filed their 2020 returns and paid taxes on their full benefits amount before the $10,200 tax exclusion was included in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) enacted on March 11. Updated on March 23, 2021, to reflect revised IRS changes to filing instructions in connection with ARPA’s partial unemployment tax exclusion. The good news here is that the IRS now says those says jobless benefits you collected don’t count toward the $150,000 income threshold that determines eligibility for…

Image by Maxime Duprez via Twitter Happy National Pi Day 2021. Or as usurping marketers in the United States also call it Pie Day, even though there is a day designated for the food. Go ahead, get your bargain-priced sweet or savory pies today. But March 14 actually celebrates the mathematical constant pi, or π in the Greek alphabet. In case it's been a long time since math class, that's the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. The trillion-digit ratio is rounded to 3.14. You can find more about pi in one of my earlier March 14 blog…

U.S. Treasury check image courtesy frankieleon via Flickr Some people have already received the third economic impact payment (EIP), which is $1,400 per person, as authorized under the just enacted American Rescue Plan.  Of course, we're already hearing some grumbling. That's to be expected any time the Internal Revenue Service, which once again is tasked with distributing the relief money, is involved. But at least initially the IRS seems to have the system down after having done this two previous times. So now we wait. Hopefully we don't have to wait too long. And while we wait, today's Saturday Shout…

Last March, parents were frantically searching for day camps to enroll their kiddos once school let out for the summer. Then COVID-19 arrived. Most camps shut down or dramatically pared back operations and parents added teacher and summer activity director to their already long list of de facto titles. We're still not sure whether or how many summer day camps will resume this year, but things are looking better thanks to expanding coronavirus vaccinations across the country. That means that parents might be able to once again take advantage of the child and dependent care credit in connection with certain…

The American Rescue Plan is now on its way to President Joe Biden. As soon as Biden signs it, millions of taxpayers can look forward to the third COVID-19 economic relief payment. And taxpayers who’ve already filed their 2020 returns and paid tax on unemployment benefits they received last year also can get ready to file amended returns. That’s because during its consideration of the bill last week, the Senate included a provision that made the first $10,200 in unemployment benefits tax-free. UPDATE, Thursday, March 11, 2021: Biden signed the bill into law early in the afternoon today. He originally…

The Internal Revenue Service is still working its way through millions of pieces of correspondence delivered last year, so the last thing it needs is more. But it's getting it. Federal lawmakers and organizations representing members of the tax community have mailed letters over the last week to the U.S. Treasury and IRS urging the delay this year of April's usual Tax Day. April 15 is still THE day: Tax returns so far are still due on April 15, the traditional filing deadline. And the IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig is holding to that date. For now. During a March 3…

Millions of taxpayers have already followed this calendar note’s insistent instruction. Reading tax statistics can be a lot like checking out COVID-19 vaccination options. You can’t just look at one number. You have to take into account the circumstances that produced the percentage that caught your attention. That’s the deal with the 2021 filing season figures. Percentages skewed by season lengths: As of Feb. 26, the latest complete information collected by the Internal Revenue Service, almost 45.3 million 2020 tax returns have been filed. That’s a 23.7 percent drop from the amount of submitted returns through the end of February…

Being the boss can be fulfilling, exciting and, if profitable, mean more tax responsibilities, like paying self-employment taxes. (Photo by Zen Chung via Pexels.com) …There are a lot more self-employed taxpayers this filing season, thanks to (you guessed it) the COVID-19 pandemic. People whose hours were reduced at their full-time jobs made up (or tried to) the lost income with side gigs. Others whose salaried positions were eliminated embraced their entrepreneurial spirit and became their own bosses. Now they are filing their tax returns for the first time with self-employment income. That, of course, means encountering another form, Schedule SE.…

March 1 has arrived. Or, as some coronavirus pandemic weary wits have dubbed it, March 2.0 or March 366. Yes, we've been dealing with COVID-19 for a year now. And yes, the virus and its myriad disruptions continue. But the development of multiple vaccines and prospects for expanded distribution of the shots give us reason to hope that the coronavirus after-times are within sight. Another COVID-19 relief package, dubbed the American Rescue Plan, also is closer to reality. The House passed the measure over the weekend, and the Biden Administration is pushing the Senate to hammer out its differences with…

In addition to looking for another job, folks who got unemployment benefits also have to deal with paying taxes on the payments and, in some cases, other complications. Unemployment benefits can be a lifesaver. That's been especially true during the year+ that we've been dealing with COVID-19 complications. Employers had to reduce services or close completely. In addition to the business costs, the establishments' workers were suddenly facing steep pay cuts or no pay at all. Congress has boosted state unemployment insurance (UI) benefits through much of the coronavirus pandemic. The latest federal UI add-on is set to expire in…

A VITA volunteer helps a taxpayer prepare and e-filer her tax return for free. (IRS video screenshot) Tax software works fine for millions of taxpayers. Another sizeable chunk of filers opt for more personal service from a tax professional. Then there are people for whom software just doesn't cut it. They need or want more help and assurance that their taxes will be filed correctly. But they can't afford a tax preparer. Say hello to Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE). Trained volunteer tax filing help: VITA programs across the United States offer free…

Winter can be beautiful. And harsh. Major winter storms also could cause property damage. If it’s a declared major disaster, you might be able to claim your losses on your tax return. Here’s how.

IRS Washington, D.C., headquarters (Photo by Davide Boeke via Flickr CC) Taxpayers are not the only ones ticked off because they got failure to file notices from the Internal Revenue Service. “Enough is enough,” two leaders of the House Ways and Means Committee has told IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig in a recent letter. W&M Chairman Rep. Richard Neal (D-Massachusetts) and Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. (D-New Jersey), chair of the tax-writing panel’s Subcommittee on Oversight, took the agency to task not only for the 260,000 incorrect non-filing notices it recently sent, but also for a series of other missteps. “[W]e are…

What's worse than getting an Internal Revenue Service notice? Getting a wrong IRS notice. That just happened to potentially more than a quarter million taxpayers. The IRS last week acknowledged that it sent approximately 260,000 taxpayers notices that they had failed to file return for the 2019 tax year. Some, perhaps many, of those mailings, officially known as CP59 notices, likely are incorrect. The reason is the same one we've all seen or used ourselves for the last 13 months: COVID-19. Pandemic processing delays: "Due to pandemic related shutdowns, the IRS has not completed processing all 2019 returns at this…

In addition to working on federal tax returns for the 2020 tax year, taxpayers in most of the United States also must file state taxes. I used to do that when we lived in Maryland. But I’ve also spent most of my combined taxpaying life in Florida and my native and current home in Texas, two states without personal income taxes. Still, I remember the hassle, both of filing and paying from my days in the Old Line State. And I feel for all y’all dealing with dual — or more, thanks to changed 2020 work situations due to COVID-19…

The tax filing season clock is ticking, but will the alarm go off on April 15 as usual? That's the IRS plan for now, but some in Congress and the tax community would like Uncle Sam to extend the 2021 Tax Day deadline like happened last year. The Internal Revenue Service is insistent that despite a later than normal opening of the 2021 tax filing season, it will end as usual on April 15. Some lawmakers and members of the tax community, however, think this filing season needs to follow the 2020 example and be extended beyond the usual mid-April…

Just can’t bring yourself to do your taxes? Don’t worry. There’s no rush (yet). And there are some good reasons to wait a bit before finishing your Form 1040. The 2021 tax filing season is finally underway. The Internal Revenue Service started processing returns on Friday, Feb. 12. A lot of the 1040 forms actually had been submitted electronically weeks earlier, and were just waiting for Uncle Sam to accept them. This is not unusual. Millions of taxpayers file as early as possible, with good reason, every year. But there’s something to said for those of us who wait. Here…

Much of Texas got record snowfall on Feb. 14-15, with around 6 inches covering our backyard. Thank goodness for some much welcome sunshine today, but it's still below freezing, meaning our heater is working overtime! (Photo by Kay Bell) We have sunshine here in Central Texas! Still, the high temperature today in the greater Austin area is not expected to break the freezing mark. That means my home's heater is still in overdrive. And that means my next bill is going to be ginormous. The only consolation, is that I can count part of that heating bill as a home…

Tax Season 2021 is finally here! The Internal Revenue Service has started accepting tax returns and, more importantly, is now processing the filings as of today, Friday, Feb. 12. Millions have already filed. Most of them used tax software, either on their own or through the Free File program, which the IRS and its tax prep partners opened up a month ago. Those 1040 forms have been on hold. Now they've been transmitted to the IRS. Others, however, still have some work to do. We're waiting for some tax statements to straggle in, either to our snail mail or email…

Today's unemployment numbers offered a hopeful sign for the U.S. economy struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic. The news, however, is not so good for many who in 2020 got these out-of-work benefits. Many recipients of the emergency financial assistance are surprised to learn that unemployment benefits are taxable. Others are even more surprised at the amounts on their Form 1099-G. This is the document sent to taxpayers and copied to the Internal Revenue Service. While social media messages and comments on the ol' blog are purely anecdotal, it seems that quite a few folks think their 2020 unemployment benefits have…

I've always done my taxes. When the hubby and I married, I continued this annual task, now filing our joint return. The only change is that every tax season the hubby periodically peers over my shoulder as I work on our return and chants, "Deduct! Deduct! Deduct!" Although taxes aren't his thing, he's right. Deductions can help lower taxes. And for most of our marriage, we've found it better to itemize deductions on Schedule A. But even then, we've been able to use now and then what are known as above-the-line deductions. Back when these write-offs got that name, they…

Happy Monday to Patriots' — I mean Buccaneers' — fans. Your man Tom Brady did it again. Instead of the usual sports league drug tests, can we get a DNA sample to prove that the man is human? It's an even happier Monday for all y'all who collected on Super Bowl LV bets, both the ones on the on-field match-up and all the goofy prop bets for things only peripherally related to the National Football League championship game. The Internal Revenue Service is happy for you, too, as long as you report those winning wagers on your tax return. All…

We've always asked a lot of our teachers. We've been asking more during the COVID-19 pandemic. But at least they are getting a bit of tax help this filing season thanks to a tweak to the educators' tax break. Now teachers and other qualifying school personnel can count some coronavirus out-of-pocket expenses when they claim the $250 deduction on their returns. That added spending option was included last December's Consolidated Authorization Act, 2021 that combined government funding, COVID-19 relief and some expiring tax provisions. You might remember it as the bill that provided a second $600 economic impact payment. This…

I'm willing to bet that line 30 will be one of the most scrutinized lines on the 2020 tax year Form 1040. That's where taxpayers can claim the new Recovery Rebate Credit, or RRC. The RRC is the official name of the money issued in 2020 and earlier this year as COVID-19 economic impact payments, or EIPs. The payments actually were advance payments on this tax credit. If you didn't get any or all of either EIP last year, you can claim it this filing season on the aforementioned and likely popular line 30. Depending on your actual income amount…

The official start of the 2021 tax filing season is less than two weeks away, but millions of taxpayers are still waiting on the resolution of the returns they filed last year. As of Christmas Day 2020, the Internal Revenue Service had 6.9 million individual tax returns in the processing pipeline, according to the latest update on the IRS' special web page where it's been tracking operations in this time of coronavirus. That's a lot of 1040s, but the IRS says in its Jan. 29 online entry that it has made "significant progress" in processing returns and is "now opening…

This might be a first. The Internal Revenue Service essentially is going to be every taxpayers’ valentine this year. No, it’s not because we love paying our taxes or the agency that collects them so much. It’s because the IRS officially starts accepting and processing our 2020 tax returns on the Friday before St. Valentine’s Weekend. That means many of us will be consumed by the Internal Revenue Code as we work to complete our 1040 forms and get them to the IRS ASAP. For many, the target date is the Feb. 12 official opening of this tax season. So…

Yes, I know very few filers use paper tax forms now. But even if you rely on tax software or a tax preparer, it’s still worth a look at what’s on Form 1040. There are some changes to the form and its three schedules for 2020 filings. (Photo by MoneyBlogNewz via Flickr CC) The 2020 Form 1040 makes it official. The never-really-a-postcard individual tax return is dead. This filing season, set to officially begin on Feb. 12, taxpayers and preparers will see a Form 1040 that looks very much like the two-page version that we tax veterans used to call…

The Internal Revenue Service has delivered two rounds of COVID-19 economic impact payments (EIPs). The first was the $1,200 per person approved in late March 2020 under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The second EIP for $600 per person was authorized at the end of last December as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), with payments distributed through the first two weeks of January 2021. By now, folks know that if they didn’t get the full amounts, which included additional payments for eligible dependents, they need to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit (RRC). You’ll do…

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is the federal government’s largest refundable federal income tax credit for low- to moderate-income workers. In 2020, more than 25 million taxpayers received over $62 billion in EITC. The average EITC amount received last year was $2,461 per return. The EITC also is regularly overlooked. The Internal Revenue Service estimates that one of five eligible taxpayers do not claim the credit. That oversight could change this filing season. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed millions of American workers into lower income brackets last year as their work was reduced. That could make them eligible for this…

A GameStop store in an Alaska mall, circa 2013. (Photo by Bentley Mall via Wikipedia Commons) GameStop is a struggling brick-and-mortar enterprise that sells video games, gaming merchandise and consumer electronics through its, for now, more than 5,000 retail stores across the United States. The Grapevine, Texas-based company has been the focus recently of stock market moves that have intertwined day traders, stock buying apps, novice and naïve investors, Wall Street hedge funds and lots of rich guys with social media accounts who can afford to fan the overheated investing flames. I’m a Boglehead buy-and-hold type of investor, so I’ll…

Pixabay via Pexels Members of the military have a lot of things to worry about. New enlistees are concerned whether they'll make it through basic training. Military personnel who are stationed far from their families worry about how spouses and children are faring. And, of course, those posted in dangerous parts of the world are in constant concern for their own safety. But every tax filing season, members of the military also must worry about taxes. Taxes for all, but some military breaks: Yes, with all the other responsibilities we place on the men and women who serve the United…

Photo by Kay Bell The 2021 filing season won’t start until Feb. 12 this year. That’s frustrating for the millions of taxpayers who traditionally are early return filers. It’s more frustrating for those taxpayers who, because of COVID-19 complications (which also created this year’s filing delay), are really counting on their tax refunds to cover expenses. This year’s later than usual filing start means it is even more important to get those 1040 forms into the Internal Revenue Service as soon as the agency will take them. If you’re still debating about when to file your taxes, here are seven…

President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 recovery proposal, dubbed the American Rescue Plan, includes among other things a third economic impact payment (EIP). This next payment is $1,400 for individuals earning less than $75,000 or $150,000 for a married couple filing a joint return. That would bring the $600 second EIP to the much-touted $2,000 total. And as with the other two payments, the Internal Revenue Service again will be in charge of getting the money out to eligible recipients. I know. Some of y’all are freaking out. You had issues getting your first EIP authorized by the Coronavirus Aid,…

If you want more security for your tax return, the Internal Revenue Service has a deal for you. Every taxpayer now can apply for an Identity Protection Personal Identity Number, or IP PIN. An IP PIN lets the IRS verify that it is indeed you who has filed your tax return. Once you have the six-digit code, the agency won't accept an electronically filed return in your name without it. If a paper return shows up without the IP PIN, it will get added IRS scrutiny. "This is a way to, in essence, lock your tax account, and the IP…

We got our first tax statement yesterday. It’s our mortgage lender’s Form 1098 with details on potentially tax-deductible amounts like loan interest and property taxes. This is just one of the documents that millions of taxpayers are awaiting so they can file their returns. In addition to tax-related home transactions, the various documents that are or soon will be on their way include documents detailing income, be it from wages, contract work or retirement accounts; investments; winnings and/or gambling proceeds; and in some cases, health care information. A handful of these documents must be submitted with Form 1040. Most, however,…