Procrastinated with your taxes? You’re not alone: According to its latest filing statistics, the IRS has received just over 90 million of the 146 million individual tax returns it expects to receive before the deadline.
Regardless of your excuse, it’s probably time to get a move on, as the 2024 tax filing season has officially come to an end. Luckily for you, Money has plenty of well-researched tax stories with tips that will make your taxation fast, easy and affordable.
Here are 11 common questions (and answers) about this year’s tax filing season:
How should I file my taxes?
There are plenty of ways to file your 2023 tax return, but we recommend starting with free services.
If your adjusted gross income, or AGI, for 2023 is less than $79,000, you are eligible for free guided tax preparation through the IRS Free File program. This year, IRS Free File has eight brand partners, including TaxAct and 1040.com. Some of these companies place additional restrictions on who can use them, so check your eligibility before getting started.
This year also saw the IRS test Direct File, its free tax tool. During the pilot phase, some taxpayers in 12 states may qualify to file their federal taxes for free. In its current phase, IRS Direct File is aimed at people with simple tax situations, such as those with a W-2 salary under $200,000.
Depending on how complicated your taxes are, you may also be able to file for free through third parties like Cash App or H&R Block.
Keep in mind that these are largely federal tax resources: If you live (and/or work) in one of the 41 states that tax wages, you’re probably also subject to state taxes.
When are taxes due in 2024?
Most taxpayers must file their federal income tax return by Monday (i.e., April 15). People in Maine and Massachusetts have until Wednesday (April 17) because of Patriot’s Day and Emancipation Day. The return is expected, or sent in digital format or postmarked, by midnight local time.
Note, however, that these are federal deadlines. The due date for your state tax return may be different. This year, state individual income tax deadlines are until May 15 (in Louisiana).
How can I file for a tax extension?
If you believe or know that you will not be able to pay your taxes on time, consider requesting an extension from the IRS. To do this online, you can use IRS Free File regardless of your income level, make a payment on your tax bill, or get help from a tax preparation service to fill out Form 4868. This automatic extension will give you an extra six months, making the Your 2023 taxes are due on October 15th.
Remember that what you will get from a tax extension is additional time file your return, do not pay any tax bill due.
How much are federal taxes?
It depends on your individual financial situation and filing status. But one thing to note is that the IRS adjusts tax brackets each year to incorporate inflation. For 2023, the lowest tax rate, which affects single filers with income up to $11,000, is 10%. The highest tax rate, which hits individual taxpayers with incomes above $578,125, is 37%.
Your standard deduction, or the portion of your income you can shelter from taxes, rose to $13,850 for 2023.
Why do I have to pay taxes this year?
If you’re surprised to find out that you have to pay taxes this year, it may be because your life has changed. Maybe your income has increased, you’ve moved into a higher tax bracket, your child turned 18, or you forgot to update your withholding.
You may also still be shaking off your post-pandemic hangover: COVID-19 arrived with a slew of special programs, tax policies, and credits (like stimulus checks) that lined taxpayers’ pockets. But most of them have expired.
Remember: You can reduce your taxable income through April 15 by making a contribution to a traditional individual retirement account, or IRA.
What happened with the expanded child tax credit for 2024?
Not so much. Although the House of Representatives passed a bill in January that included an expanded child tax credit, and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., repeatedly told reporters he hoped it would become law by start of tax season, this did not happen. to happen. The IRS encouraged people to file their taxes anyway, promising to apply the credit retroactively if approved.
Congress recently returned from a break, and the Senate is now reportedly back to work crafting legislation such as the tax bill. But for now there are no updates on an expanded CTC proposal for 2024.
What happens if you don’t file your taxes?
Not everyone has to file a tax return; for example, single people under age 65 who earn no more than $12,950 in gross income are exempt. But most American adults do — and they will face consequences if they choose to evade the IRS.
If you don’t file your taxes, you could lose your tax refund, have your wages garnished, face IRS penalties, or end up in legal trouble. You probably won’t go to prison, though (unless you’re evading taxes, which is a whole other story).
Where is my tax refund?
So far in 2024, about 60 million taxpayers have received refunds. And according to the IRS, the average refund size is slightly larger than last year: As of March 29, the typical tax refund was $3,050.
The IRS strives to send most tax refunds within 21 days of receiving your return, although amended returns, paper forms and documents with errors tend to take longer. As always, the fastest way to get your tax return is to file it electronically and select direct deposit as your payment method.
If you’ve already filed your tax return and are anxiously awaiting updates on your refund, you can use Where’s My Refund? to follow him. This IRS tool will ask you for your Social Security number or individual taxpayer identification number, your filing status, and your refund amount before telling you how far along your refund is. Where is my refund? it updates once a day, usually overnight, so you don’t need to check it more often.
How should I spend my tax refund?
However you want. In a February survey by the National Retail Federation, 48% of respondents who got refunds last year and were expecting them this year said they planned to put the money into savings. Another 34% said they would use the money to pay off debt and 30% said they would put it towards daily expenses. Others were considering spending their tax refunds on vacations, shopping sprees, home improvements and major purchases.
If you’re interested in investing your tax refund for short-term gain, you may want to look into a certificate of deposit (CD) or a Treasury bill, both of which offer higher-than-usual returns due to the economic environment. Those looking for medium- to long-term payouts might consider a brokerage account or Roth IRA.
Will I be audited?
Statistically, probably not. In tax year 2022, the IRS audited only 3.8 out of 1,000 returns, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. This is down from 2021, when it examined 4.1 declarations out of 1,000 submitted. By the way: Most audits these days happen via mail.
How can I contact the IRS?
The IRS website is the best place to start if you have a tax question. The IRS phone line also now has voice chatbots that can help you with common tax questions.
But if you need to get in touch with a human at the IRS, try calling 1-800-829-1040 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. local time. The IRS has put much of its Inflation Reduction Act funding into improving customer service, so you shouldn’t be left on hold too long: Phone wait times have decreased from 27 minutes to about 3 minutes in recent years. (The closer we get to Tax Day, the longer the wait times will be, so plan your call carefully.)
Make sure you are ready to verify your identity by providing your Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, date of birth, filing status, prior year tax return information, current year tax return information and any IRS correspondence you have received recently.
You can also locate and visit a Taxpayer Assistance Center in your area.
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