Tax advisor

The Final Countdown

April 3, 2014 - Tax advisor

The final countdown to April 15th begins… Remember the story of Cinderella? This beautiful young lady wore glass slippers and rode to the ball in a horse drawn carriage. She met her Prince Charming, but what happened when the clock struck midnight? What will happen to you when the clock strikes midnight on April 15th? Were you one who filed your return early? Did you already have your refund directly deposited into your bank account?  Are you scrambling to find your paperwork? Are you rushing to beat that tax clock? Did you know that haste really does make waste. Careless mistakes can cost you money. Will you be filing an extension? Did you know that an extension does NOT give you more time to pay? If you are going to owe tax on your return, file on time if you can. Pay later if you must. An extension is a request for more time to file the paperwork. It is automatically granted,  but only if you request the extension. I will be requesting extensions for several of my clients along with filing an extension for myself. Some of my clients plan every year to file an extension. Then our new deadline to file our returns moves from April 15th to October 15th. Most states accept the federal extension, so you may need to tile a second extension for your state. If you will owe money, file on time and pay some of the money you owe on the taxes if you can. The Internal Revenue Service will send you a bill for what you owe and that bill will include interest on the taxes not paid by April 15th. The IRS is required by law to charge, or assess, interest. When you get your bill, pay as much as you can. If you didn’t pay in full, you will get another bill. The IRS will ask you if you want to set up a payment plan. There is an application, or processing, fee to set up this payment arrangement. You will have to supply financial information. You will be dealing with the IRS Collection Division. The IRS Collector is called a Revenue Officer. If you owe money and file for an extension, that extension will be considered not valid. It will be just like not requesting that extra time to file your papers. If you find out when you finish your return that you actually owe money (instead of expecting a refund) file that return as quickly as possible. You may incur a penalty for paying late, but you can minimize the penalty for filing the paperwork late. My IRS experience is in the audit arena, not in IRS Collection. I have colleagues who are former IRS Collection Officers and know exactly how to help you. If that is where you find yourself, I am happy to connect you with someone who can help you. Just let me know how I can help you.