The IRS will officially begin accepting 2012 individual tax returns on January 30th this year. The major reason for the delay stems from the tax laws changes made by Congress under the American Taxpayer Relief Act (ATRA).
The first wave of individuals that will be able to file electronically will be filers that that are affected by the late Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) patch. The IRS is also accepting filers claiming the state and local sales deduction, higher education tuition fees deduction and educator expenses deduction on January 30th. Thanks to the ATRA, the deductions were extended permanently.
The second wave of individuals that will be able to file electronically include tax filers that have Residential Energy Credits, depreciation of assets, amortization of intangibles or qualify for a General Business Credit. The IRS has not completed the full list of items that will be accepted at the later date. The second acceptance date has not been announced yet. The anticipated date will occur in late February into early March.
Taxpayers do have the option of filing their tax returns on paper prior to January 30th. The IRS does not recommend filing on paper before that date. The IRS will not process paper returns prior to the 30th. There is no advantage to paper filing returns and if you are expecting a refund you will receive that refund much faster by filing electronically and using direct deposit. Your best bet is to wait until the IRS can electronically accept your return and use direct deposit to gain access to your refund as quickly as possible. If you would like more detail on the upcoming tax deadlines, please contact your trusted tax professional.
There is nothing more complex than the world of taxes. We know this and yet we chose careers where we face these issues everyday. We get questions day in and day out about new tax laws, forms and news items and how they affect everyday people and businesses. Well, here at Henry & Horne, LLP we have set out to do what we do best; help everyday people understand what is going on in the world of state, local, federal, estate and international taxation. We will provide these weekly posts and we encourage you to give us feedback on those posts as well as letting us know what else you would like to know more about. Welcome to "Tax Insights." We hope you find this blog informative and worthy of your time.
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