Do you have questions about the economic stimulus payments?  Did you miss the Oct 15 deadline to file?  Can you still file anyway? Here are the top five questions currently being asked about the stimulus payments.

Address Change
1. I have moved since filing my 2007 tax return. How will my payment reach me?

A. Filing Form 8822, Change of Address, with the IRS and a change of address notice with the U.S. Postal Service will help ensure that any mail from the IRS, including your stimulus payment check, is sent to your new address. If the check has already been mailed and you did not provide the IRS with an updated address, the check will most likely be returned to the IRS. You may call the IRS at 1-866-234-2942 to provide your new address so that steps can be taken to have the check reissued.

Payment Timing
2) When will I get my stimulus payment?

A. It will generally take 8-12 weeks after you file your return to get your stimulus payment.

The IRS has already issued stimulus payments, both direct deposits and paper checks, for most returns filed by April 15. The IRS will continue to issue payments through 2008 for returns filed after April 15. Please allow 8-12 weeks after filing your tax return before checking on the status of your stimulus payment. To check on the status of your stimulus payment, you may visit Where’s My Stimulus Payment?or call the toll-free Rebate Hotline at 1-866-234-2942.

3) It has been more than eight weeks since I filed my return and my payment has not arrived. Can the IRS trace my payment to find out what happened to it?

A. Yes. If it has been more than eight weeks since you filed your return and your payment has not arrived, please visit an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center or call the toll-free Rebate Hotline at 1-866-234-2942. A list of all Taxpayer Assistance Centers in your state is available at Contact My Local Office.

4) I heard that the IRS has finished sending the stimulus payments. Is it too late to for me to claim mine?

A. If you missed the Oct. 15 deadline for filing an income tax return for a economic stimulus payment, don’t worry. You can receive a payment in 2009 by filing an income tax return when the filing season opens in January. The IRS will have more information shortly.

5) I filed after April 15 and the payment date for my Social Security number has passed. How long will it take for me to get my stimulus payment?

A. It will generally take 8-12 weeks after you file your return to get your stimulus payment.

truetaxfacts.com will continue to provide updates on important information regarding the IRS and the economic stimulus payments. 

source: irs.gov

The bad economic times are not only effecting U.S. citizens, it  is effecting IRS interest rates. Starting on January 1, 2009 the IRS will drop interest rates for underpayments and overpayments by one full point.

The new rates will be:
Five (5) percent for overpayments [four (4) percent in the case of a corporation];
Five (5) percent for underpayments;
Seven (7) percent for large corporate underpayments; and
Two and one-half (2.5) percent for the portion of a corporate overpayment exceeding $10,000.

The Internal Revenue Code interest rate is recalculated quarterly.  That rate is calculated using the federal short-term rate plus 3 percentage points for overpayments and underpayments for everyone except corporations.

For corporations the underpayment rate is the federal short-term rate plus 3 percentage points and the overpayment rate is the federal short-term rate plus 2 percentage points. 

The rate for large corporate underpayments is the federal short-term rate plus 5 percentage points.  The rate on the portion of a corporate overpayment of tax exceeding $10,000 for a taxable period is the federal short-term rate plus one-half (0.5) of a percentage point.

The 2009 IRS interest rates are calculated from the federal short-term rate during October 2008 to take effect Nov. 1, 2008, based on daily compounding.

Revenue Ruling 2008-54, announcing the new rates of interest, is attached and will appear in Internal Revenue Bulletin No. 2008-52, dated Dec. 29, 2008.

The impact of this measure means less the IRS will recoup less money as it means less for the American citizen.

For more info log onto www.irs.gov

For 2008, the IRS has changed the personal exemptions and standard deductions to account for inflation adjustments. They include more than three dozen tax benefits that will affect virtually every taxpayer. Whether you file your own taxes or hire a tax professional, it is important to understand the key changes when filing your 2008 tax return in early 2009.

Here are the key changes to the 2008 tax changes as defined by the IRS:

1. The value of each personal and dependency exemption, available to most taxpayers, is $3,500, up $100 from 2007.
2. The new standard deduction is $10,900 for married couples filing a joint return (up $200), $5,450 for singles and married individuals filing separately (up $100) and $8,000 for heads of household (up $150). Nearly two out of three taxpayers take the standard deduction, rather than itemizing deductions, such as mortgage interest, charitable contributions and state and local taxes.
3. Tax-bracket thresholds increase for each filing status. For a married couple filing a joint return, for example, the taxable-income threshold separating the 15-percent bracket from the 25-percent bracket is $65,100, up from $63,700 in 2007.
4. The maximum earned income tax credit for low and moderate income workers and working families with two or more children is $4,824, up from $4,716. The income limit for the credit for joint return filers with two or more children is $41,646, up from $39,783.
    
   The maximum Hope credit, available for the first two years of post-secondary education, is $1,800, up from $1,650 in 2007.
5. The income limit for the savers credit is $53,000 for joint filers (up $1,000), $39,750 for heads of household (up $750) and $26,500 for singles and married persons filing separately (up$500).  Low-and moderate income workers who contribute to a retirement plan, such as an IRA or 401(k), may qualify for the credit, which is available in addition to any other tax savings that apply.
6. The contribution amount allowed for Roth IRAs begins to phase out for joint filers with incomes exceeding $159,000 (up from $156,000) and $101,000 (up from $99,000) for singles and heads of household.
7. For contributions to a traditional IRA, the deduction phase-out range for an individual covered by a retirement plan at work begins at income of $85,000 for joint filers (up from $83,000) and $53,000 for a single person or head of household (up from $52,000).
8. Participants in most employer-sponsored 401(k) plans and 403(b) plans for employees of public schools and certain tax-exempt organizations can contribute up to $15,500, unchanged from 2007.  Individuals, age 50 or over, can make an additional contribution of up to $5,000, also unchanged from 2007.
9. Individuals participating in SIMPLE retirement plans can contribute $10,500, unchanged from 2007.  Those, age 50 or over, can make an additional contribution of up to $2,500, also unchanged from 2007.
10. The annual contribution limit for most defined contribution plans rises to $46,000, up from $45,000 in 2007.

In these economic times it is a smart idea to take advantage of all tax incentives that you possibly can.