Preparing your income tax return doesn’t have to stress you out. There are several things you can do to ease the pain when it’s time to file your tax return. The IRS offers taxpayers several tips to help you complete the task of preparing your income tax return.

1. Don’t wait until the last minute
   Don’t wait until the last day to file taxes. Rushing to file by the tax due date may cost you money. It increases the risk of making errors and it may cause you to overlook potential tax savings. If you don’t know how to do your taxes, seek out tax return help from various sources that are available. You can seek tax help from your accountant, tax preparer, tax attorney, tax software or even a knowledgeable friend. You can even visit the IRS website for tax help and to get answers to your tax questions.
2. Use Free File
   Qualifying taxpayers can take advantage of the income tax services provided by the IRS. Free File allows you the ability to file your income tax using online tax software for free. Everyone can find an option to prepare their tax return and e-file it for free. If you made $57,000 or less, you qualify for free tax software. If you made more than $57,000 and know how to prepare your tax return, there’s Free File Fillable Forms, the electronic versions of IRS paper forms.
3. Try IRS e-file.
   IRS e-file is quickly becoming the preferred means for filing income tax returns. For the 2010 tax year almost 80 million people used e-file to file their income tax return. If you owe taxes, you can file immediately and pay later (by the April 17 tax due date). E-file offers you the option of receiving your tax refund via direct deposit. It’s the quicker and fastest way to get your tax refund, sometimes in as little at 10 days.
4. Don’t panic if you can’t pay.
   If you can’t pay the full amount of taxes you owe by the mid-April deadline, you should still file your return by the deadline and pay as much as you can to avoid penalties and interest. A majority of taxpayers eligible for an Installment Agreement can apply using the web-based Online Payment Agreement application available at the IRS website. www.irs.gov. To find out more about this simple and convenient process, type “Online Payment Agreement” in the search box at www.irs.gov.
5. Request an extension of time to file – but pay on time.
   If you’re not finished preparing your tax return by the tax due date, you can get an automatic six-month extension through Oct. 15. In order to get a tax extension it must be filed or postmarked by the April 17 deadline. But remember, a tax extension does not give you more time to pay any taxes due. If you have not paid at least 90 percent of the total tax due by the April deadline you may also be subject to an estimated tax penalty. You can obtain an extension through Free File at www.irs.gov/freefile or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676) to have a paper form mailed to you. Allow at least 10 days for mailed forms and publications.

Take advantage of these tips to reduce your tax season stress and remember the IRS is always available to provide tax help, answer your tax questions and guide you in your quest for free tax software.

The IRS has a new online tax tool to help low and middle income taxpayers find local sites to get free tax help. The free tax help is made available by individuals in the IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) programs.

The tool, available 24 hours a day, makes it easier for qualified individuals to find free tax help directly from the Internal Revenue Service. Taxpayers with incomes of $50,000 or less can get their taxes done for free by IRS volunteers. Senior citizens aged 60 and older can get free tax help from volunteers in the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) program.

Taxpayers can access the application by clicking on this free tax help tool link or by going to irs.gov and entering the letters “VITA” in the search box. Next, click on the “Free Tax Return Preparation For You by Volunteers” option, then select the “Find a VITA site near you” option.

Once there, an easy-to-use locator prompts users to enter a zip code to search thousands of free tax preparation sites, narrowing the results to a selected radius. VITA sites are listed by location name, address, phone number, days and hours of operation, and the language-assistance options offered. Finally, taxpayers select a specific tax preparation site to get a map to provide step-by-step directions.

More than three million tax returns were prepared by VITA and TCE volunteers in during the 2011 tax season.

The IRS is continually improving its website to provide the latest tax information to taxpayers.

source:irs.gov

The IRS announced today an expanded version of its smartphone application. The improved IRS2Go 2.0 App is designed to provide taxpayers easier access to practical income tax tools and free tax help.

The new IRS income tax app is available both Apple and Android platforms. The 2.0 version has been expanded to include a new YouTube feature, news feed and tax transcript service to go along with it’s existing income tax tools.

“The new smartphone app provides an easy way for people to get helpful information about their taxes,” said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. “IRS2Go reflects a wider commitment at the IRS to find innovative ways to serve taxpayers in a rapidly changing world.”

The IRS released the first version of IRS2Go in 2011, and had more than 350,000 downloads. The phone app offers taxpayers a number of safe and secure ways to access information and keep current on practical tax information. The 2.0 version of the phone app includes three new tools:

The free IRS2Go app will continue giving taxpayers access to the free tax help and tax tools offered last year:

• Get Your Refund Status. Taxpayers can check the status of their federal tax refund through the phone app with a few basic pieces of information. An updated refund status is available about three days after the IRS acknowledges receipt of an e-filed return, or four weeks after mailing a paper return.
• Get Tax Updates. Phone app users enter their e-mail address to automatically receive simple, straightforward tips and reminders to help with tax planning and preparation. Tax Tips are issued daily during the filing season and periodically throughout the rest of the year.

Apple users can update or download the free IRS2Go application by visiting the Apple App Store. Android users can visit the Android Marketplace to download the free IRS2Go app.

For more information about the second version of the IRS Smartphone, IRS2Go 2.0, and other products and services through social media channels, visit www.IRS.gov.

source: irs.gov