5 ms·

> It would be great to have a free, IRS-provided alternative to the various for-profit softwares out there. See, you've fallen for the trap too. The IRS alread

by mike_d 4y ago

> It would be great to have a free, IRS-provided alternative to the various for-profit softwares out there. See, you've fallen for the trap too. The IRS already prepares your return for you based on all the information they have, they just won't show it to you. Instead you have to use third party software to prepare basically the exact same document and then you can risk fines or jail if yours is different. Just send us a tax bill in the mail.

dguest 4y ago
Have you heard of people paying fines for getting their taxes slightly wrong? I know people who spend 5 minutes filling out the form with rough adjusted guesses based on the previous year, send it in, and thus trigger the IRS sending the corrected version. They will charge you extra [edit: I meant "the amount you owe"] if you underestimate, but this is hardly a fine.
- mike_d 4y ago
  "Charge you extra" is in fact the definition of a fine. :) If you are off by more than 10% or $5000 you have to pay 120% of the under payment plus interest from your filing date. If you overpay you just get a letter and a check with no interest.
  - dguest 4y ago
    Yeah that was badly phrased. I meant the amount you owe, but you answered my question. I guess it's worth doing the math to figure out when your guesstimate becomes more expensive than a tax prep service.
deleted 4y ago
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ryandrake 4y ago
This is a myth that the IRS already knows what everyone owes. They usually have most of your income information because it gets reported by employers and banks. They have information on some deductible expenses but not all. They often don’t have the cost basis for capital gains, so unless you want a huge tax bill, it behooves you to provide it. I didn’t fill out 15 pages of information they already have. Yes, for 90% of the population who have one W2 and take the standard deduction, the IRS could just mail you the bill. But that was the point of my comment: don’t leave the rest of us in Intuit’s clutches!

by mike_d 4y ago

dguest 4y ago

Have you heard of people paying fines for getting their taxes slightly wrong? I know people who spend 5 minutes filling out the form with rough adjusted guesses based on the previous year, send it in, and thus trigger the IRS sending the corrected version. They will charge you extra [edit: I meant "the amount you owe"] if you underestimate, but this is hardly a fine.

mike_d 4y ago
"Charge you extra" is in fact the definition of a fine. :) If you are off by more than 10% or $5000 you have to pay 120% of the under payment plus interest from your filing date. If you overpay you just get a letter and a check with no interest.
- dguest 4y ago
  Yeah that was badly phrased. I meant the amount you owe, but you answered my question. I guess it's worth doing the math to figure out when your guesstimate becomes more expensive than a tax prep service.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

ryandrake 4y ago

This is a myth that the IRS already knows what everyone owes. They usually have most of your income information because it gets reported by employers and banks. They have information on some deductible expenses but not all. They often don’t have the cost basis for capital gains, so unless you want a huge tax bill, it behooves you to provide it. I didn’t fill out 15 pages of information they already have. Yes, for 90% of the population who have one W2 and take the standard deduction, the IRS could just mail you the bill. But that was the point of my comment: don’t leave the rest of us in Intuit’s clutches!