IRS Opens January 19 for filing 2015 personal tax returns

The IRS has announced that the tax extenders legislation will not slow the start of tax season.  The IRS will be open for business on January 19, as planned.  On this day personal tax returns, 1040 forms, can be electronically filed.  All 1040s will begin to be processed at that time so sending in a paper return before that date will not speed up the process.  Paper returns will be held until January 19 and processed at that time.

Tax season will end on Monday, April 18, 2016, because Washington, D.C. will celebrate Emancipation Day and when D.C. closes and the IRS takes a break, it slows down the end of tax season.

The IRS urges tax payers to make certain all tax filing forms have been received before filing a tax return, this included W-2s, 1099s and the new form 1095-A from the Marketplace for tax payers who plan to take the premium tax credit.  I will be writing a separate post on these forms which are new.

E-file and direct deposit are still the quickest and safest ways to file returns and claim refunds.  You can do this yourself, sometimes for free if certain qualifications are met, or for a small fee.  You can also use the services of a tax professional if you prefer.  If you have any questions, please post a question and I'll do my best to supply an answer.

When can you file certain forms?

The IRS can only act a quickly as Congress.  Since Congress worked literally until the 12th hour making changes to the tax structure, the IRS is still working on updating forms and instructions.  If you want to know which forms will be ready and at which dates, click on the link to the right on this blog page that says IRS General Information Home Page.  That link will take you directly to the IRS.  Then click on the orange/red section that says Forms and Pubs.  At the top of the next page is a link to all the forms still under programming.  Most will be ready by the first of March and most people don't use them.  So it's very possible you can file right now, if you haven't already done so.

As always, if there is something specific you want to know, leave a comment and let me know.