TAMPA, Fla. — Most people have until 11:59 p.m. on April 15 to file their 2023 tax return with the IRS.
“We know a lot of people procrastinate. You may find that it’s actually going to be less time for you to file your taxes than it is to procrastinate any longer,” said Mark Jaeger, VP of Tax Operations for TaxAct.
At this point, it’s probably too late to find a tax expert to file on your behalf, so you’ll likely have to use one of the do-it-yourself programs.
“There are step-by-step questions that say, in layman’s terms, ‘Hey, tell me about yourself and your name, your address. Hey, let’s collect this information from box 1 of your W2.' It’s pretty straightforward questions,” said Jaeger.
“Where it always gets harder is if you're not an employee of a company, if you have a gig business or you have a side business. You know then there’s a little bit more tracking you have to do in advance of filing taxes, like keep track of receipts and expenses,” he added.
When filing, it’s important to make sure you have all of your documents ready to go.
“So, really, it’s just about understanding your life situation. Even if you’re not sure if it’s tax-deductible, at least pull it together, and then you’ll have it when you walk through the software,” said Jaeger.
If you can’t file by Monday’s deadline, submit form 4868 to get an automatic six-month extension to file.
Keep in mind, though, that this is not an extension to pay any outstanding balances—those are still due April 15 to avoid penalty.
“If you do have a balance due or expect to owe money to the IRS, it is important to file an extension and actually make a payment with that extension in order to avoid any underpayment penalty later on,” said Jaeger.
If you’re rushing to get your taxes filed in time, be on the lookout for scammers.
According to McAfee, a cybersecurity company, scammers are on the prowl for people who are frantically trying to file and may not be paying attention.
“Tax season, it’s big money for the government. It’s also big money for scammers,” said Steve Grobman, Chief Technology Officer for McAfee.
“It’s everything from posting links on the web with fake offers for tax preparation, which actually are stealing your information or possibly downloading malware, to using advanced technology like AI to give you a call impersonating an IRS agent,” he added.
That’s why experts are encouraging people to take extra steps to protect their personal information.
“Think about the device that you’re doing your tax preparations software on. Is it the same device that your teenage kid has been surfing the internet and downloading all sorts of things?” said Grobman.
Some experts predict tax scams could increase this year as scammers have more access to newer technologies.
“It’s really the first year that some of the latest artificial intelligence tools are available to the cybercriminals and bad actors. And they can use these tools to make the tax scams much more lethal,” said Grobman.
If you have questions while filing, or aren’t sure if something is legitimate, call the IRS directly, even if there’s a long wait.
“When you’re communicating with someone online through a digital medium, it may sound authentic. If it comes in an email, it may be well-written and look like legitimate government communication. Having that healthy skepticism is really important,” said Grobman.
