How to Check the Status of Your Tax Refund Online – Tax Deduction
How to Check the Status of Your Tax Refund Online
Richard A. Chapo
So, you were pleasantly surprised to learn that you are getting a refund on your taxes. Congratulations! The IRS expects to issue approximately $54 billion dollars in refunds for the 2003 tax year. The question for most taxpayers expecting a return is, "Where is my refund"
Check Your Refund Status Online
The easiest way to check on your refund is to ask the IRS through IRS.gov. On the home page of the site, you will see a "Wheres My Refund" link. Using the service is fairly easy. You will need a copy of your tax return to provide the necessary information to get the status of your refund. Specifically, you need to provide your social security number, you tax filing status and the exact amount of your refund. The reason the IRS requires all of this information is purely for security purposes, to wit, the agency wants to make sure it is giving access only to the taxpayer. Again, all of this information should be on your return. If it is not, something is very wrong!
Once you submit the required information, the IRS will provide online results typically showing:
1. That the return was received and is in processing;
2. The expected mailing date or direct deposit date of your refund; or
3. Whether your refund could not be issued because of a delivery problem.
In some cases, the results may alert you to the fact that the IRS is reviewing your tax return because of errors or questionable entries. In such a case, it is highly advised that you review your return with a qualified tax professional and make absolutely sure that the return will stand up to scrutiny.
How Long Do You Have To Wait Before Checking
If you filed your tax return electronically, you should be able to access the status of your refund within 48 to 72 hours. Since the return is coming into the database electronically, it should be assimilated into the system fairly quickly. If you do not file your return electronically, you are going to have to wait three weeks or more before the status of your return can be checked. As you can imagine, the IRS is receiving an enormous amount of paper tax returns and it takes time to organize and enter the returns into the system.
How Long Should It Take To Receive Your Tax Refund
If you are expecting a refund, the time to issue the refund will depend upon how you filed your return. If you filed a paper return via regular mail, you refund should be issued in six to eight weeks from the date it was received by the IRS. Alternatively, if you filed your return electronically, you should expect to receive your refund in three to four weeks. If you elected to have your refund directly deposited in your banking account, you should take one week off of the above estimates.
About The Author
Richard Chapo is President of BusinessTaxRecovery.com. Visit BusinessTaxRecovery.com to subscribe to a free newsletter offering monthly tax deduction tips for small businesses or contact Richard at Richard@businesstaxrecovery.com.
Uncle Sam is Ready…Are You Organizing Tips for Tax Time – Mortgage
Uncle Sam is Ready...Are You Organizing Tips for Tax Time
Stacey Agin Murray
Anyone who is closely related to an accountant knows that there are not four, but five seasons in a year: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and Tax Season. During the other seasons, we accumulate leaves, snow, and mosquito bites. During Tax Season we accumulate paper. And more paper. And if you have a small business or investments--even more paper.
Whether you hire someone to prepare your taxes or attempt to decipher the forms yourself, it is imperative that your papers be in order for this fifth season. Organizing your tax-related documents is not just a project for the evening of April 13th. Good tax organization is a year-round process.
Some pitfalls of being disorganized at tax time:
You run the risk of misplacing important receipts/documents
You feel stressed from the mad dash to the tax preparer/post office on April 14th
Your tax preparer may charge you more money if they have to spend time wading through your piles of loose receipts.
How to remedy these tax-time situations Prepare now for next year by getting organized!
Set up an all-year round file system
Designate a box, accordion file, or a file cabinet for year-round paper storage and retrieval. Create folders for receipts, credit card and bank statements, anything you have spent money on or need to keep track of for tax purposes. As you acquire such documents, place them in the appropriately labeled folder. This is beneficial not only for tax time but for when you have to retrieve certain papers throughout the year.
Give your tax-related papers a home
Every January, our mailboxes become flooded with documents necessary for filing your taxes. At the beginning of the year, designate a large envelope or box in one area of your home or a file in your file cabinet for these papers. Examples of these are:
W2s
1099s
Mortgage interest statements
Bank interest statements
Real estate tax statements
Investment statements
Receipts for charitable donations
Sort and create categories for your papers/receipts
By early February you should have received all paperwork necessary to complete your taxes. Take that envelope/box/file of collected papers and sort them by category. This process will enable you or your tax preparer to quickly locate your papers and receipts. Some basic categories are:
Salary
Real Estate
Medical
Childcare
Investments
Save your tax preparer aggravation by throwing away the envelopes that your statements came in and tear off the perforated edges from your income statements. Group the documents into the categories you
Small Business Tax Deductions for Year End 2004 – Mortgage
Small Business Tax Deductions for Year End 2004
Daniel Lamaute
As a small business owner, its wise to familiarize yourself with some key deductions that may reduce your tax bill for 2004.
Employee Benefit Plans - You may deduct contributions to employee benefit plans such as health insurance plans and retirement plans. Depending on your circumstances the maximum contribution that you may deduct per employee in a qualified retirement plan can go up to:
$100,000 or more With a Defined Benefit Plan
$ 44,000 With a 401k plan
$ 41,000 With a SEP-IRA or Keogh
Automobile Expenses- You can elect to deduct the actual expenses incurred including gas, oil, tires, repairs, insurance, depreciation, and rent or lease payments for the business-related portion of your car or truck expenses, or simply take the 2004 standard mileage rate of 37.5 cents per business mile.
Social Security Taxes - You may deduct Social Security and Medicaid taxes paid to match required withholdings on employee wages, federal unemployment taxes, as well as real estate or personal property taxes paid on business assets.
Home Office - Depending on whether you use your home or other real estate for business purposes, you may deduct some or all of any mortgage interest paid, as well as some or all of the maintenance and repair expenses associated with the property. The cost of utilities and business supplies associated with business use are also deductible.
Depreciation - Depreciation may be taken on passenger cars, equipment used for entertainment or recreational purposes i.e., photographic equipment, cell phones and computers, as long as these items are used solely for the business.
Bonus Depreciation - The bonus depreciation deduction of up to 50 percent of the cost of new business equipment in the year of purchase applies only to property placed in service on or before December 31, 2004. You may want to consider making any significant equipment purchases before year-end to take advantage of this expiring provision.
Professional Fees - You may deduct professional fees, such as those paid to a lawyer or accountant.
Meals and Entertainment - You may deduct 50 percent of meal and entertainment expenses associated with the conduct of your business.
State and Local General Sales Tax - Beginning in 2004, you will have the option of electing to take an itemized deduction for state and local general sales taxes in lieu of the itemized deduction provided for state and local income taxes.
Charitable Donations of Vehicles