Reply With QuoteŠñøü†ê® (03-26-2012)
Tax Return—in the mail
IT IS A MIRACLE!!! I dropped our tax return in the mail last night. 1st time we have not extended in 15 years.
We usually extend until the last second, not because we do not have the info, but because…well, lots of reasons
1) I do others’ for a living, blah, blah, blah, so I hate to do ours.
2) I hate TurboTax—I do ours here at home rather than at the office using the commercial software.
3) I need to read a book.
4) I can't find the book (see above) I need to read.
You get the picture or you don't.
The Sixteenth Amendment is Satanic.
Šñøü†ê® (03-26-2012)
I mailed ours in on Sat, Feb 4. I under-withhold each year so that I can include a check with the return. Our check cleared on Weds, Feb 8, confirming for me that our return was received and accepted.
Why pay for certified mail when it doesn't really document that you mailed in your return on time?
You're crazy for not using turbo tax... that system is awesome. They plopped all my W-2 numbers in automatically (a little creepy and big brother, what whatever). All the new tax writeoffs are already on the system. I used to pay for an accountant then realized I was paying $200 for nothing because I make too much to write off anything. They are giving me back $500 of my money this year, rather than me sending them another $1000 so life is good.
IMO, if your financial affairs are so complicated that you need professional help preparing a tax return, your life is too complicated.
Simplify. Simplify.
You can bet if you owe THEY WILL GET IT. Quick, fast and in a hurry the checks we send them clear. (What a shock.) Regular mail works just fine for that.Originally Posted by Chachma v'Oz
We've mailed some when we had a refund coming certified, and a couple of years the refund was substantial. I don't trust the mail system and I don't trust the IRS so on those years we did (I did) send them certified.
Don't know if anyone else recalls but 20 years ago or some IRS employees, being concerned about lunch, shredded over 100,000 individual tax returns-or it may have been a lot more than that.
And since I represent clients before them, I know they lie because IRS employees have lied to my face, hoping to "run something by me" that they had no right, under the scope of the audit, to request (they didn't get it and it made them furious, which made it hard for me not to laugh). Gospel.
One lady I was certain was going to go into cardiac arrest when I told her, Yes, I have what you refer to in my briefcase. No. I will not be giving that to you today. That's beyond the scope of this audit. I'd be violating my professional ethics to hand it over to you without your/your boss/bosses requesting it in writing so I could contact my client. Put it in writing and I can mail it to you or meet with you again.
She actually said, We'll see about that as she stormed off to her boss. When she returned, she said, Don't think I'll need that afterall. No way did I "crow" (I didn't say a word) but I wanted to burst out laughing.
Since 1982 I have represented dozens upon dozens before the IRS, and I can count on 3 fingers the good agents.
Šñøü†ê® (03-26-2012)
In a pinch, all certified mail shows is that you mailed something to the IRS on such-and-such date. It could have been anything. Their time stamp on the other end shows only that their mail room received that something. If it was gum wrappers, they would throw it away.
If they claim they never received your return, apparently you didn't mail your return. Try arguing against that.
That's why I include a check with ours. If they cash the check, they're unlikely to claim they didn't received the corresponding return. Even if they do claim that, the check fulfills our tax liability so there's no penalty for a late or missing return.
We file over 1,000 tax returns at the firm. Some small. Some not. I have one client that I billed $7,500 last year, and I plan to charge him more this year since I'll have over 100 hours of my time in it before it is completed (he is involved in 40-45 partnerships, many real estate deals of his own, and whatever else he can cipher that makes him money-whatever he touches turns to gold, whatever I touch turns to crap, this seems unfair). TurboTax would be a nightmare doing his return; it would not be efficient. We have others like that and TT would drive me to suicide.
So...long ago, we started using a commercial that cost $5,000, worth every dime of it, too, and that will process several returns at one time; and corrections are efficiently made (TurboTax is not made to process the # of returns we do, and that 1,000 is merely individual returns, excluding corp, partnership, estate tax returns, etc.). I do not take our personal info to the office.
I use TurboTax here at home and have done so since the early-90s. Maybe there is a better product for this house, yet I'm used to TT, can negotiate it, and can learn the subtle changes every year. I find no reason to change for our stuff. But it is so so so slow slow slow and cumbersome compared to what we have at work. We just do so many at work that looking at Tracie and my crap is sickening, even though it isn't complex (or, it isn't to me).
An IRS employee told me a couple of years ago they did not accept certified/registered mail.In a pinch, all certified mail shows is that you mailed something to the IRS on such-and-such date. It could have been anything. Their time stamp on the other end shows only that their mail room received that something. If it was gum wrappers, they would throw it away.
If they claim they never received your return, apparently you didn't mail your return. Try arguing against that.
That's why I include a check with ours. If they cash the check, they're unlikely to claim they didn't received the corresponding return. Even if they do claim that, the check fulfills our tax liability so there's no penalty for a late or missing return.
I didn't point out that someone with a stamp with Dept of the Treasurey-IRS stamped and sent back my part. I figured the argument wasn't worth it. I keep it when they (don't) accept it.
And regardless of where they instruct us to mail them, the following works, refund or bucks due:
I. R. S.
Austin, TX 73301
Never failed me since 1982. Maybe it will this year, but I doubt it.
The IRS doesn't sign for certified or registered mail. They do accept and timestamp it. That isn't what you're paying for when you mail with those services, so it's a waste of money.
I imagine we have several addresses to mail to simply so that everyone won't mail their returns to a single address. I don't see why it would matter which one you picked.
I also do Turbo Tax and have for about 10 years. Never had a problem until this year. It wasn't Turbo Tax fault it was the stupid IRS who keep refusing the Tax Code of one of my 1099's when I tried to file electronically. After trying for it seemed like a hundred times I finally said screw you and mail the return in. Got my electronic check deposit back first of this month. So all is well but no thanks to the IRS moron who keep rejecting it in the first place.
_____________________________________________
I WILL NOT INSULT YOUR INTELLIGENCE BUT YOUR LACK OF INTELLECT IS FAIR GAME
Remember the axiom of big government bureaucrats: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. When, finally, under the crushing weight of taxes and regulation, it stops moving, subsidize it. Going Postal
KZ, do those 1,000 returns or so have all to be filed by the middle of April?
that must be stressful (i don't get stressed at work over these things. that's in other people duties). Here, the filing date for self-assessed individuals (employees who do not have rental or dividend income) have a filing date of 31st October to file manually (although there is a phased programmed to eliminate manual filing) or 17th November for e-filing.
Company's is 21st September (no longer accept manual returns for companies)
e. e. cummings is my hero.
No. I extend as many as possible, but for those with even a 25-cent refund (or, so it seems), God forbid it not be e-filed by three weeks ago and "Why haven't I received my quarter refund yet?" (aka, good folks in need of patience).
The wealthy clients I have had rather extend; or, they don't care if I extend them, at least generally speaking.
My 2 partners generally grind it and do all they can by the 15th, but like is too short to work 75 hour weeks, especially when one (me) can spread the work load over many months.
So, why not e-file?IT IS A MIRACLE!!! I dropped our tax return in the mail last night. 1st time we have not extended in 15 years.
We usually extend until the last second, not because we do not have the info, but because…well, lots of reasons
1) I do others’ for a living, blah, blah, blah, so I hate to do ours.
2) I hate TurboTax—I do ours here at home rather than at the office using the commercial software.
3) I need to read a book.
4) I can't find the book (see above) I need to read.
You get the picture or you don't.
The Sixteenth Amendment is Satanic.
Congrats mine was filed in February. Hmmm, you know, I don't remember seeing it come back in the mail. I Think Hubby's holding out on me?IT IS A MIRACLE!!! I dropped our tax return in the mail last night. 1st time we have not extended in 15 years.
We usually extend until the last second, not because we do not have the info, but because…well, lots of reasons
1) I do others’ for a living, blah, blah, blah, so I hate to do ours.
2) I hate TurboTax—I do ours here at home rather than at the office using the commercial software.
3) I need to read a book.
4) I can't find the book (see above) I need to read.
You get the picture or you don't.
The Sixteenth Amendment is Satanic.
WTF!!!!QUEENIE NEEDS A NEW PAIR OF SHOES!!!!!!!!
We had a small refund. Got it and deposited it.
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