Apr

Happy Tax Day!

By Emily

Good news for all the tax-burdened people out there today – you can file an extension for your taxes (you can even file electronically) and extend your filing deadline by up to 6 months!

Download your extension form directly from the IRS.

Word on the street is that filers who use the extension reduce their chances of getting audited by 90% – Bonus!

The only down-side to using the extension is that you STILL have to have paid your taxes in full. In other words, if you have taxes due, you must PAY THOSE TAXES by April 15 or suffer the consequences of late fees and interest payments.

Click here to read more from the IRS about who can file this form and when.

If you DON’T owe taxes (and are due a refund from the IRS, then this isn’t a problem. You just won’t get your refund until you file (and of course… the IRS will not pay you any interest for the free use of your money during that time!)

This year, you may also be entitled to a bonus due to the economic stimulus package. I think my husband and I have $1,200 waiting for us in refunds that we’ll hopefully be collecting soon!

CPA is Vindicated!

I recently wrote a rant about slow bookkeeping services from my CPA’s office. I am pleased to report that the firm has been vindicated!

In response to my inquiries about my bill they gave me a one-day turnaround response (during the height of tax season no less) with the following results:

Reduced the amount I had been charged from $500 to $400, due to some system set up that they had been working on that took longer than it should.
Told me everything should now be ready to move forward with all of my bookkeeping done in 5 hours or less every month (and they imposed a $250/month ceiling on my bookkeeping bill)
Let me know that (although I had already told them to file an extension for me) they had reviewed my tax file and it didn’t look like I owed Uncle Sam anything extra this year – Always good news.
Told me that my return was near the top of the list to be processed, so they would probably finish it in the next month or two and we’d be getting our refund (if any) soon – fingers crossed!
Asked about my pregnancy and re-established rapport – always the way to a mother’s heart!

So, they are back on my good side and hopefully we are on track for a great year of bookkeeping in 2008! I’ll keep you posted.

For now – stop procrastinating and finish up those taxes and/or file an extension and rest easy!