Filing my taxes...

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 10:19 pm

Not sure where I should have put this thread, since there doesn't seem to be a "taxes" section...FG will move it if they see the need, yes??

OK...Finally got my W-2's and jumped on line to file like I did last year. Took me about 15 minutes last year, and I was really looking forward to an easy road again. Yeah. Right.

I can't find the site I went to last year, everyone seems to want to charge a fee, (I didn't pay one last year), all I have to claim is my rent, (boosts my return about $200) a very simple procedure, right? HA! I went through this whole process on a site, it took me about 45 minutes to answer all the damn questions, and at the END it told me I'd have to install some freakin' program just to file the return! I had NONE of these problems last year!! I'm ripping my friggin' hair out here!!! Anyone have any suggestions? Or possibly a Valium??? :yh_angry :-5

Der Wulf · Post by **Der Wulf** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 10:32 pm

Few years ago my wife got tired of my "March funk", and insisted I hire a pro, I'm usually pretty easy going, but taxes infuriate me. Hired an ex IRS agent, who later also became my financial adviser. Peace and tranquility now exist except for the actual signing.

:-5

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 11:07 pm

i do my taxes, my kid's taxes, and my friends' taxes, this year is the first that i have no dependants to claim, so i think i am going to end up in the federal pen. of course we have a "kinder, gentler IRS" so maybe you won't get audited and hung, drawn and quartered. i actually went to war with the IRS once and i WON! flushed with victory, i now face hard time.

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Wed Feb 02, 2005 11:15 pm

I spent last Saturday doing my TAXES.. I use TURBO TAX... It is awesome.. Have been using it forever.. It quick, easy.. and bingo your done. You can file online and have your refund sent directly to your bank..!!

You can also file online at TURBO TAX.. !! If you don't have any forms, or deductions the online EZFORM is easy.. There is also a site called TAXACT

I'M OH SO HAPPY I HAVE IT DONE AND OVER WITH..!! :-6

minks · Post by **minks** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:39 am

you went to gov of canada tax site and had that much trouble. That bites, if you still need advice PM me and I will ask my dad he is a good tax guy and is free. hehehehe. I still have to do my 2002 tax's they don't care, if I am late, they owe me money ahahahaha

A Karenina · Post by **A Karenina** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:45 am

There are several good online (and free) companies to do your taxes for you. Try the efile link at http://www.irs.gov

Just remember that if you call the IRS for help, write down the employee number of the person you talk to. Include it on your return. The IRS is not liable for any bad information an employee might tell you (!!) but they are usually pretty good about it so long as you can prove you did try to get good information.

Bill Sikes · Post by **Bill Sikes** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:58 am

You should worry. In the UK, many people never ever have to fill out a tax form, but the ones that do can fill it out on-line... this leads to a surge in last-minute attempts to do so, and the system has been known to collapse, or be inaccessible. It doesn't help that a late return automatically engenders a Ã‚£100 fine.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jh ... ntax01.xml

A Karenina · Post by **A Karenina** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 9:05 am

Late penalties in the US are double the amount you owe plus roughly 18% interest. If they owe you money, they can charge enough interest to wipe out their debt, and of course it expires in 3 years anyway.

Bill Sikes · Post by **Bill Sikes** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 9:14 am

A Karenina wrote: Late penalties in the US are double the amount you owe plus roughly 18% interest. If they owe you money, they can charge enough interest to wipe out their debt, and of course it expires in 3 years anyway.

Good God. Does everyone have to make a tax return? If they owe *you* money, how can they charge interest on it? What expires in 3 years?? This sounds like robbery!

Erinna1112 · Post by **Erinna1112** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 9:33 am

Bill Sikes wrote: Good God. Does everyone have to make a tax return? If they owe *you* money, how can they charge interest on it? What expires in 3 years?? This sounds like robbery!
There is an income level below which one does not have to file a return, but it is very low.

The way they charge interest is if you are late filing, you are assessed a penalty. They charge interest on the penalty.

The refund expires in three years....if you are due money from more than three years ago, too bad so sad. You don't get it. Of course, if you owe THEM money, there isn't any statute of limitations. They can come after you for that FOREVER.

And for those who think that filing an extension makes it ok to not pay...nope. You still have to pay an estimated amount if you owe by April 15. The extension that you file for is simply for the return. The money has to be there on time, no matter what.

What's that you say? That doesn't make sense? Ah. Well. Your first mistake was expecting that it would.

A Karenina · Post by **A Karenina** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 9:38 am

Bill, LOL...it IS robbery! Darn them all.

Anyone who earns income over a specific amount must file a tax return. I *think* the amount is under $10,000 but I'm not sure.

They get to charge you even if they owe you money because the deadline is April 15. If you want an extension to file, then you must file a request form to gain an extension. If you owe money and can't pay it right then, you can still send in your return and make payment arrangements with the IRS. They still have the option to charge you interest and late penalties on your unpaid amount due.

Tax years close after 3 years. If you owe them money, they can still pursue you. If they owe you money, and you haven't claimed it within the 3 year period, then you lose out.

It just doesn't pay to mess around with your taxes - and that's the way they want it.

A personal story - I'll try to be quick in the telling. I've always filed my own taxes. The only exception to that was the year I went through my divorce because I didn't trust my exH. So, I paid a firm to electronically file for me.

The Dept of Revenue for the state contacted me a few years later saying they had never received that return. So, I mailed them a copy of my filing, along with the receipt showing it was electronically filed. Months later, I get another letter demanding $800 for not filing my taxes. I mail them another copy. Months later, another call, some letters, and I send them my copy once again. Wash, rinse, repeat.

One day I got a letter from my employer saying my wages had been garnished for my unpaid taxes. Argh! So I call and complain and I keep calling every hour for two days. LOL. Turns out they had all of the copies of my return, but they were boxed...see, each person who mailed me a letter was later laid off (severe cutbacks). Their files were then boxed, and due to serious understaffing, no one had time to go through them all. The person who finally garnished my wages sat 150 feet away from the person who had all 6 copies of my return.

My incessant phone calls finally made the garnish-demon go visit the other employee. They found my returns, and they released the garnishment. They were nice about it and apologized a lot. But, they owed me $70 from that year. They said they wouldn't pay it because it was so old. No problem - I should've tracked it during that tax year myself (though I had more pressing concerns, like surviving, LOL).

Now here's the kicker...I got a 1099 form saying that I had to declare the $70 income that I never received! OMG!! It just wasn't worth fighting them for 9% of $70. Case closed.

Bill Sikes · Post by **Bill Sikes** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 9:52 am

A Karenina wrote: Bill, LOL...it IS robbery! Darn them all.

Sounds more like robbery with violence....

When you're employed by a company, and paid, isn't tax deducted at source? I don't know why you have to send in a return, if so (unless you've got other income, realise a capital gain, etc).

shakes head

Erinna1112 · Post by **Erinna1112** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 10:32 am

Bill Sikes wrote: Sounds more like robbery with violence....

When you're employed by a company, and paid, isn't tax deducted at source? I don't know why you have to send in a return, if so (unless you've got other income, realise a capital gain, etc).

shakes head
Because no one ever gets the tax amount exactly correct. Most people over-pay.

Then there's deductions, exemptions, business losses, gambling wins, undeclared tips, other income, state and city taxes.....The taxes deducted from your paycheck are never exactly right.

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 11:50 am

In the UK all employess "pay as you earn" Tax and National Insurance are deducted by the employer and you receive pay net of tax most people never need to fill in a tax return unless they are higher rate tax payers claiming additional relief on pensions or something. Self employed file a return each year. Depends what you are used to I suppose.

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/nw/index/ ... system.htm

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 2:51 pm

That's IT. I am about a millisecond away from throwing my computer through a wall and burning my W-2's. I have begun filling out my return on 4 sites now. Each time there's SOMETHING that isn't right, or missing, and I can't get anywhere!!! :yh_angry

The latest form is asking for info from box #12 on my W-2 and box #12 is BLANK!!! I can't proceed without the information and am soon going to open the door for the men in white coats with the big butterfly net because I am OUT OF MY MIND!!!! :-5

A Karenina · Post by **A Karenina** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:04 pm

BabyR, the websites won't take "0" for Box 12?

Jives · Post by **Jives** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:09 pm

Down with the IRS! You won't believe this, but I contacted the IRS today and they say that they can't find my returns for 1999-2001. I'm looking at the copies of them I made right now. Stupid idiots. That explains why I didn't get a refund those years.

Thank God I prepay my lawyers. Sic 'em dudes!

A Karenina · Post by **A Karenina** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:11 pm

Erinna1112 wrote: Then there's deductions, exemptions, business losses, gambling wins, undeclared tips, other income, state and city taxes.....The taxes deducted from your paycheck are never exactly right.
Exactly! And they can't be right, because payroll taxes are only taken from earned wages. There are all kinds of income, and all kinds of deductions (interest paid, college tuition, work expenses, etc).

We now have a 1.25% county tax. This applies to all income. Employees were having fits that we weren't deducting it from their wages. Took a long time to convince some people that wages are not the only type of income, and consequently employers were not liable to withhold the county tax.

We do get to take a deduction for the county tax for the year it was actually paid. Small comfort that is!

A Karenina · Post by **A Karenina** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:12 pm

Jives wrote: Down with the IRS! You won't believe this, but I contacted the IRS today and they say that they can't find my returns for 1999-2001. I'm looking at the copies of them I made right now. Stupid idiots. That explains why I didn't get a refund those years.

Thank God I prepay my lawyers. Sic 'em dudes!
Go get 'em, tiger!

(in a small voice) You did read my story above, right?

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:46 pm

A Karenina wrote: BabyR, the websites won't take "0" for Box 12?Nope. It's a conspiracy, I know it is...Someone in the IRS draws a name from a hat every year and they turn that person into a blithering idiot, while they sit back, picturing the ensuing nervous breakdown, giggling to themselves. Hell, it's the IRS, they're masochistic, sadistic, evil drones. Instead of putting my computer through a wall, maybe I'll just use my head instead. Either I'll knock myself out and won't worry about it, or it'll jog something loose up there and I'll come up with a solution. :-5

A Karenina · Post by **A Karenina** » Thu Feb 03, 2005 8:47 pm

BabyRider wrote: Nope. It's a conspiracy, I know it is...Someone in the IRS draws a name from a hat every year and they turn that person into a blithering idiot, while they sit back, picturing the ensuing nervous breakdown, giggling to themselves. Hell, it's the IRS, they're masochistic, sadistic, evil drones. Instead of putting my computer through a wall, maybe I'll just use my head instead. Either I'll knock myself out and won't worry about it, or it'll jog something loose up there and I'll come up with a solution. :-5
Try putting in 0.01 - pesky things.

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Fri Feb 03, 2006 6:55 pm

BabyRider wrote: Not sure where I should have put this thread, since there doesn't seem to be a "taxes" section...FG will move it if they see the need, yes??

OK...Finally got my W-2's and jumped on line to file like I did last year. Took me about 15 minutes last year, and I was really looking forward to an easy road again. Yeah. Right.

I can't find the site I went to last year, everyone seems to want to charge a fee, (I didn't pay one last year), all I have to claim is my rent, (boosts my return about $200) a very simple procedure, right? HA! I went through this whole process on a site, it took me about 45 minutes to answer all the damn questions, and at the END it told me I'd have to install some freakin' program just to file the return! I had NONE of these problems last year!! I'm ripping my friggin' hair out here!!! Anyone have any suggestions? Or possibly a Valium??? :yh_angry :-5

Here we are again.

Gotta pay this time.

$1500.00 :-1

Got a Valium ?

Sheryl · Post by **Sheryl** » Fri Feb 03, 2006 7:33 pm

Nomad wrote: Here we are again.

Gotta pay this time.

$1500.00 :-1

Got a Valium ?

We always have to pay.....last year it was $12000. Don't even want to know what they are gonna make us pay this year.

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Fri Feb 03, 2006 7:35 pm

blood sucking bastards

we should secede

why did we leave England again ?

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 2:35 am

Nomad wrote: Here we are again.

Yep, here we are again. Only this time, I've got Bullet doing the taxes and we're getting a big fat return. Anybody got a deposit slip??? :yh_bigsmi

SOJOURNER · Post by **SOJOURNER** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 8:36 pm

BabyRider wrote: Yep, here we are again. Only this time, I've got Bullet doing the taxes and we're getting a big fat return. Anybody got a deposit slip??? :yh_bigsmi

If Bullet is getting you a return where you thought you had none, perhaps he should look over your previous two years and refile to claim any money refund you may have missed.......

Okie · Post by **Okie** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 9:54 pm

Jives wrote: Down with the IRS! You won't believe this, but I contacted the IRS today and they say that they can't find my returns for 1999-2001. I'm looking at the copies of them I made right now. Stupid idiots. That explains why I didn't get a refund those years.

Thank God I prepay my lawyers. Sic 'em dudes!

I had a cousin who made so much he had to pay $1 1/2 M each year. He said he never tried to beat them yet he was audited every second year. Now his son on the other hand likes to jack with them.

Did you every hear of Raven Arms? That was him. 25 cal pistols.

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 10:10 pm

I have to file in August through October.............................