If you’re reading this, chances are you’re running a bit late with your tax return this year. No worries, and no need to panic! Agemy Financial Strategies' Fiduciary advisors are here to help you sort everything out just in time to make Monday's deadline.
Tax Day is Monday, April 18th, 2022. If you’re unsure about which items you need for a last-minute tax appointment, you’ve stumbled across the right post, we’ll provide you with an up to date tax checklist that will make your appointment run smoothly.
Most taxpayers will be required to file their federal income tax return by April 18. However, there are some exceptions to this deadline and it’s certainly not the only date to mark on your financial calendar this year. Individuals who are self-employed, who file an extension or who are at an age when minimum distributions are required, for example, need to be aware of other important tax deadlines.
Here are the 2022 tax day tips you need to know.
Request a transcript from the IRS
Individuals can actually request a transcript from the IRS of your account history from all of 2021. It includes everything you need regarding wage and income information throughout the year. So if you misplaced any important documents such as a W-2 or a 1099 form, this is where you can rely on to find that information. For this all you need is your social security number, and you can view this information immediately online or have it mailed to you.
Re-visit your return from last year
Unless you’ve had a drastic life change over the last year such as marriage, divorce or children, most likely your tax return from the year prior will be an excellent place to start. Whether you’re employed through a company or if you’re self-employed, or even if you went through a bout of unemployment, having last year’s return handy may help to recall certain memories of deductions you typically make, any missing income, and/or expenses related to job searching and looking for new clients. This also will save you the hassle of recalculating the square footage of your home office cubicle.
Look for any stray documents and receipts
Let’s be honest with ourselves here, if you’re just now starting your tax return, that probably means you aren’t the person who also has their paperwork filed away neatly or scanned into a document safekeeping app on your iPad. Time to drag out the box of receipts, and look through any miscellaneous income statements and payments that may need to be included in your tax return. This also includes downloading your bank and credit card statements and do a scan of emails for any non-profits you may have donated to over the past year.
Calculate in any random pay days
Did you win big in Vegas this year, receive a big bonus, or stocks took off in 2021? If you can recall it, the IRS already knows about it as well. How you file these types of incomes will completely vary depending on how you came up with the money. Contact us at Agemy Financial Strategies if you have questions on how this should be filed.
Verify. Verify. Verify again.
If there’s anything that should be double and triple checked, that would be your tax return. As they say, the devil is in the details. Returns can be flagged for even the smallest of mistakes, perhaps a stray zero or a missing income figure.
An important note that is commonly missed: If you owe a penalty of some sort and you provide your routing number for direct withdrawal, or you list that the account is savings rather than a checking account, the IRS won’t be able to process your payment. That means even if your bank account is entered correctly, you'll receive a penalty for a failure to pay.
Don’t forget to send it in!
Make sure to mail or e-file this year by Monday, April 18th, 2022. This seems pretty obvious and straightforward right? You would be surprised at how often people complete their taxes, only to set them aside and forget about them, and never get back to it. Maybe you’re thinking that you and your family don’t owe anything and weren’t expecting any refund. The potential consequence of this? Thousands in failure-to-file penalties. Make a reminder to yourself on your phone, in your calendar, and anywhere you need to make sure you have all of your ducks in a row by the due date.
More from Agemy Financial Strategies
Tax season is almost coming to a close. We just reviewed your tax checklist of the most common things to remember. When in doubt, it’s best to call your financial advisor to ensure nothing is forgotten.
Still a bit lost and need help with your 2021 taxes? Don’t panic, Agemy Financial Strategies is here to help you.Contact us today, and we’ll help you with a personalized plan to ensure you properly file and check all the confusing tax boxes. We'll also evaluate your current tax strategy for 2022 to make sure you're not paying more tax that you need to.