COLORADO SPRINGS — Whether you plan to file your taxes online, or in person, Kathy Bylkas, owner of Your Tax Lady, has a few tips that could help save you time.
When is the best time for me to file?
Now. After April15th they will be bogged down with all those people that didn't file until April 1st. People need to file sometime in March to get it in and done.
I didn't get my stimulus, how do I change that?
In order to fix any of it, you have to file 2020 tax returns, whether you have income or not, to clean up whatever you had in 2019.
Will I be taxed on the stimulus money I received?
No. It is not a taxable event, so in other words you will not pay any taxes on it at all.
Will there be an automatic extension like last year due to the pandemic?
No. More than 7.1 million tax returns were awaiting process in November. They are still opening envelopes from last year that we sent in. They are still working to play catch-up.
How long is it taking for tax refunds?
Just about 10 days.
What if we have two household incomes? What should we put on the new W-4?
The new W-4 only asks you your name, address and filing status. It gives you some other exemption things you can take off. My recommendation for people, unless they want to pay next year, is to sign it at the bottom and turn it in with just single, married, or head of household checked. Do not check any of those other boxes or you will owe next year.
What about a write-off for people working from home? (internet bill, office supplies)
You will not get any exemption. If you are a married couple you got $2,400. If you are single you got $1,200. There is no way that you had that many expenses working from home.
If you have questions about your taxes, we will try and find you answers! You can email questions to erin.chapman@koaa.com
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