Documents to Print before Filing Your Income
We may not like it very much, but it is that time of year again – time to file our income tax. As the D day; 15 April draws inexorably near, most of us are subtracting standard and personal deductions, determining the income bracket and calculating what we’re left with after the government has had its pound of flesh. And then there is the process of printing and filling forms – something that the Affordable Care Act appears to have made all the more tedious.
Who needs to file income tax returns
Except for individuals over the age of 65 whose only source of income is social security, all wage earners need to pay income tax to the IRS and to states that require you to pay state income tax. While standard exemptions and tax credits for specific groups do lower your tax burden and online tax calculators promise free tax filing to ease the process, there is still much that is likely causing you a bit of a headache.
Filing your taxes
You can visit post offices and even some banks and libraries to get the tax forms you need, or you can simply download and print these from the Forms and Publications section on the IRS website. The latter option tends to be more convenient because related instructions and worksheets for all the forms are available with the printable forms. Also if you didn’t fill out the form correctly the first time around, you can simply take another printout.
You also have the option of e-filing your taxes, using free online software; however this will need you to use a PIN number that you can get from the IRS website by providing some of your personal details. Even if you do file online, be sure to take a printout and preserve the hardcopy for at least 7 years after filing.
Here are some of the IRS forms that you may need to printout for filing purposes
- Form 1040 – the individual income tax return
- Form 1040A – the shorter version of 1040 which allows you to claim certain adjustments to report limited types of income
- Form 1040-ES – Form for estimated tax for individuals on income not subject to withholding
- Form 1040EZ – For single and joint filers with no dependents
- Form 8962 - Premium Tax Credit (PTC) to help you figure the amount of your PTC and reconcile it with any advance payments (APTC).
- Form W-4 - The Employee’s withholding allowance certificate to enable employers to withhold the correct federal income tax from income (W-2 is the form filed by employers)
- Publication 17 – explains general rules for filing a federal income tax return
- Publication 505 - explains tax withholding and estimated tax, and how to take credit
- Form 1099-G - Government Payments such as federal, state, or local governments
Additional forms for this year
With Obamacare now in place, people who signed up for the Affordable Care Act need to fill some additional IRS forms and may also have to repay some previous subsidies. While employees who receive coverage via their employer, its only the W-2 form they have to bother with, but those who bought insurance through the exchange will need to fill out some new paperwork this year – a special form called the 1095-A needs you to fill out who was covered, for how long and your premium amounts.
Perhaps you have some information to share with us and our readers about free tax filing or about tax calculators that will help figure out what income tax you pay and how? Please feel free to kick of the conversation in the comments below or on our Facebook/Twitter pages.