• Home
  • About Evelyn Kanter
  • Evelyn Kanter’s Books & Apps
  • In The News
  • Workshops
  • NYC on the Cheap

Evelyn Kanter ecoXplorer

smarter traveling, driving and spending

  • Green Hotels
  • Green Cars
    • Best Cars under $20,000
    • Test Drives
    • Diesel Cars
    • Electric Cars
    • Hybrid Cars
    • Hydrogen Fuel Cell
    • Luxury Drives
  • Travel Deals
    • Free
    • Budget Travel
    • Discount Tickets
  • Xplore More
    • Safety and Health
    • How To
    • Five Best
    • Travel Pioneers
    • Motorcycles
    • Vintage Cars
  • Scam Alert
  • Where to Go Next
    • Historic Travel
    • Epic Adventures
    • National Parks
You are here: Home / Green Travel / 5 most common tax mistakes

5 most common tax mistakes

1 Comment

most common tax mistakes

April 15th is less than a month away. The sooner you file, the sooner you can get a refund – except if you make mistakes on your return. Here are the five most common tax mistakes and how to avoid them.

Use the correct tax form and filing status: Your filing status determines deductions, tax credits and more, including whether you can use the “quick” 1040 form. The IRS filing status page helps you determine which forms to use, which household and child care expenses can be claimed, whether you can deduct student loan interest, and more. Even if you are using a tax preparer, check the IRS website first, since it is great FREE advise from the people who know taxes best.

You are not qualified: Also according to the IRS, the credits most often abused or overlooked are the standard deduction, Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child and Dependent Care Credit. That, and using tax preparers who misrepresent themselves as experts. Check with your state or city consumer protection agency for regulations governing what tax preparers must tell you before and after filing on your behalf, including whether not he or she is specially trained in tax law. Even if you don’t live in NYC, as I do, the city’s Bill of Rights for tax preparation services is an excellent guideline on how to avoid tax preparation fraud.

Your signature here: An unsigned return is as worthless as an unsigned check. It’s just not valid. If you are filing jointly, both of you have to sign, as does the tax preparer, if you used one. If you are filing online, you must sign electronically via an online PIN code from the IRS. Click here to register with the IRS for a signing code.

Who are you: According to the IRS, putting the wrong name on a tax form is one of the most common errors. It happens when your name changes via marriage, divorce or another reason, and the new name doesn’t match what’s in the IRS system. There may not be enough time before this year’s filing to notify the Social Security Administration, IRS, your state motor vehicle department and get your name changed officially in all the records, so it may be safer to use your “old” name for your 2014 taxes and start the name change paperwork after April 15th.

What’s your number: Of course you have memorized your own Social Security number, but perhaps not those of your spouse or children. Simply, be sure you’ve got all the numbers right. And while you are at it, double check your bank account number if you have opted for direct deposit of your refund, especially those inscrutable numbers in front of your checking or savings account. That’s the routing number that identifies the bank.

The good news is that even with mistakes, you are less likely to be audited, because of government funding cutbacks for the IRS and other federal agencies.

 

Thanks for visiting ecoXplorer. Stay up to date with the latest news about green travel, green cars, smart spending and frugal living by subscribing. It's free. RSS feed.
Welcome back to exoXplorer. Stay up to date with the latest news about green travel, green cars and smart spending by subscribing. It's free. RSS feed.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Green Travel Tagged With: taxfiling

What do you think? We value your comments and love hearing from you. Cancel reply

Most Popular Recent Posts

  • 2 Reasons to Avoid Jimmy John's
    2 Reasons to Avoid Jimmy John's
  • Scam Alert: Kars4Kids Car Donation Charity
    Scam Alert: Kars4Kids Car Donation Charity
  • Lamborghini Stretch Limousine for Rent
    Lamborghini Stretch Limousine for Rent
  • Scam Alert: Mideast Peace Charities
    Scam Alert: Mideast Peace Charities
  • Apply now for Global Entry pass to speed through airport security
    Apply now for Global Entry pass to speed through airport security
  • World's Fastest VW Beetle Hits 205MPH
    World's Fastest VW Beetle Hits 205MPH
  • Best Used Car Buys: 2005-2010 models
    Best Used Car Buys: 2005-2010 models
  • Best and worst domestic airlines and websites
    Best and worst domestic airlines and websites
  • Free Hotel Rooms for Cancer Patients
    Free Hotel Rooms for Cancer Patients
  • Where to Go Next: Bora Bora, Tahiti
    Where to Go Next: Bora Bora, Tahiti

ecoXplorer is your guide to smart spending and eco-friendly living

ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter is a journalist with 20+ years of experience as a newspaper and magazine writer, radio & TV news producer & reporter, and guidebook and smartphone app author – all focusing on travel, automotive, the environment and your rights as a consumer.

Contact me at evelyn@ecoxplorer.com.

Also follow my NYC website, www.nyconthecheap.com.

Search ecoXplorer by category

Translate ecoXplorer

© 2010-2020 EcoXplorer by Evelyn Kanter. All the stories and photos on our site are protected by US Copyright laws. Any unauthorized copying is strictly prohibited. Plus, it’s just not nice.

  • Home
  • About Evelyn Kanter
  • Evelyn Kanter’s Books & Apps
  • In The News
  • Workshops
  • NYC on the Cheap

ecoXplorer.com is an independent information service which is compensated by advertisers and sponsors. This site includes some links to other websites which are compensated for by our sponsors when you click them.

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.