Category: turbotax

Obamacare’s Impact On Taxes

Researchers have unveiled an ignorance on the part of the American public: a full 48 percent of people in the United States do not know that they must report their health insurance status on their 2014 federal income tax returns. So what is Obamacare’s impact on taxes?

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The tax-filing season is soon on its way, and most Americans 18 and over do not realize that health care and income taxes are connected. This information was uncovered by an online Intuit TurboTax Health Survey which was conducted by the well-known Harris Poll group.

According to the Affordable Care Act, otherwise dubbed “Obamacare,” all Americans have to show that they have qualifying health insurance coverage. Proof has to be presented when they file their 2014 income tax returns. If they do not, they can face a penalty.

obamacare Impact On Taxes
Photo by emanjungle

The study also shows that many Americans who do not have health insurance–a full 62 percent of them–know that they will incur a penalty if they do not have health insurance. However, 87 percent of people do not know that the time to avoid a tax penalty for the year 2014 has already come and gone. Insurance purchased during the current open enrollment time which goes through February 15th will be applied to income tax returns which are filed in 2016.

Sacha Adam, Affordable Care Act product leader for TurboTax software, says that many people in the United States do not understand there is a correlation between income taxes and health care insurance.

The Intuit survey also showed that 9 of 10 Americans have insurance, but those living in the South are less likely to have policies. Also, almost half of Americans do not know that premium tax credits are available to make health insurance more affordable for low to moderate income families. In addition, three-quarters of Americans who got health insurance through the government marketplace will renew it next year.

For more information on Obamacare’s impact on taxes, go to TurboTaxHealth.com.

Looking At The TurboTax Redesign

If you’ve used TurboTax before, then you should expect some changes this time around. Recently, Intuit’s tax software has become a little confusing. The user interface didn’t exactly welcome simplicity and efficiency. Sometimes, users would get frustrated by looping links and other problems. Such issues could easily hurt a person while preparing their taxes using the software. Intuit finally listened to customers’ concerns and made changes to the popular tax preparation software in a TurboTax Redesign.

TurboTax Redesign
Screenshot: Intuit’s Customer Community (Photo credit: miss_rogue)

For TurboTax 2014, filing taxes now looks a lot smoother and easier to navigate. A TurboTax Redesign of the user interface has been undertaken and completed. Intuit stated a desire to lessen the time required to complete a return. With that in mind, the software now takes better advantage of prior year returns. TurboTax now analyzes that information and focuses upon each person’s typical tax situation. Returns are partially filled out before a person even starts their return.

While using the software, your tax liability indicator changes with each tax question. In the past, there were no real explanations for the changes. TurboTax 2014 now explains why these calculations affect your tax liability. New guides help explain various tax law changes, including Obamacare. Of course, each modification is designed to make things more simple and efficient for filing taxes and filing back taxes. Intuit has returned power to taxpayers by allowing them to complete their taxes with ease.

In the end, the company focused upon the right things for TurboTax 2014. Filing taxes is now much easier because prior returns are utilized to create a custom experience for each taxpayer. Plus, the competition hasn’t made similar bounds forward. Therefore, Intuit still offers the best tax preparation software around. Nobody needs to spend a fortune on tax preparation because Turbo Tax offers every tool a person needs to succeed each year.

Tax Changes For The Wealthy

2013 and 2014 taxes may be different for the wealthy due to several new tax implementations. The top tax rate may be steeper, and the actual percentage may depend upon what is included. People may be surprised by the changes, and this may be the ideal time to let TurboTax 2013 guide you through efficient tax preparation.

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Income inequality continues to be a major political issue, and things like extending jobless benefits, raising the minimum wage, and imposing changes that affect the top tax rate are central to addressing this issue. Some of the newer 2014 taxes include changes to capital gains taxes, and 2013 is the first year that taxpayers will feel the impact. New payroll and Medicare taxes may effect wealthy taxpayers starting in 2013, and the increases may net $87 billion over the next decade.

The 2013 tax filing season will begin on January 31st, but wealthier individuals may already see differences in their withholding going forward. The law is applied unevenly, and this may result in withholding for some people, exemptions in some cases, and larger tax refunds for others.

Changes involving capital gains, interest, dividends, and other types of investments may increase tax bills, but income after taxes may decrease by a small percentage. The percentage may not seem like much, but losing this share of income may seem substantial. You may not know where your income will place you in terms of the current tax rate changes, but TurboTax 2013 may give you the important answers you need.

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Married Same Sex Couples Gain Equal Tax Benefits

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Married Same Sex Couples

Regardless of which state that they live in, all lawfully married gay couples can now file back taxes in the United States and can obtain the same tax benefits that married heterosexual couples receive. This means that whether a married gay couples lives in a state that recognizes gay marriage or one that does not, the marriage tax benefits applies nationally. This is because of the invalidation of an important part of the Defense of Marriage Act federal law of 1996 on June 26.

This act had previously recognized marriages only between a man and a woman. The invalidation of the act now provides for definiteness for gay couples that want to file back taxes and gives them access to benefits, responsibilities and protections under federal tax laws. The implication of this ruling is that same sex couples in states that do not recognize same sex might move to states such as New York where same sex marriage is legally permitted.

The ability of gay couples to file back taxes goes back to the 2010, 2011 and 2012 tax years and such couples can seek tax refunds by filling amended tax returns. Filling tax returns will change their tax status because couples can choose to file taxes as married filing jointly or married filing separately. But the change is also both positive and negative because it has benefits as well as penalties.

The positive side of the ruling is that spouses that are legally married will be exempted from federal state tax. A gay couple that is in a certain income bracket may get charged with the marriage penalty tax that heterosexual couples are usually faced with. Same sex couples will receive the file back taxes benefits as long as they are married without regard to where they reside.

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Intuit TurboTax Class Action Lawsuit

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Intuit TurboTax Class Action Lawsuit

Intuit TurboTax began drawing a lot of customers to their site when they began marketing, ‘file 2008 taxes free‘. However, a class action lawsuit was filed against Intuit TurboTax stating that the company was not revealing fees being charged. The lawsuit stems from TurboTax allowing filers to have their preparation fees deducted from their tax return. TurboTax charged an additional $29.95 if online customers opted to have fees deducted.

Class Action (film)
Class Action (film) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The lawsuit alleges Intuit’s processing fee was not disclosed as a finance charge so an APR or annual percentage rate was never provided. Since TurboTax essentially lent money to filers who chose this option, an APR should have been present. There was another class action lawsuit, Smith v. Intuit, Inc in February, 2013, which was resolved with the new lawsuit pending.

Intuit has denied that it was involved in any deception or wrongdoing and agreed to give customers full refunds through the class action settlement fund.

Currently there is a $6.55 million Settlement Fund. How much each person will receive depends on the number of people who actually file a valid claim form. The deadline to submit a claim form is October 28, 2013.

Anyone who used TurboTax online and opted to have their TurboTax fees deducted from their refund between January 12, 2008 and May 28, 2012 can take part in the settlement. Claims can be filed online at the official website, TurboTax Class Account, which makes the process easier for anyone wishing to file.

Intuit TurboTax is a very popular online software tax preparation that walks people through the process of filing their federal and state income taxes. They check the return for errors and you have the choice to e-file, which makes getting refunds faster.

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Handling IRS Notices For 2017

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Handling IRS Notices For 2013

Once you file your taxes, they are in the hands of professionals at the IRS. If you get IRS notices for 2013, you will need to take action immediately to avoid any penalties for ignoring the government’s request for further information or payment. Typically, IRS notices arrive after the tax year has passed and taxes have been filed. However, you may also hear from the IRS in advance of a tax year, especially if taxes you have recently filed will impact what you owe or receive as a refund in the 2013 tax year.

If you receive IRS notices for 2013, don’t panic. It’s quite possibly you are simply being asked for some additional information. Take your notice to your accountant or tax professional if you have one. If you prefer to do your own taxes and you use a system such as TurboTax, you may need to file your notice until it is time to do your 2013 taxes. Put it in a place that you keep all of your tax documents so you remember it at tax time.

The IRS will always offer to help you when you receive a notice from them. Look for a contact phone number on the notification and if you do not understand what you are being asked to do, call a representative and talk about your case. Sometimes, the IRS will notice a correction that needs to be made to your taxes, which will affect the refund or the amount owed. Whatever you do, don’t ignore notices from the IRS. They will not go away.

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