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) (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.
Each year, millions of people find that they are unable to file their taxes in time for the April deadline. While the IRS can be very unforgiving about some aspects of their collections, one thing that they do make available for all tax payers is a tax extension available for several months. You can use TurboTax 2013 software in order to take advantage of this tax extension.
IRS Form 1040X, 2005 revision (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
E-File First
Begin by using the TurboTax 2013 software to actually file you taxes, putting in as much information about income, securities, investments, and deductions that you are able to, even if it is only a smidgen. You want to do this now so that there are no surprises you may have missed once you sit down to do the full job. Once you have that done, find out when you are able to finish the extension to the closest date. Log into TurboTax 2013 software and either e-file an extension or print out the paper copy.
Paper Or Digital
While most people might be more comfortable with filing their tax extension by mail, you can do so digitally with the TurboTax 2013 software. In fact, since this process is instant, it is not recommended that you file an extension by mail since it will take a few days to reach the IRS offices and runs the risk of becoming overdue if it is not postmarked by April 15th. Once you have sent it in, you have until October 15th of 2013 to fill out the full tax form.
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.
Welcome to the April 15, 2013 edition of Tax Carnival Ecstasy. In this final edition for the 2013 tax season we have a number of good articles beginning with one from John Schmoll on last minute tax deductions for those that still need to file. Bill Smith has a post on the popularity of Turbo Tax for online tax filing. And if you are wondering the status of your tax refund since you have already filed and not seen a check from the IRS in the mailbox, KC Beavers covers finding the status of your refund in a great piece. Hope all the articles are helpful, make sure to bookmark, like on Facebook, tweet, and come back for additional tax information throughout the year.
deductions
John Schmoll presents Looking For Last Minute Tax Deductions? Try Making a Ringtone About Yourself! posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “It’s the end of tax season and people that are waiting til the last minute are commonly looking for deductions to take. Here’s a look at some of the crazy ones celebrities have tried to get past the IRS.”
Bill Smith presents Top Tax Scams To Avoid With Turbo Tax 2013 posted at 2014 Taxes, saying, “Using Turbo Tax 2013 is a good way to avoid tax scams in the first place, seeing as how you can e-file your paperwork with confidence that it will go directly to the IRS.”
taxes
KC Beavers presents Where Is My Tax Refund? posted at Generation X Finance, saying, “So your taxes should be done and filed by now. Now one of the most common questions we ask is where is my refund?”
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of tax carnival ecstasy using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
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English: Rep. Greenwood receives the “Hero of the Taxpayer” Award from Americans for Tax Reform. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Welcome to the April 10, 2013 edition of Tax Carnival Ecstasy. We start this edition with a post from Dominic Mondal on Securing your Pension Plan by Investing in Self Managed Super Funds. Bill Smith takes a look at the U.S. tax reform and the effect of a decrease in the tax code’s bias for debt. John Schmoll has 4 Ways to Make Filing Taxes Easier from the Frugal Rules blog. And finally Edward Webber presents The New Tax Code for 2013-2014. Hope you enjoy the articles, bookmark, share, tweet, like on Facebook and come back for our next edition.
dominic mondal presents Securing your Pension Plan by Investing in Self Managed Super Funds and Property posted at Recent Articles.
John Schmoll presents 4 Simple Ways to Make Filing Taxes Easier Every Year – Frugal Rules posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “Very few people enjoy doing and filing their taxes. However, with a few simple steps you can make the process easier every year.”
retirement
John Schmoll presents Financial Advisor Compensation – Why it Matters posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “A financial advisor can be a great way to help you grow your portfolio when you have long term goals in mind. Make sure you do your homework and hire one that you feel right about and best fits your needs and goals.”
Alan Webster presents A Day in the Life of a Trader posted at TradingAcademy.com, saying, “Have you ever wondered what the average day is like for a trader? In this blog post we interview Steve Moses, an options trader, to sneak a peek into his average day.”
Edward Webber presents The New Tax Code for 2013-2014 posted at TaxFix Feed Update, saying, “In the UK the tax allowance is about to increase. This means that anyone working in the country can earn 9,449 pounds before they need to pay any tax. This post explains all about it.”
Bill Smith presents Innovations For Turbo Tax 2013 posted at 2013 Taxes, saying, “Professional accounting can help business owners save time and resources, and the Turbo Tax 2013 CPA Select edition by Intuit may be the ideal solution for tax filing season.”
Bill Smith presents Last Minute Tax Tips When Using Turbo Tax 2013 posted at 2009 Tax, saying, “Before you head to TurboTax.com, take a moment to read through these tips. With the deadline approaching, you need to know what to do at the last minute to make the filing process successful.”
Bill Smith presents Finding The Right Online Tax Prep posted at 2009 Taxes, saying, “The nice thing about these different options is that they are all free and allow you to quickly get your information in so you can receive your refund.”
John Schmoll presents How Should You Spend Your Tax Return? posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “The average tax return is nearly $3,000. Receiving that sum of money all at once can lead to easy temptation. Make sure you make wise decisions with that money, whether it be paying off debt or investing for the future so you can make the money work for you.”
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of tax carnival ecstasy using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
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Jackson Hewitt’s Tax Advice For Recent College Graduates
Jackson Hewitt operates around the country and offers various tax services for taxpayers. With that in mind, millions of people file their state and federal income returns annually. This company helps many of those very individuals on a regular basis while competing with TurboTax 2013. Recently, Jackson Hewitt released its biggest tax tips for college graduates. Recent graduates often make some big mistakes on their returns that are more than avoidable.
Jackson Hewitt Tax Service (Photo credit: kenteegardin)
For instance, most students can deduct their student loan interest on their return. Only interest paid from a qualifying loan counts, though, and the maximum deduction is $2,500. Most college students are claimed as dependents as they attend school. However, a graduate should claim themselves independent afterwards to maximize their tax benefits. Someone that is considered independent for tax purposes can claim many more deductions than someone considered a dependent.
Jackson Hewitt reminds recent graduates of other tax issues, too. Thousands of students receive scholarships, which are sometimes taxable, depending upon the circumstances. Typically, funds paid directly to a student are completely taxable. On the other hand, graduates starting a new job should check out their withholding. Higher income means more taxes must be paid during the year. Nobody wants to find that they owe money to the government.
Filing taxes during college is often different than doing so after graduation. Of course, most graduates see some big changes in the coming years. There is no reason a person should fail to take advantage of the tax advice that’s available. The right information can save someone thousands of dollars in taxes per year. Plus, most people don’t understand the tax system very well, and this advice always helps.
Millions of people will use Jackson Hewitt or TurboTax 2013 to file their taxes this year. Unfortunately, the deadline is fast approaching, and late filing can cost a person greatly. It’s important to take a look at one’s tax situation and take available deductions or breaks. Too many people fail to do so and pay the costs, especially college graduates. In the end, taxes come every year, and there are plenty of ways to minimize the burden.
