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Going through some old paperwork today, I found my 2009 W-2 and empty tax forms. I think I never did file my federal income taxes for that year but am not sure. Is there anyway to find out? What is the time limit on filing back taxes?
You can request a transcript for a given year, I think up to 4 at a time, that will let you know your status for the year. You could also contact the IRS since you are trying to make sure that you filed anyway. Realize that if you did not file you will more than likely pay a fine. The deal is that you should file early even if you owe them money. Just make arrangments to pay if you do owe. In your case you may not have filed at all. Calling them and asking will be the quickest way.
Since the year in question is 2009, is it too late to do anything about it? Because I just read somewhere that you only have three years to get a refund.
"What are the consequences of not filing a tax return?
Here are some things to consider:
Failure to file penalty. If you owe taxes, a delay in filing may result in a "failure to file" penalty, also known as the “late filing” penalty, and interest charges. The longer you delay, the larger these charges grow. It may result in penalty and interest charges that could increase your tax bill by 25 percent or more.
Losing your refund. There is no penalty for failure to file if you are due a refund. However, you cannot obtain a refund without filing a tax return. If you wait too long to file, you may risk losing the refund altogether. In cases where a return is not filed, the law provides most taxpayers with a three-year window of opportunity for claiming a refund.
EITC. Individuals who are entitled to the Earned Income Tax Credit must file their return to claim the credit even if they are not otherwise required to file. The return must be filed within three years of the due date in order to receive the credit.
Statutes of limitation.After the expiration of the refund statute, not only does the law prevent the issuance of a refund check, it also prevents the application of any credits, including overpayments of estimated or withholding taxes, to other tax years that are underpaid. On the other hand, the statute of limitations for IRS to assess and collect any outstanding balances does not start until a return has been filed. In other words, there is no statute of limitations for assessing and collecting the tax if no return has been filed."
If you think you would have received a refund, you must file a return to get it, but you may have waited too long. If you owed tax, there may be penalties.
If you normally file a return and do not, the IRS may contact you asking why you did not file. It can even generate a return for you and send you a tax bill. Since you had W2 income, they would be expecting you to file. It sounds to me like you may have sent a return. Just call the IRS and ask.
If you didn't file and you owe, there's no statute of limitations for the IRS to get the tax due from you, plus penalties (failure to file and failure to pay) and interest.
If you didn't file and are due a refund, it's too late to file to claim the refund (the refund statute would have passed on 4/15/2013); however, it's a good idea to file anyway just to start the clock running on the statute.
So, ask the IRS for a transcript to see if you filed for 2009, if not, then file.
Since the year in question is 2009, is it too late to do anything about it? Because I just read somewhere that you only have three years to get a refund.
I was thinking that you just wanted to take care of business. So what your saying is you need some money and figure that if you file your 2009 taxes that you will get some fast cash?
No offense, but how in the world does somebody "forget" to file his/her income taxes? Don't you keep copies of your tax returns in a file drawer or a box somewhere? I guess I must live a more ordered life than I thought.
Your w-2 form comes in 4 sections on 1 sheet. You have to include 1 with your federal income tax, so if you've got all 4 sections, then you didn't file. I think even if you e-filed, you probably had to detach one of the sheets to be scanned in.
No offense, but how in the world does somebody "forget" to file his/her income taxes? Don't you keep copies of your tax returns in a file drawer or a box somewhere? I guess I must live a more ordered life than I thought.
Your w-2 form comes in 4 sections on 1 sheet. You have to include 1 with your federal income tax, so if you've got all 4 sections, then you didn't file. I think even if you e-filed, you probably had to detach one of the sheets to be scanned in.
I efile and you can do it without the physical form. You do need the information from the form though so you would need it in your hot little hand. efile forms will request the information and you just enter it. I keep my tax information and still have returns from back in the late 80's. Not sure how anyone can forget to do it.
Starting in January I'm prepping to get taxes over and done with so I can move on with my life. Not sure how you can forget, but I'd get that taken care of as soon as possible. I doubt you'd get any money back, but at least you'd have some peace of mind.
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