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Kevin Moorehead, Deputy Commissioner of the Wage and Investment Division opened the session.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe IRS in general is one of the world’s most efficient tax administrators. The IRS collects about $4.1 trillion a year which is about 96% of the U.S. gross revenue,\u201d said Moorehead.<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring the final fiscal year 2021, the IRS collected more than $4.1 trillion gross taxes, processed more than 260 million tax returns and other forms, and issued more than $1.1 trillion in tax refunds, including $585 billion in economic impact payments and advance child tax payments.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know people rely on us for the information and help that may need to meet their tax obligation. Our focus is to continue to help taxpayers, the tax industry, and our employees.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile much work remains after several difficult years, we anticipate a significantly better tax season for everyone this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs part of the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, we hired more than 5,000 new telephone assisters, bringing our phone staffing to his highest level ever.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe’ve expanded the in-person assistance in our taxpayer assistance center by adding staff across the country and are still working to staff those locations.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a week (around Feb. 15), we’ll be entering what is typically our busiest time of the filing season, and I want to encourage taxpayers to take advantage of the many online tools and resources on irs.gov<\/a> available anytime.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can find answers to questions, view your account, check the status of your refund, and you can even pay your taxes, all without calling or visiting the IRS,\u201d said Moorehead.<\/p>\n Speaking about steps people can take to make their tax filing experience simple and easy, Moorehead outlined them as follows:<\/p>\n \u201cFor tax year 2022, taxpayers may still qualify for temporary expanded eligibility for the Premium Tax Credit. The PTC is a tax credit for certain people whose family members enroll in a qualified health plan.<\/p>\n \u201cQualified taxpayers must file the form 8962 to compute and take the PTC on their tax return,\u201d said Moorehead.<\/p>\n Susan Simon, Director of Customer Assistance, Relationships and Education, spoke next.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is so important that you have the information that you need to prepare an accurate tax return that will be processed quickly, so that you get your refund in time to do things you want to do as a family, or as an individual,\u201d said Simon.<\/p>\n \u201cTo help taxpayers, the IRS is providing free tax return preparation. We have an organization called Stakeholder Partnerships Education and Communication which operates our Volunteer Income Tax Assisted programs and our Tax Counseling for the Elderly programs, called VITA and TCE.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have expanded VITA tremendously during COVID. Many of our VITA partners were not able to operate their face-to-face tax assistance programs, they had to shut down. Other VITA sites operated in a virtual manner, which caused a lot of our volunteers to be retrained and to be hesitant to do tax returns during the last two years.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had about 50,000 volunteers throughout the United States doing tax returns. This year, we have 81,000 volunteers in the United States and Puerto Rico, preparing free tax returns for individuals and families.<\/p>\n \u201cThe VITA program allows us to work with individuals in communities throughout the country. It is important that we work through partners, that we provide the information in a way that taxpayers can have faith, and trust that their tax return is being done correctly, and that there is no scam going on, that there is no fraud. Each one of these volunteers is trained by the IRS. They are certified and tested so you know you are getting accurate information,\u201d said Simon.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you are claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit or the Additional Child Tax Credit, there is a law that requires that we do not release those tax returns with those credits until mid-February. This helps us prevent fraud. It helps us ensure that we are sending the money to the right taxpayer, that the return we received is from that taxpayer, and that we are sending it to the right bank account or the right address.<\/p>\n \u201cTaxpayers who have filed already can expect that they will receive those refunds for tax returns with either Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit by February 28.<\/p>\n \u201cIn addition to our VITA and TCE programs, we also have IRS Free File. The free file program lets individuals prepare and file their tax return online through irs.gov<\/a> using guided tax products provided by some of our IRS partners. It is safe, easy, and no cost for a federal return.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to ensure that anyone who has not filed 2021 tax return, do so. Our VITA Partners will file the 2021 tax returns for them. They can do that in Free File as well. It is important that we not leave money on the table, we want to make sure that people receive the benefits that are due to them,\u201d said Simon.<\/p>\n \u201cI want to encourage people to use \u2018Where’s My Refund\u2019 tool. It allows people to easily see where their tax return is in the system. It will tell them if we have received the return, they can check this on irs.gov<\/a> within 24 hours after we have accepted their return and this is for electronically filed returns. This tool updates every 24 hours.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen people file a tax return and they do owe money, in those cases they should file by the deadline even if they cannot pay the tax owed. It is so important that they file that return on time. They should pay as much as they can. If they know that they are going to have trouble paying the total amount, they can request an installment agreement. There is a form that is available on irs.gov<\/a> to send with a tax return or by itself to request an installment agreement.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you owe money and you can pay, the best way to pay that is electronically. We have a website irs.gov\/payments<\/a> that will give you all the alternatives and provide the information on how to make a payment to us,\u201d said Simon.<\/p>\n Multilingual Initiatives<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe have over the phone interpreter services where we traditionally provided a free interpreter service if you called some of our phone lines. We now have expanded that to all toll-free phone lines, you can call to get assistance in one of 350 languages,\u201d said Simon.<\/p>\n \u201cIn addition, we have over the phone interpreter services in our taxpayer assistance centers. We have 362 offices located throughout the country where you can make an appointment face-to-face to resolve any issue, to set up an installment plan, to make a payment, or to ask general questions. In those offices, we also provide over the phone interpreters.<\/p>\n \u201cThis year, in every one of our VITA sites, there is also access to over the phone interpreter services.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have translated commonly used forms, not all of them, we\u2019re working to build our library of translated forms, but there are forms that are commonly used by taxpayers that are available in Spanish, simplified Chinese, traditional Chinese, Haitian, Creole, Vietnamese, and Russian. In addition to the Forms and Publications, we have online tools that you can use in additional languages including once I mentioned \u2013 the Earned Income Tax Credit assistance which helps people determine if they are eligible for EITC; the sales tax deduction calculator which is a tool which helps you when you are filing your tax return to determine how much sales tax is allowed as a deduction in your state; the free file online lookup tool which assists taxpayers in finding the right company to file their tax return under the free file program. The irs.gov<\/a> pick list which gives you various choices to pick from; and the tax withholding estimator \u2013 all of those are available in English, as well as those languages that I listed,\u201d said Simon.<\/p>\n \u201cOur alternative media center provides Braille; provides large text and provides translated Braille and large text to those taxpayers who are in need of those services,\u201d added Simon.<\/p>\n Scheduling Help<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cFor our taxpayer assistance centers, we have a Taxpayer Assistance Locator tool on irs.gov<\/a>. You can use that tool to find out where the local office is that you can set up an appointment at and talk to someone in person. These appointments are Monday through Friday from 8:30am until 4:30pm,\u201d said Simon.<\/p>\n \u201cFor the filing season, to assist taxpayers who are not available during those time periods, we are opening some of our offices (list on irs.gov<\/a>) on the second Saturday during February, March, April and May, for taxpayers to come in from 9 to 4, without an appointment.<\/p>\n Simon opened the discussion for questions with this, \u201cWe are not the bad guys, truly we’re not. We want to be out there in the communities. We want to ensure everyone has the information they need and ensure that we can help as many people as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n The Gig-workers<\/strong><\/p>\n On the informal gig economy, independent contractors filing requirements question by Sunita Sohrabji, the speakers said they were working towards it. \u201cWe recognize that the gig economy is out there, there are many people who need assistance with a 1040; with a Schedule C; or a simple 1120; and right now, the only alternative truly is to do it themselves or go to a paid preparer.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are doing a pilot this year in partnership with the city of New York and other partners there, and some wonderful lawyers and accountants, who are volunteering their time to us to prepare simple business tax returns for those people who are independent cab drivers, other types of drivers, actors, actresses, people who are struggling still at a lower income but have a more technical tax return to file. If we are successful in ensuring that we are providing the right training to our volunteers, we look to expand that.<\/p>\n The Gig Economy Tax Center<\/a> and two publications, 535<\/a> and 334<\/a> may be of assistance,\u201d said the speaker.<\/p>\n Social Security is not taxable dependent on your income level.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIf you are receiving only Social Security and you file as Single, Head of Household, or Married Filing Joint, your Social Security is not taxable with no other income.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you have other income, we look at the total amount of your income including Social Security and there is a computation that is done with a specific amount that if you reach that amount, you start looking at a percentage of your Social Security that becomes taxable.<\/p>\n \u201cThe maximum amount of Social Security that is taxable, is 85 percent. There’s that phase-in period once you hit the income amount up to 85% of your Social Security. The caveat here is if you file Married Filing Separately, in most cases 85% of your Social Security will be taxable. \u201cThere are a couple very small exceptions that have to do with your living arrangements that you really need to look at the documents to make sure you meet those exceptions for it not to be taxable.<\/p>\n People who are experiencing fraud.<\/strong><\/p>\n If your social security number is stolen and you find that you are victim of a fraud where your social security number is compromised and someone else is using them for tax fraud, you can apply for an IP Pin (Identity Protection PIN) for tax filing purposes. (https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/identity-theft-fraud-scams\/frequently-asked-questions-about-the-identity-protection-personal-identification-number-ip-pin<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u201cThe bad news is that if your IP pin has been stolen, you will have to file on paper for the current year because there’s no way our computer can determine, is it you filing or is it someone else using your IP Pin.<\/p>\n \u201cSet up an appointment at a Taxpayer Assistance Center where they can work with you one-on-one, look and see exactly what someone else has done under your name. When you go into the Taxpayer Assistance Center, and they’ll tell you this on the phone when you set up your appointment:<\/p>\n Our highly trained people in those offices will work with you we’ll see what’s on our systems and will help take the steps within our systems to protect further identity theft and to reconcile your tax returns for previous years,\u201d said the IRS representative.<\/p>\n What is a good platform for tax filing, is TurboTax good and accurate?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cLast year, and the year before, there were reports of TurboTax myth filing taxes for a lot of people who use that software and that was a similar story for HR Block. My question was How does IRS ensure that that doesn’t happen and what is a good platform to use for online filing?,\u201d asked Vansh Gupta, GenZ editor at Siliconeer.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cAs far as online filing, Turbo Tax which is Intuit, and HR Block are our partners, and they supply a lot of the returns that come into this service.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are individuals that do try to use their service through fraudulent means, but we really can’t provide specifics as far as which tool, or which software, is the best for you.<\/p>\n \u201cI do always say, look to see if one of the free file tools might be a way for you to have your return filed, or if you meet the qualifications, you can have a VITA volunteer assist you or your constituents with the filing of the returns.<\/p>\n \u201cIn that process, I have not heard of any specific systemic issue with TurboTax or other software this year, but we are always on the lookout for concerns, and we’ll work with those specific partners if something does come up,\u201d said Moorehead.<\/p>\n What can you tell us about the new green energy credits?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThe new green energy credits are part of the Inflation Reduction Act that occurred back in August 2022. For taxpayers they really should review the information on the irs.gov<\/a> web page.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is very specific, and it will help you follow what you may want, to go to specifics as far as cars and automobiles that are available for this credit, but as far as the purchase of new clean vehicles, if it’s purchased new, it’s a $7,500 credit, claimed on the tax return associated with using the form 8936. (https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/credits-and-deductions-under-the-inflation-reduction-act-of-2022<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u201cYou must look at the car, and its availability. It’s associated with the price of the vehicle.<\/p>\n \u201cAs far as the availability of the credit, each of the manufacturers list the cars that would meet this credit, because in 2023, cars purchased after January 1, 2023, even includes some plug-in hybrid individual vehicles too.<\/p>\n \u201cAlso beginning in 2023, purchase of use clean vehicles can provide a credit if the purchase price is below a certain threshold, so it’s best to just follow the link. (https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/newsroom\/irs-issues-guidance-and-updates-frequently-asked-questions-related-to-new-previously-owned-and-qualified-commercial-clean-vehicle-credits<\/a>)<\/p>\n What are the second chances if we miss the April 18 deadline?<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cYou can go online now and request to file an extension. It’s an automatic extension that grants you the opportunity to file that return all the way to October. If someone believes that they’re not going to meet the tax filing date, file the extension now,\u201d said Moorehead.<\/p>\n \u201cThat does not provide an extension to pay, so you should, if you think you’re going to owe, you should estimate what amount you may have to pay, and go ahead and submit that payment, because we want to avoid any interest or penalties associated with late payment.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you think you’re not going to meet it, even up if you’re trying to get your return together, and it’s April 17, \u2018I’m not going to be able to file,\u2019 you can still file the extension. (https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/forms-pubs\/extension-of-time-to-file-your-tax-return<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n
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