With April showers and Spring flowers, the due date to file your taxes makes its arrival even if you haven’t decided whether you will file or not, which might be a question asked by many students.
IRS Spokeswoman Anabel Marquez, stated that the IRS determined that a person who has earned less than $9,350, does not have to file their Federal Tax Return for 2010.
“We established these limits to reduce taxpayer burden and processing cost,” wrote Marquez through email. “If a person doesn’t file unnecessary returns, they and the government save time and money.”
The obligation to file depends on individual earnings. Parents who provide the majority of support for their full-time student have the option to claim their off spring as a dependent on their income tax returns. In most cases, students are often claimed as dependents on their parent’s income tax return.
Conscientious of her financial situation, Ciara Canaugh, a 20-year-old liberal studies and psychology major, doesn’t file independently.
“I know when tax season comes around,” she said. “My family was always aware and prepares well in advance to meet the due date to file the forms.”
The last day to file a Federal Income Tax Return falls on April 18 this year, which gives everyone three extra days to file, compared to last year’s April 15 deadline.
The returns have to provide a detailed financial report of the individual’s income earned during the tax year upon which the Internal Revenue Service, who is part of the United States Department of Treasury, assesses if a refund is due to the individual or additional revenue is due to the IRS.
Also, the IRS states that any suspected falsely reported incomes can force individuals to provide financial statements and detailed receipts to justify their claim and upon failure to do so, obligate them to pay back taxes and other additional fines. Not everyone has to file an income tax return though.
The IRS considers the person’s gross income, age, filing status and whether they are like Canaugh, a dependant of someone else.
Marquez cautions though, that if a person had federal taxes withheld from their paycheck, even with an earning of less than $9,350, the person may qualify for a refund.
“We have something called the Earned Income Tax Credit, which is a tax benefit for low-income working Americans that can increase a refund by up to $457 for single taxpayers,” she said.
Declared earned income can be reduced by allowable deductions. Marquez advised to carefully consider if itemized deduction are a better option than the standard deduction for a single person which is $5,700 as established by the IRS in 2010. If itemized deductions don’t exceed the allowable amount, students should take advantage of the $5,700 to reduce their taxable income.
Those who have difficulty understanding the IRS jargon or who simply do not want to deal with so much paperwork, hire a CPA to file their taxes.
According to Marquez, a free-file program is offered exclusively on www.irs.gov. It provides one of the most helpful tools for college students in Ventura County.
“It’s free if you made less than $58,000 last year,” wrote Marquez. “It does all the hard work for you, meaning, the student won’t have to worry about calculating numbers and figuring out amounts as long as they enter the correct information in all required fields.”
With free-file, the information is safe and secure according to Marquez. Students can receive refunds in fewer than ten days with direct deposit.
Students should know if they are a dependent of someone else, or if their earnings exempt them from filing or if they are required to file income taxes.
The deadline is approaching and with a little less than a month to go, students can visit www.irs.gov for more information of filing their taxes.
