The Tax Blotter – Feb. 2021
The Tax Blotter is a humorous roundup of recent tax news.
Feb. 16, 2021
The Tax Blotter is a humorous roundup of recent tax news.
The tax-filing season for 2020 returns finally kicked off on February 12. The IRS is advising taxpayers to take certain precautions and speed up refunds.
Give up the ghost. The IRS has warned taxpayers about “ghost” tax return preparers who refuse to sign the returns of clients (IR-2021-30, 2/5/21). Typically, the preparer will get the return ready for e-filing—and even have it printed out—but won’t commit to signing it. Ultimately, the taxpayer remains responsible for the return items. This should be an obvious red flag to taxpayers. Run and hide from these ghost tax return preparers.
Be fast and accurate. Now that tax season is officially open, the IRS is urging taxpayers to take some simple steps to help ensure they file accurate tax returns and speed up tax refunds during the pandemic (IR-2021-35, 2/11/21). Notably, as in previous recent years, the IRS encourages taxpayers to e-file their returns and use direct deposit to receive refunds. It expects returns filed on paper to be delayed even longer than usual this year. The IRS continues to tout the direct deposit method as being safe and expeditious.
Check for tax forms. Due to mail delays around the country, the IRS is reminding taxpayers to check that they have all the tax-related documents needed to file their returns (IR-2021-33, 2/9/21). It’s easy for W-2s 1099s, K-1s and other forms to get caught in the backlog. If you haven’t received a W-2 or 1099 yet, contact the payor directly to request the missing document before your 2020 return is filed. This also applies to folks who receive an incorrect form.