I have ten passes for free federal and free state tax filing using TurboTax Online Premier to share with Consumerism Commentary readers. Each prize is valued over $100. If you are interested in being included in the drawing, it’s very simple to enter.
To enter for the giveaway, all you have to do is leave a comment on this post. If you subscribe to the Consumerism Commentary RSS feed, say so in the comment. You will receive a second entry in the giveaway, theoretically doubling your chances to win. It’s not too late to subscribe. (If you’re curious about RSS feeds, see this information.)
For yet another chance to win, tripling your odds, follow me on Twitter and leave a comment here to let me know you have done so. If you are already tracking my Twitter updates, just say so in the comment. If you then “tweet” this post, you will receive a fourth entry in this contest.
Prices to electronic tax filing are sure to increase very soon, but you can increase your odds of filing for free by participating in this giveaway. And it’s quite easy to quadruple your chances by increasing your participation without much effort.
Of course, if you want only one entry in the giveaway, you are free to leave a comment here saying whatever you wish.
As the winners are selected, one every weekday if I remember, they will be listed here. Once you’ve won one, you won’t be eligible to win another. But if your name isn’t selected, you will still be in the running for future drawings.
- Jay (@marketfolly)
- Chris (@chrishas35)
- Erica Douglass (@ericabiz)
- Crabhands
- CJ
- Nate (@NateDesmond)
- Rev_Mother (@Rev_Mother)
- David
- ALLY in WA
- Revanche
I’ve started receiving W2s, 1099s, and a variety of other tax-related documentation in the mail and online, which means one thing: It is time to get serious about determining my final tax liability. If I planned right, I will have paid just enough between estimated taxes and withholding to avoid an underpayment penalty, but it’s likely I’ll end up with a hefty tax bill.
I’m leisurely seeking a recommended tax accountant in my area, someone specializing in sole proprietors, to help me out with my filing this year. Theoretically, a professional who understands more of the nuances of the tax code than I understand will help me manage my tax liability. I could do an adequate job with TaxACT, as I have been for the past several years, but I don’t want to part with any more money than I would need to. If I find a good tax accountant, his or her fee would pay for itself through suggestions for deductions or other tips. Also, a professional will allow me to save time for other activities and reduce my stress.
For typical taxpayers, hiring an accountant may be overkill. Before my situation increased in complexity, I was a happy user of TaxACT, as I mentioned above. I switched to TaxACT from TurboTax Online thanks to a lower introductory price. Both of these services allow you to store your past years’ returns in an online repository, but if you want to access older filings, you may need to pay an additional fee. I keep copies of all my tax documentation on paper in a folder, on my personal computer hard drive, and on an external back-up drive, so I can avoid paying fees from TaxACT or TurboTax just to look at my old 1040 forms.
TurboTax and its parent company, Intuit, has been in the news recently thanks to the revelation that Timothy Geithner, the incoming Secretary of the Treasury, used this software to file his taxes and somehow missed paying $34,000 in Social Security and Medicare taxes in 2001 and 2002. He was careful to accept blame rather than fault the software, but TurboTax was quickly linked to the “scandal” after Geithner was pressed to name the method he used for filing. The company quickly responded noting that any software calculation relies on the validity of the data entered by the user. Somewhere, between Geithner and the software, this should have been caught.
In 2001 and 2002 I filed my taxes by hand, so I’m not sure how advanced the error-checking features of TurboTax were at that point. With current incarnations of tax filing software, self-employment taxes would be taken into account and calculated properly if all income were entered accurately, at least among well-known and long-running software like TaxACT, TurboTax, and TaxCut.
H&R Block’s TaxCut is another popular option for self filing, also for a price. But not everyone is required to pay to file taxes. If you qualify, there are ways you can file your taxes for free. Qualifications vary per the method you choose, but you may need to live in a certain state or have an income below a certain maximum.
How do you plan to file your taxes this year? And can you recommend a good tax accountant in central New Jersey?
This is a reminder in the form of an article I posted a few weeks ago.
If you’ve filed for an extension for reporting your 2007 federal income tax, your deadline is today. Here are some important resources to help you file today without a penalty.
File your taxes for free. The Free File Alliance allows residents in most states to file for free as long as the taxpayer meets certain qualifications. Here is a list of different services that provide options to file your tax return for free.
Economic Stimulus Tax Rebate Calculator. If you haven’t heard, many people who earned income in 2007 are eligible to receive some of their taxes back in the form of the economic stimulus. This calculator helps you estimate how much the government owes you for this particular payment. If you want to receive a payment from the stimulus progran you must file your income taxes by the end of today.
TurboTax Online (the Federal Free Edition) is one of the most popular methods of filing taxes without an accountant. I’ve used this in the past and I was happy with the results.
The online version is good for simple taxes, but if you have more complex situations, you may want to try TurboTax Premier (with support for investments and rental properties) or TurboTax Deluxe to focus on deductions you may receive for mortgage interest paid, donations, or education expenses. Self-employed individuals may opt for TurboTax Home and Business.
H&R Block also offers a variety of software for filing your taxes, all available for completing your federal income tax filing today. TaxCut comes in several different flavors, including software packages on CD-ROM and online editions. One of these online services is directed towards young taxpayers, Tango.
I filed my taxes earlier this year with TaxAct. A few years ago, I switched from TurboTax Online when it was no longer free for me.
If you’ve filed for an extension for reporting your 2007 federal income tax, your deadline is quickly arriving. Here are some important resources to help you make that deadline.
File your taxes for free. The Free File Alliance allows residents in most states to file for free as long as the taxpayer meets certain qualifications. Here is a list of different services that provide options to file your tax return for free.
Economic Stimulus Tax Rebate Calculator. If you haven’t heard, many people who earned income in 2007 are eligible to receive some of their taxes back in the form of the economic stimulus. This calculator helps you estimate how much the government owes you for this particular payment. The deadline for filing your taxes to receive a stimulus payment is October 15.
TurboTax Online (the Federal Free Edition) is one of the most popular methods of filing taxes without an accountant. I’ve used this in the past and I was happy with the results.
The online version is good for simple taxes, but if you have more complex situations, you may want to try TurboTax Premier (with support for investments and rental properties) or TurboTax Deluxe to focus on deductions you may receive for mortgage interest paid, donations, or education expenses. Self-employed individuals may opt for TurboTax Home and Business.
H&R Block also offers a variety of software for filing your taxes, all available for completing your federal income tax filing before the October 15 deadline. TaxCut comes in several different flavors, including software packages on CD-ROM and online editions. One of these online services is directed towards young taxpayers, Tango.
I filed my taxes with TaxAct, as I have for the past few years, after switching from TurboTax Online when it was no longer free for me.
The popularity of filing tax returns online has risen in the past few years thanks to online programs that make it incredibly easy. Unfortunately, the IRS doesn’t let you file your taxes online directly, you have to go through third parties like H&R Block or Intuit to do so. My third part of choice over the past couple of years has been TaxAct.
The fees that we pay to file taxes online allow the IRS to do less manual work. It seems they should offer the service for free, but the government partners with software vendors who are willing to offer the service for profit, although some service do offer federal filing for free if your income is below a certain limit.
I-CAN! is a new service from a non-profit organization that offers free tax filing for everyone. Well, almost everyone:
You can generally use I-CAN!™ E-file unless you own a business, are a church employee or clergy member, sold real estate in 2007 or you or your employer have a non-US address. If you are in the military or you are disabled you may be eligible for tax credits that are not included in I-CAN!™ E-file.
I-CAN! is proud of the fact they don’t offer instant loans or cash based on anticipated refunds, like the bg guys. These are strong moneymakers, but are often viewed as a little unethical. The fee for these loans, when represented as an interest rate, border on predatory.
I would have liked to try I-CAN!’s software for comparison with the calculations presented by other software. I’ve read at least one complaint that I-CAN! has made significant errors in calculation; one commenter on Consumerist noted his 1099-MISC was not included when determining the final tax bill. Since I will require a Schedule C, I will unfortunately not qualify to use the I-CAN! software.
If you are able to use the software to file your taxes and would like to compare the results with those from other calculations or software, feel free to check back in and let us know.
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