Monday, 04 April 2011 19:00

Are you a chronic procrastinator when it comes to filing your income taxes?  If so, you’re not alone.  According to Doug Howard, President of BDG Tax Services, an Eldersburg tax preparation service, about 25% of the taxes his company prepares are processed in the first two weeks of April; that percentage up more than usual.  That’s because these clients often drag their feet when it comes time to submitting that all-important paperwork for taxes.

The excuses for waiting until the last few days before April 15^th are pretty predictable.  “I’m too busy” tops the list of reasons stated, but a big factor is whether or not the filer expects a refund.  If money is likely to be owed to the IRS after the numbers are crunched, then there’s certainly no rush to get that tax form out.  Other reasons for delay are lack of organization and the need to “find” information essential to the return.  Then there’s those folks who, whether they admit it or not, are just lazy about getting the paperwork together.  Some psychologists believe that there’s the “thrill” factor of waiting to the last minute to file.

If you’re one of those procrastinators, and you don’t think you’ll have your paperwork complete in time, you can file an extension with Form 4868.  This will give you until October 15^th.  However, any monies due to the IRS are still due on the original date, so it’s best to estimate your taxes and submit a check with the extension.  That way you avoid the penalty for failure to file and you’ve complied with IRS rules.

There’s good news for procrastinators this year:  the deadline is April 18^th!  Hey, we’ve got all kinds of time!

---