W2s

Mr. "It's Stupid To Get a Big Refund!" was actually expecting a whopper this year.

Figured that going from 4% to 15% on my 401(k) would mean $1,000 less tax, and filing married/jointly (spouse has $0 US income) would net another $2,500.

But for some reason, I had much less taken out of my paycheck this year (was there another tax cut?), and much to my chagrin, the IRS says I have to claim my wife's income earned in Russia.

So that $4,000+ refund estimate I had floating in my head will barely break $2,500.

 

E-filed today. Great return for me.

 

I was so ready to get started until you mentioned the 401K. Son of a crap.

 

Got it today.

 

How can the US government tax money made in Russia?

 

Wait, wait, wait. I thought we were supposed to have the W2 in our mailboxes by Feb. 1. It's just the mail by date? Yet I have to file my FAFSA by Feb. 15? Complete and utter bullshit.

I fucking hate the IRS and the company I work for.

 

That's why FinAid counselors recommend that people ballpark their numbers and submit on or as close to Jan 1 as possible then, if there's a large discrepancy, you can file a change and it still keeps the original file date.

As for me, one of two W-2s (and a big screw you to Starbucks for slacking on the other) and I don't know if/what I might get from my current job.

 

I still took delight in demanding the 1099s from my two final holdouts and reminding them of the deadline. Not that it matters: I have all my checks recorded and can file without the 1099s, but still.

 

Got my one and only W-2 Thursday and am now seriously debating whether to try Turbo Tax.

I've got an easy return so I don't see why I shouldn't. Hell, my fiancee did and she's a lot more prone to screw up forms like that than I am.

Anyone else try Turbotax for the free federal return? Is it worth it? Usually I use H&R Block. Mainly because I'm scared to death of the IRS and HRB protects you from an audit (provided it's their screw up, of course).

 

You're young. You don't own a house? No kids? And just one W-2? Then filing your taxes should take about 10 minutes with a 1040-EZ. Don't waste your money on Turbo Tax -- it costs like $25 to file your state taxes through them, I think.

Just go to irs.gov, find a site that will let you file federal for free and state for like $9.99. All the sites on <a href="http://irs.gov/app/freeFile/jsp/index.jsp">this page</a> are registered with the IRS, so you won't get scammed by them. And the only way you're going to get audited is if you screw up entering the right number in Box 1 where it says "Enter the number in Box 1 here." It's pretty simple if you don't have to itemize.

Or just go to the library and get a paper form, then file your state taxes through the mail -- 42 cents.

 

Just a word of wisdom: If you have State Farm insurance, you can use the link on their site to get free Turbo Tax. (Note: The lowest grade of Turbo Tax is free, but it costs a few bucks to upgrade to more bells and whistles.)

 

I have done TurboTax online the past several years. Free federal, $19.95 state. And you get the money in your account within 6 days.

If you have time to wait for money, bw's right...file through the mail. If you want your cash, direct deposited, and you want to do your taxes in 5-10 minutes online? TurboTax.