Don't Mess With Taxes

Tiger, tiger burning bright,
like the light in my tax accountant's office all the night … 

Ending up spending hour after hour with your tax preparer is nobody's idea of a good time.

That's why you need to make sure as we head into this first, albeit short, full month of the tax season that you, and subsequently your tax pro, have a good handle on your taxes.

One of the key things is to make sure all your information is correct. You can't take liberties, like I did with William Blake's famous poem "The Tyger."

Aside from altering the meaning of the poem, I misspelled the central feline character, at least from Blake's perspective.  Back in the 18th century, the English poet's first stanza went:

Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

Even a one-letter mistake like tyger/tiger in a taxpayer name — yours or your spouse's or a dependent's — on a tax return could cause processing problems.

Math mistakes, even innocent ones, are worse. Your 1040 form could be held up and an Internal Revenue Service examiner likely will have some questions.

But that's why we have the monthly tax tips. February's collection will help you avoid mistakes and find ways to save on the 2021 tax return you're working on now, as well as make moves to help reduce the 2022 tax year version.

As always, February's tax tips will be highlighted in the upper right corner of the ol' blog. After their time in the spotlight, those tips then will be permanently ensconced on this page.

So, since we only have 28 days, here goes!

1. 3 tax moves to make in February 2022 — Happy Year of the Tiger. As we head into the 2022 Lunar New Year and deeper into tax filing season, direct your inner fierce feline toward some tax-smart moves. Here are three to make in this shortest month of the year. (Feb. 1, 2022)
2. Be sure to report cryptocurrency activity on your tax return — Do you own Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency? The Internal Revenue Service wants to know of your crypto transactions last year. If you don't 'fess up when you file, you could find yourself in big tax trouble. (Feb. 3, 2022)
3. Personal cash app transfers are NOT part of new IRS reporting rule — Online entrepreneurs, take note. The Internal Revenue Service will know how much you make this year from your online business if you take in $600 or more and get paid by a peer-to-peer app. But your personal cash app transfers remain just that, personal. They aren't part of the part of new 1099-K IRS reporting rule, with the forms being delivered to you, and copied to the IRS, in 2023. (Feb. 5, 2022)
4. Special Saturday hours for walk-in taxpayers at some IRS TACs — If you need to talk face-to-face with an Internal Revenue Service rep in person, some of the agency's Taxpayers Assistance Centers are opening for special Saturday hours in February, March, April and May. No appointments needed. The first one is this Saturday, Feb. 12. (Feb. 8, 2022)
5. Winning Super Bowl bets are taxable income — If your Super Bowl LVI bets pay off, remember that money is taxable income. Here's how to report gambling winnings, along with myriad other income, on Form 1040 Schedule 1. (Feb. 13, 2022)
6. Signs married couples should file separate 1040s — Valentine's Day is for lovers, but when it comes to taxes, sometimes couples need to go their own ways. Here are 6 signs married couples should consider filing separate tax returns. (Feb. 14, 2022)
7. Adjusting your withholding — You filed your taxes early and learned you're getting a big refund (yay!) or owe a lot (oops!). Those are among the reasons why you need to adjust your tax withholding now. (Feb. 17, 2022)
8. Why your refund is smaller than you expected — Millions of taxpayers rely on refunds every tax-filing season. It's their forced saving account at the Bank of Uncle Sam. However, some folks might find their tax refunds this year are smaller than they expected. Here are 5 reasons why that could happen. (Feb. 22, 2022)
9. No W-2? Here's what to do — Jan. 31 was the deadline for most tax statements to individual taxpayers. But some folks are still waiting for forms, such as their workplace W-2 or assorted 1099 forms. Here are some steps to take if you're missing some key tax filing documents (Feb. 28, 2022)

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Looking for some more tax tips? Then click on the January link below to see what was featured that month.

And yes, you can click on the March through December links, too. They are live.

But you'll just be greeted by an animated nay-saying fellow making good use of one of my favorite Texas sayings. Tax info will replace that fun and folksy GIF as the months arrive.

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