Don't Mess With Taxes

Make May merrier with these post-Tax Day filing, and 2023 planning, tax moves.

OK, maybe a merry tax month is a bit of a stretch. But if you made it through Tax Day without too much damage, then May indeed may be a month of celebration.

To borrow from Thomas Dekker's poem "The Merry Month of May" — 

O the month of May, the merry month of May,
So frolic, so gay, and so green, so green, so green!

Sure, the Elizabethan dramatist and pamphleteer was talking about the flora emerging from winter in his poem, which first appeared in Dekker's 1599 play "The Shoemaker's Holiday."

But the green reference also can apply to money, notably for our purposes, tax dollars.

May can be the month you get the refund from your return filed in April.

Or it can be a month of budget tightening as you deal with a shortfall from having to pay the U.S. Treasury more than you expected on Tax Day.

May also can be the month you take steps to make sure this year's tax situaiton, and next year's filing, produce better results than this year.

The tax tips gathered here, after being first featured in upper right corner of the ol' blog, can help. You'll find pieces of advice for folks who missed Tax Day or whose tax deadline has been delayed due to a major disaster or who are done with 2022 taxes and are now working on reducing 2023's tax bill.

So that you may put them to use as early as possible this May, here goes.

1. Still haven't filed your taxes? Do this now! — Yes, you read this nag friendly reminder right after you missed Tax Day. Now weeks have passed, and the penalty charges, not to mention the 7 percent interest the IRS tacks on, are adding up. Daily. The only way to stop it is to file a return as soon as possible. That's one of 4 tax moves folks who didn't file a return on April 18 need to make. Now. (May 1, 2023)
2. May tax moves that can make for a merrier month — Sorry to interrupt your May merriness, but you might want to take a brief break to check out these four tax moves to make this month. They could help save you some tax dollars, and that's definitely a reason for merry-making. (May 2, 2023)
3. Toasting Cinco de Mayo and alcohol tax revenue — Yes, this post originally was published on a prior Margarita Day. But since that adult beverage also is part of Cinco de Mayo celebrations, at least here in Texas, the always animated in every sense of the word Sterling Archer's recipe and the associated federal and state alcohol tax info deserve a toast today. ¡Salud! (May 5, 2023)
4. Free File is open through Oct. 16 extension — If you got an extension to file, or just missed April 18 Tax Day, you still have no-cost filing options. Free File, the Internal Revenue Service's partnership with the tax software industry is open through the Oct. 16 extension deadline. This year, taxpayers with adjusted gross income of $73,000 or less can use one of the free preparation and e-filing options offered this year by 7 companies. Made too much to use the software? Check out the IRS' Free Fillable Forms. (May 7, 2023)
5. IRS TAC walk-ins welcome on Saturday, May 13 — Need some in-person tax help? The Internal Revenue Service's final walk-in weekend at selected Taxpayer Assistance Centers is this Saturday, May 13. Taxpayers who can't make it on a weekday should check out the TACs that will be open this coming Saturday. This last group is 45 TACs in 26 states, Puerto Rico, and Washington, D.C., open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time. No appointments needed. (May 9, 2023)
6. IRS to resume sending suspended tax notices — The IRS is getting back to business as usual, at least when it comes to notices. It plans to send millions of tax balance due notices related to 2022 filings starting at the end of the month. Then later this year, it will gradually resume delivery of other tax notices it suspended back in February 2022. (May 10, 2023)
7. 10 tax notice tips — Nobody likes getting a letter from the Internal Revenue Service. But if you get one, then the first thing to do is pay attention. Ignoring the notice could get you in more, and more costly, tax trouble. Here are 10 things to do when an envelope with an IRS return address shows up in your U.S. Postal Service box. (May 11, 2023)
8. Get IRS online withholding help — Now's a good time to adjust your withholding. With more than half a year left, any changes to your paycheck — either more or less take-home pay — won't be so noticeable. The Internal Revenue Service can help you get your withholding just right. Use IRS.gov's Tax Withholding Estimator. Here's what you'll need to make sure the online tool's calculation is correct. (May 16, 2023)
9. State free e-filing options — If you have to file a federal tax return, you probably have to file a state one, too. Most states follow the Internal Revenue Service's lead in asking their residents to submit returns electronically. Most states also offer free online state tax filing options. (May 20, 2023)
10. HDHP, HSA inflation bumps for 2024 — Inflation has dropped a bit, but it's still enough to prompt the IRS to make adjustments to high deductible health plan (HDHP) and associated tax-advantaged health savings account (HSA) limits in 2024. (May 23, 2023)
11. Summer's arrival brings sales tax holidays in Florida and Texas — Memorial Day marks the unofficial start of summer. The long weekend also is the start of sales tax holiday season. Texas has three days of no taxes on certain energy- and water-saving products, starting May 27. In Florida, shoppers will start the holiday weekend with sales tax exemptions on hurricane preparedness products, followed season the Sunshine State's wide-ranging no-tax Freedom Summer. (May 27, 2023)
12. Tax-smart financial gifts for grads (and the givers) — Got some new high school or college graduates in your life? Here are six financial gifts, most with some tax benefits, that they (and you) will enjoy. (May 31, 2023)

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If you got an extension to file and are still working on your tax return, feel free to check out this year's earlier monthly tips. The January through April ones are available by clicking on the links below.

And yes, you also can click on the June through December links, but you'll just be greeted by an enthusiastically animated gentleman urging you to, as we (or at least me) say in Texas, "Whoa Up!" His GIF visage will be replaced by appropriate tax tips when those months finally do arrive.

January	July
February	August
March	September
April	October
May	November
June	December

 

 

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