I recently appeared on The Chuck Morse Show on WBNW 1120AM (Boston, MA) to encourage taxpayers to file thier taxes by April 15 - even if they don’t have the money to pay the taxes they owe to Uncle Sam.

There’s going to be a lot of people caught up in this recession, and they’ll quickly find out that they owe taxes for 2008, if they don’t know that already. I know a lot of people are not going to want to file their tax returns. And then they end up not filing for a number of years because the IRS is slow in getting to their delinquent tax returns.

And I’ll tell you, most of my tax relief clients who come to us for IRS help fall into that category.

What you want to do is even if you owe for 2008 and you’re not in compliance for 2009 (which means you’re not withholding correctly or haven’t filed any estimated payments for ‘09) is:

File your tax return by April 15 to avoid IRS problems.

You will also need to send in a check for $10. This gives you 2 huge advantages.

1. It helps you avoid the 25% failure to file penalty.

2. It creates a computerized record at IRS that shows you filed on time and you made a good paid effort to pay your taxes.

You will still have a failure to pay penalty, but it’s much less. Then you can work with a specialized tax resolution expert to help you negotiate a tax settlement.

Low income tax payers should still file their tax returns this year to get the Stimulus payment

If you didn’t file for an economic stimulus payment in 2008 because you weren’t sure you were eligible, you may be able to file for a payment in 2009. Even if you don’t have a legal filing requirement, you have to file your tax return to receive economic stimulus payment from IRS.  You will also need to be in compliance with all your past tax returns.

Stimulus payments are worth:

• Eligible individuals — between $300 and $600
• Joint filers — between $600 and $1,200
• With eligible children — an additional $300 for each qualifying child

**If you have unfiled tax returns or IRS debt, our specialized staff of attorneys, CPAs, EAs and tax professionals can help. Visit the Tax Resolution Services web site for a free tax relief consultation or call us at 866-477-7762.

More Tax Help, IRS News and Tax Relief Tips:

1. Melt Your IRS Fears Away - Tax Help if You Can’t Afford to Pay Your 2008 Taxes
2. Options for Business Owners Struggling to Meet the April 15 Tax Deadline
3. We’ve Expanded to Help More Taxpayers Resolve Their IRS Tax Problems!
4. How to Negotiate an IRS Installment Agreement and Set Up a Payment Plan for Your Tax Debt
5. KLOS Tax Tip #44: Individuals Get a Tax Break - But Get Tax Help if You Owe Back Taxes!

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This entry was posted on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 at 4:12 pm and is filed under Tax news and tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.