Last Minute Taxes
By: Tessa Mentus
Updated: April 14, 2010
ALTOONA, BLAIR COUNTY - You've got a little more than thirty hours until your taxes have to be filed. If you're planning on having someone help you file, you could have a little bit of a wait.
Fred the Liberty Tax man isn't just standing outside in Altoona because it's a nice day. He's making sure to wave to all of you procrastinators.
“In April we're really starting to get hammered again so we're really excited to get it all wrapped up and done this year,” Liberty Tax Services Owner Cindy Gampe said.
The IRS believes between 25% and 33% of Americans wait to file their taxes within the week they're due. That's about 140 million people. With taxes due Thursday, tax professionals are having a tough time keeping up, especially this year.
“The economy is down so people are looking for the maximum refund they can get, and if they tried on their own and they feel that it's not up to where it should be then they come in so we can review everything to see if we can get it higher,” H&R Block Tax Professional Cindy Lytle said.
If you're one of those who needs help filing within the next day, here's some help. Make sure you have all of the appropriate forms. If you hope to deduct contributions, make sure you have receipts. Those are required this year. If you have a hang up and don't get them done on time there are options.
“It's really important to understand that filing an extension only extends your time to file a return,” Gampe said.
It doesn't mean you can wait and pay the IRS if you owe taxes. Some tax preparers are expecting fifty to sixty clients on Tax Day. If you still have to go in and file, you might want to get there early.
“We have until April 15th at 11:59 p.m. to electronically file tax returns. We will file as long as people are here. We will stay until 11:59 p.m. if that's what it takes to get people filed,” Gampe said.
Tax professionals said a lot of people are forgetting to deduct the interest they paid on student loans. That could mean a big difference in the amount of your refund.
