- Certain refunds won’t be available until late February.
- The IRS expects nearly 155 million individual tax returns for 2017.
For those of you who like to get your taxes done at the beginning of the season pay attention to your mail. All the documents and statements you will need to prepare your tax return are on the way.
Filing season for the 2017 tax year begins on January 29th and will end April 17th (April 15th falls on a Sunday) Emancipation Day – a legal holiday – will be observed Monday, April 16.
We recommend trying to file sooner rather then later this year. The massive Equifax breach could contribute to tax fraud. We have several old blogs that discuss ways you can help avoid tax fraud, read them here.
Even if you submit your return early, you’ll have to wait a while for your refund if you claim the earned income tax credit or the additional child tax credit. If you choose to receive your refund with direct deposit you will receive them starting on Feb. 27.
The IRS has delayed refunds on returns claiming these two credits in order to give itself more time to detect phony returns and keep cash out of the hands of thieves.
Here’s what you’ll need to know:
Although many of the changes from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act won’t go into effect till the 2018 tax year, one major change will affect the 2017 filing season.
Under the previous tax law, filers who take the medical expense deduction could only deduct qualifying costs that exceed 10 percent of their adjusted gross income (AGI).
Now, that threshold has been dropped to 7.5 percent of AGI for the 2017 and 2018 tax years.
You can also save on your 2017 taxes if you make an IRA contribution by April 17.
Other than that, the opportunities to save this filing season are limited. Talk to your tax professional about changes. Call our office to schedule a meeting or speak to someone 818.887.9401.