Which Of The Free Tax Forms Should I Use To File?

Many people are confused by the different free tax forms available to use. Of course, if you come to KNS Financial for tax preparation, then you won’t have to worry about finding free tax forms!

Choose The Simplest Free Tax Forms For Your Situation

In order to file a tax return, you will have to determine which form to use (unless you decide to e-file). Since the IRS is no longer mailing out paper tax packages to taxpayers, the choice will become that much more difficult!

Because of this, the IRS has released the following guidelines to follow in order to determine which option is best for your tax situation when looking at the free tax forms:

What To Look For When Choosing Your Free Tax Forms

Use the 1040EZ if:

• Your taxable income is below $100,000
• Your filing status is Single or Married Filing Jointly
• You and your spouse – if married — are under age 65 and not blind
• You are not claiming any dependents
• Your interest income is $1,500 or less

Use the 1040A if:

• Your taxable income is below $100,000
• You have capital gain distributions
• You claim certain tax credits
• You claim adjustments to income for IRA contributions and student loan interest

If you cannot use the 1040EZ or the 1040A, you’ll probably need to file using the 1040. Among the reasons you must use the 1040 are:

• Your taxable income is $100,000 or more
• You claim itemized deductions
• You are reporting self-employment income
• You are reporting income from sale of property

Now that you know what to look for, here is a link to get the Internal Revenue Service Tax Forms that you need. If you don’t want to deal with the headache of checking these figures, then be sure to contact us for tax preparation!

If you are brave enough to prepare your own income tax return, then I would recommend using TurboTax – this software will actually choose the correct paperwork for you!

Be sure you are aware of the tax filing delay, as well as the fact that the tax filing deadline has been extended this year. Also, you should know the IRA Contribution Limits, 401k Contribution Limits, and the Income Tax Rates for 2011!

photo by Arvind Balaraman