Every year, many Americans must go through the routine of completing and filing a personal tax return. The instructions to Form 1040 change slightly every year; at the very least, they are updated to reflect recent changes in tax law. This article discusses facts about this form that hold true year and year.
IRS Form 1040 – Due Date, Extension, Mailing Address
Form 1040 is due on April 15th for the prior year (the calendar year ended 4 months, 15 days earlier). Anyone who cannot meet the April 15th filing deadline should file an extension using Form 4868, Individual Income Tax Return Extension. Taxpayers should be aware that filing an extension does mean extra time to pay tax; tax liability is still due on the original due date and should be paid with the request for extension if not already remitted through estimated payments, withholding, or another means. There are only a few exceptions to these rules; these exceptions are outlined in the Form 1040 instructions.
The IRS has eight different mailing addresses for Form 1040. Where you mail a federal tax return is based on state (or territory) residency. Filing locations are detailed on the last page of the Form 1040 instructions. Taxpayers who reside in one of the fifty states should address the envelope as follows:
Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service Center
City, State, and Zip Code as indicated in the instructions
Permanent residents of Guam and the Virgin Islands have completely different mailing addresses which can be found on the last page of the Form 1040 instructions.
Form 1040: Things to Know About Individual Tax Returns
- An individual who doesn’t owe any income tax must file a return in order to claim a refund of tax withholding.
- The return must reflect correct social security numbers. Failure to report these correctly could result in unfavorable adjustments to deductions and credits, delayed refund checks, or improper credits for social security earnings.
- Form 1040, once filed, can be amended. This can be done by filing Form 1040X.
Another Article Related to Personal Taxes for United States Residents
Form 1040 is often accompanied by other forms necessary to claim tax credits or report certain types of earnings. A new tax form of interest to many U.S. taxpayers is Form 5405. The article IRS Form 5405, First-Time Homebuyer Credit details a federal tax incentive for new homebuyers, including who doesn’t qualify for the credit. The article also indicates where to download this form.
Resources:
IRS website
Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return
Lena Gott - Lena Gott is a Certified Public Accountant who gives practical financial advice to her readers.
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