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Others who amend returns may qualify for a hefty refund or credit.
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But millions of people do anyway “because they want to get right with the IRS” and because they hope that filing an amended return and paying any balance due will enable them to avoid stiff penalties. Q: Are taxpayers required by law to file amended returns with the IRS to fix errors?Ī tax lawyer at the Kostelanetz & Fink LLP law firm in New York. “You can’t cherry-pick what you want to fix.” “If you file an amended return, you must correct all known mistakes,” Ms.
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Q: Can I fix just one error and ignore all my other mistakes?Ī: No. The IRS says to include “the year of the return you are amending at the top of Form 1040X.” Also, don’t forget to check out any state-filing requirements, Ms. The IRS wants you to mail each form in a separate envelope. File a separate Form 1040X for each year. Q: Suppose I want to fix mistakes on tax returns for more than one year? Can I do it all on one Form 1040X?Ī: No. Q: Should taxpayers bother fixing routine math errors?Ī: The IRS says it “may correct mathematical or clerical errors on a return and may accept returns without certain required forms or schedules.” In such cases, “there is no need to amend your return.” However, the IRS says, “do file an amended return if there is a change in your filing status, income, deductions or credits.” Hill warned in a recent CCH Webinar offered by Wolters Kluwer. Often, though, the process takes longer-much longer, Ms. Amended returns “take up to 16 weeks to process and up to three weeks from the date of mailing to show up in our system,” the IRS says in “Topic 308” on its website. Q: How quickly does the IRS handle amended returns?Ī: Not quickly. You have to file the old-fashioned paper way. Q: Can I file an amended return electronically?Ī: No. Q: How many people typically file amended returns?Ī: Eric Smith, an IRS spokesman, says there were about 3.7 million amended returns filed on Form 1040X in the fiscal year ended Sept. Here are answers to some questions readers may have on fixing errors. What may be the right answer for one taxpayer may be wrong for another. Sometimes, people receive fresh information about a partnership interest or a change in the amount of qualified dividend income received from mutual funds and other financial institutions. Examples include forgetting to report a dividend or interest payment, neglecting to take advantage of various tax credits or deductions, or receiving new information they didn’t have when they filed their original return.