US VHelpers: How do I pay my taxes late?

[Faustus]

So, back in April of 2005 I lost my W2. I had MOST of the info off it in my PC already so I filed for an extention, at that time I paid what I owed (approx $130) because I was told thats what you should do.

My intention was to get a new W-2, but I didn't because well I'm a lazy mofo and it required staying late to talk to payroll (remember I work over nights).

Anyway my W-2 has now turned up. How exactly do I go about paying my Taxes now? I want to take care of this before I have to file my 2005 Taxes.

[gadgetguy]

At this point I think you need to go to a tax accountant. There should be one on every other corner this time of year, and someone you know probably is doing it part time. Spread the word around that you're looking for one and you'll get plenty of offers/recommendations.
Then there's always the big names like HR Block (not an endorsement, just an example.)
If you're bound and determined to do it yourself then that information should be contained in the documents you used to file the extension. If you don't know where those are, call your local IRS office and ask what forms and procedures are required. Also, most Tax software should be able to walk you through this as well (TurboTax, Taxcut, etc. again not an endorsement, just examples).

Good luck.

[Faustus]

I see. I'm kinda hopeing someone has been through this before. The ammount I own with penialties is gonna be VERY low since I already paid. Talking like under $20 low. So I'm hope to avoid having to use a commercial service since their charge will be far more then I owe.

[gadgetguy]

... their charge will be far more then I owe.

Perhaps, but if you also have them do your current taxes, their services can be used as a deduction and they may find deductions you overlooked so it might be worth it anyway. But if you're confident in your own abilities, then like I said, there's software and the IRS.

Or maybe someone here does have direct experience (never give up hope).

[Faustus]

Well in general my Taxes are VERY simple. I don't have any real deductions.

[gadgetguy]

Another thing you might try is www.irs.gov and see if you can find your answers there. I'm sure you aren't the only one who's had this question, perhaps you can find something in their FAQs.

[HRMaddie]

I'm an accountant, but not specifically a tax accountant. From what I can gather you filed an extension and paid what you thought you owed? If this is correct, then you should just have to fill out an amended 1040, I believe 1040X. What might become an issue is the extension you filed, I think they are good for a certain period of time. You could have to pay another penalty, unless you kept filing an extension.

[adam]

You don't have to do anything special. Just go to the IRS homepage and look in their forms directory for "previous years" forms and get your 1040 or whatever for last year. Fill it out and mail it in. My dad gets an extension every year cause he's lazy. He's always one year behind but he never gets any penalties.

[zzyzzx]

I would also be looking for the 1040X form.

[Faustus]

Thanks. I'll check that 1040X out.

[ZAPPER]

I have never done it myself, but a guy at work swears that he just takes everything down to the local IRS office and has them do it for him. I don't know if this is a limited time offer or special promotion type deal or somthing, but that is what he says! (It seems that I may have heard about it on a local radio station before too, but Hey, I could be wrong)

I typically spend an hour or two and do mine myself and then go to the local "Tax in a box" and let them do them for real. Things get trickier every year now, and I can't keep up with all of the "CAFE", daycare, intrest, and out of state stuff anymore. I do them myself to get a ballpark figure and let the pros do the final cut just for insurance against any penalties. It ain't really that hard to do, but finding the right forms or even knowing what forms to look for can be the biggest part of it.

I let a "Hack" do mine "once"! A couple of months later the IRS sent me a nice polite letter saying to send them some more money, so I did. A couple of months later I got another nice letter, and I sent more money. The thrid time I got a letter, I went in to see what was going on. I was nervous, I was scared, and I was a little mad. But the woman sat me down, pulled everything up, showed me the "Mistakes" that the hack had made and that the IRS had made too. The last nice letter was a duplicate of the first so I didn't have to pay on that one. Once I actually got in to talk to someone, they where polite and professional and went out of their way to make me feel comfortable (well as comfortable as you can be sitting at the IRS)


I could say more about taxes, but that is for another board....