Pay Your Taxes With Your Credit Card

Most people don’t realize that the IRS will accept any major credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, or Discover) to pay your taxes. The easiest way to do this is, of course, to e-file. When you use TurboTax, TaxAct, or such software, you can input your credit card information right into their secure system. You may also do this on paper taxes by just filling out the proper information on your forms. Good news for those of us who owe money and don’t have any on hand.

When Can I Start My Efile?

It’s a new year and the start of the ever dreaded “tax season.” I know some of you eager beavers want to get a jump on your taxes right away. But guess what? Not quite that time yet.

While some companies, such as H&R Block, are starting to efile taxes as early as January 4th…most of us are going to have to wait until at least January 11th before the IRS will start accepting independent efiling (those of us who aren’t a tax company that is). This doesn’t effect most of us since you do need to have all of your paperwork (W2’s and the like) in order before you can file. And seeing as companies aren’t liable to dispense these records until the end of January, most of us will just have to cool our heels for a couple of weeks before we can start.

Don’t fall into the trap of paying a company like H&R Block to do your taxes just because you want to get your taxes efiled a couple of days early. If you are a penny pincher like me, just wait a few extra days and it will save you a bunch of extra money.

Best Free eFile Tax Programs

Now that you’re ready to begin your taxes, the next step is to choose an eFile program. Many are free for Federal returns, and charge a fee for state filing. We recommend the following tax software:

• TurboTax – Free Federal and $29.95 State
• H&R Block At Home – Free Federal and $29.95 State

Both TurboTax and H&R Block at Home offer great solutions no matter the complexity of your tax returns. For basic filers with limited deductions, the free versions of these programs will be acceptable. But if you run a small business, have a lot of investments, or a lot of deductions, you will want to upgrade to a more comprehensive package.

No Tax Software? No Problem… Try Illinois WebFile!

Yay! The government is finally making it easier and more cost efficient to file your taxes online in Illinois thanks to WebFile. This is a free program which allows you to file your taxes with the ease of the internet but none of the costly software or tax professionals. With WebFile, you pay nothing…that’s right…NOTHING! Not even the cost of a postage stamp to mail out your “efile” copies or the gas to get that refund to the bank.

It’s quite simple. Just go to tax.illinois.gov and file right from home. Your tax information goes directly from your computer at home to the IRS and your refund is placed directly into your bank account. When you use this program you will get a faster refund, a confirmation number which proves you filed, and less (if any) penalties to worry about since their double check all your numbers for you. Trying to go GREEN? Guess what? You will also be helping the planet saving trees and paper that would otherwise be used to file those annoying taxes.

8 easy steps to Illinois WebFile

1. Fill out your federal tax return (don’t have to worry about the software!)
2. Look up your IL-PIN number on tax.illinois.gov or they will mail it to you
3. Get together all your paperwork (W2’s, 1099’s and such)
4. Go to tax.illinois.gov
5. Enter in your IL-PIN and Social Security number
6. Choose which format you would like to use (interview or fill-in)
7. Complete your forms from the comfort of home
8. Enter in the bank account in which you would like to have your refund deposited

and PRESTO! You have filed your 2008 taxes (and in your jamies no less!)

So save time, worry, and the planet with Illinois WebFile. You’ll be glad you did!

TaxBrain Review

TaxBrain is a good service for filing a 1040EZ or a simple 1040 return. It is a bit on the pricey side but TaxBrain can provide you with a quick loan at an additional cost.

Intuitive Navigation:

The navigation leaves something to be desired. In order to make changes to a previous screen, you must finish and save the screen you’re working on and then go back.

Novice-Friendly:

TaxBrain is just like filling out the paper forms yourself – without paper. It is not a good solution for a novice user. The process begins with a few questions that then guide you to the correct forms which you fill in online.

Ease of Installation/Setup:

Account setup took a few minutes, but there is no download or installation necessary. Upon setup, you create a username and password to save your settings.

Feature Set:

TaxBrain offers many extra forms you may need such as forms for income reporting, small business income/loss, deductions, credits, and a few special forms. You can import your data from Quicken or Microsoft money.

Help/Documentation/Search:

In terms of customer support the offer chat, email and telephone contact. They also post a knowledgebase section and FAQ pages, however they are not necessarily easy to find. For example, if you click on “questions” from their home page it takes you to a “We’ve got Answers” page, but the only thing you can access there is the chat option.

Summary:
TaxBrain is useful if you know what you’re doing – and it can get it done usually in less than 40 minutes. If you cannot wait to get your refund, TaxBrain can help you get a quick loan.

CompleteTax Review

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CompleteTax ranks among the best services to eFile your taxes. A simple questionnaire guides you through the process, and an extensive Tax Guide provides a wealth of information.

Intuitive Navigation:

Navigation was simple. You simply fill in the blanks and move to the next section. CompleteTax saves all your data so you can take a break and resume filing at any time.

Novice-Friendly:

Complete Tax is exceptionally helpful to first time filers. The tutorial when you sign in explains everything you will need to provide and explains how to use the website.

Ease of Installation/Setup:

The entire program is hosted online – there is no software to install. We found no problems or complications when starting the process.

Feature Set:

CompleteTax includes all the features you need to file you taxes. CompleteTax will automatically check your return for errors or omissions, allows you to automatically import data, and includes an extensive tools and help section.

Help/Documentation/Search:

Customer support is available via email, or online chat. There is an extensive help section to answer your questions.
CompleteTax has a lot of online material to answer your questions. Or, you can contact customer


Summary:
CompleteTax is user-friendly and offers sufficient tax advice and information. The program is all-inclusive and is definitely worth taking a look at.

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TaxAct Software Review

TaxAct has long been one of our favorite eFiling solutions. It is affordable and easy to use and receives our Bronze Award. TaxAct falls behind TurboTax and TaxCut because of it’s lack of advanced features such as investment advice and retirement planning. For simple tax returns and first time filers, TaxAct is good choice.

Intuitive Navigation:

TaxAct navigation is intuitive and easy to use. You can easily jump from section to section and the questions are easy to understand.

Novice-Friendly:

TaxAct allows you to either answer tax questions or directly enter data into forms to complete your return. You can also import W-2s directly from participating employers. The ease of navigation and the simplicity of questions makes the service very novice-friendly.

Ease of Installation/Setup:

TaxAct was exceptionally easy to set up. We experience no problems or complications.

Feature Set:

TaxAct provides free federal eFiling and state filing at a very reasonable price.
You can determine the future impact of life events such as marriage, having children, changing jobs, and more.
TaxAct will pay your penalties if any of the calculations are incorrect.

Help/Documentation/Search:

The help sections provides useful information including J.K. Lasser’s Expert Tax Help and tech support through telephone, mail, fax, and email. The FAQ section is useful – although the search tool returned some inapplicable results.

Summary:
TaxAct is a great service at a great price. It provides all the necessary features for simple eFiling of both your federal and state tax returns. TaxAct receives our BRONZE award.

TurboTax Software Review

Intuitive Navigation:

TurboTax has one of the best navigation systems of all the  tax preparation software we’ve reviewed. The navigation is simple and intuitive – it allows you to easily jump from section to section and is easy even for novice computer users. TurboTax groups related items together and asks you which apply to you – this saves you time answering “no” to multiple questions.

TurboTax also allows you to automatically import your W-2s from participating employers.

Novice-Friendly:

TurboTax software is intuitive and the explanations are simple. The process is linear and you can always go back and make corrections – if you don’t know the answer to a question, the extensive Help section will guide you. TurboTax continuously checks your return for errors or missed deductions and can advise you on how to further maximize your deductions. TurboTax also provides personal professional tax advice for an additional fee.

Ease of Installation/Setup:

Setting up an account with TurboTax was very easy.

Feature Set:

TurboTax includes every feature we look for in a tax preparation product.

Beyond basic tax preparation assistance, TurboTax also offers a variety of useful features including:

• Audit Defense. Should the IRS contact you, TurboTax will explain your risk (or lack thereof) and show you how to best respond. TurboTax guarantees 100% accuracy of calculations.
• Year-to-year Deduction Comparisons
• Direct Deposit of Refunds. When you file electronically, you can receive your refund in as little as 8 days.
• Quick Entry/Import for Investments. Import your investment info directly from your financial institution, including Merrill Lynch and Ameristar.
• Cost/Basis Expert Assistance
• 401(k) Maximizer will boost your 401(K) contribution without hurting your paycheck. Choose to put your refund into your 401(k) plan and watch your interest grow.
• Deductions/ Credits Guided Interviews
• Error Checks
• Tax Library
• Medial Expense Expert: If you qualify for medical expense deductions, TurboTax will do the math and advise you.
• Electronic Filing with Confirmation of Receipt
• Guidance for Report Sales of NQSOs, ISOs and ESPPs.

TurboTax allows you to compare different tax scenarios and plan for future tax seasons. The product can evaluate different aspects of your financial situation and allow you to evaluate all your tax choices.

Help/Documentation/Search:

TurboTax has an extensive help section – better than any other product we’ve reviewed. Audio and video explanations help you to understand certain tax concepts and tax law changes. TurboTax also offers help with topics such as the sale of stocks and bonds, rental property deprecation, and retirement planning.

Summary:
TurboTax is very easy to use and helps to you optimize your tax return and retirement options. It has consistently been the best tax preparation software on the market. TurboTax receives our GOLD award.

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