Hey there friends!
It’s January! And you know what that means:
TAXES.
So fun. So tedious. So…wait? I have to pay for this?
No. You definitely do not have to pay to file your taxes. Many people do for the convenience of using a service like TurboTax. But I’m here to tell you, you do not need to waste money on this.
Firstly, I’ve used TurboTax before. It’s so simple and walks you through everything. But this year when I logged in, they wanted to charge me $40 plus the state filing just so I could use a student loan interest deduction form. Well, screw you very much. That $40 needs to go to food or gas or internet. Not to you cause you suck and want to take money from people burdened by student loan debt. No thank you. (Actually that was a much more polite version of what I said in my head, but we don’t need to repeat that here.)
Anyway, the IRS.gov website has multiple options for you to file taxes for real free. Here you go: https://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/ You will see that TurboTax does have a free edition, but only if your Adjusted Gross Income is less than $34,000. There are other options that have higher income boundaries and you can always use the fillable forms for free at any income. I’m using one of these options myself and can confirm it’s still pretty easy. You can totally do it all by yourself. Yup, even the fillable forms.
Some tips:
- It’s easier to gather all your tax documents together before you start. This includes last year’s tax return, W-2, interest income forms, student loan 1098 forms, car registration, etc. These will vary based on you and your situation.
- Take it slow. Break it into steps. Allow yourself to just go at it for 15 minutes then take a break if you need one. You’ll probably find you’re engaged and can keep going.
Take your time and get started early. I hope you all get refunds and payment is not delayed due to the federal shutdown…
Happy 2019!
-West Coast Dame