Tax Day has come and gone, and you filed your taxes well before the tax deadline. But what happens if you realize you left something out? When should you amend your tax return?
Do You Need to Amend Your Tax Return?
First off, make sure you need to amend your tax return. If you’ve made minor math errors, the IRS states that they will be able to handle adjustments for minor math errors without requiring a Form 1040-X amended tax return. However, if you need to report additional income (W2s, Unemployment, etc), change your filing status, claim missed tax credits and tax deductions, then you do need to amend your tax return if it hasn’t already been accepted by the IRS.
How to Amend Your Tax Return
In order to file a Form 1040-X Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, you will need to either print and sign it, and then mail it, or new as of last summer you can e-file it. E-filing it will save on some delivery time, since it can take up to 20 weeks to process amended returns after the IRS receives them.
If you’re amending a tax return and are expecting a bigger tax refund, the IRS advises that you wait for the original tax refund check to come in before sending in your amended return (you may cash the check you received). If you need help with amending your tax returns, TurboTax can guide you through the process.
Correcting a Tax Return
But wait, don’t hit the amend button so fast! There is another situation where you do not have to file an amendment. Did you already e-file your tax return and just receive a document reporting income? If you did, but your e-filed tax return was rejected by the IRS and not accepted due to a necessary correction, you don’t need to amend your tax return. All you need to do is add the previously missed forms, fix the reject error on your tax return and then it can be e-filed. And if you used TurboTax, we will guide you through correcting the reject status on your tax return.
Lastly, remember when you amend your federal tax return you may need to amend your state tax return since some states follow Federal tax law. You can check the status of your amended return with the IRS using the Where’s My Amended Return tool.
TurboTax Has You Covered
Don’t worry about knowing these steps for amending your tax return. TurboTax will guide you through amending your tax return, and if you used TurboTax Live to prepare your taxes, you can connect live via one-way video to a TurboTax Live tax expert in English and Spanish to get your questions answered year round.
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