How To File for an Amended Tax Return

Naturally, you do not want the IRS to find some discrepancies in your tax returns because this can lead to a serious problem in the future. Hence, if you discovered some errors on your tax return, may it be last year’s or the one you recently sent, it is always in your best interest to file an amended tax return. If the errors are simply a result of miscalculations, there is no need to file an amendment as the IRS will take care of correcting and informing you about this. However, certain circumstances require that you file an amended tax return as doing otherwise could cause you problems.

The most common errors are related to your deductions or credits, your total income, dependents and filing status. When you send a corrected tax return to the IRS, you may even be able to receive a refund. But if the error you made doesn’t lead to you receiving more money, and in fact incurs any penalties, it is good to own up to that mistake as well.

The form you will want to use to file a corrected or amended tax return is Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. This, in effect, corrects the discrepancies filed under Forms 1040EZ, 1040A, or 1040 Amended tax returns should always be sent through the mail. The IRS’ e-file systems are not yet capable of receiving electronic 1040x forms. Essentially, the 1040X simply asks for any data that need to be corrected and the reasons for the adjustments to your original tax return figures.

The usual reasons to filing for amended tax returns include a correction in filing status. Usually, taxpayers need to change from a single filer to a head of household filer. Changing this information in your tax returns entitles you to a refund as there is a substantial difference in the deduction available to those who qualify as head of household.

You have the chance to file an amended return anytime within the three years following that specific tax return’s filing date. This three year grace period is only available to those who paid all of their tax bills on the applicable tax return. If the tax bill was not fully paid, then the grace period is decreased to only two years.

If you’ve recently filed and you have discovered an error, you may want to wait until you receive your refund and all of the paperwork for that tax return has been processed before filing an amended tax return. This eliminates the possibilities of confusion regarding tax records and duplication of paperwork, which generally, pose a serious IRS problem.

On the other side, there are instances when additional costs are incurred when filing for an amended tax return. No matter how tempting the choice of simply running away is, honesty and filing for an amended tax return will always pay off in the long run. This frees you from future problems because the IRS will soon find out about this error. Also, there is also a good chance that the IRS will charge lesser fees to mistakes brought to their attention.