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Dear Taxpayer,
As we enter the 2012 tax filing season, the IRS is always looking to find new and innovative ways to help you get your tax questions answered. The newest is our smartphone application, IRS2Go, which can be downloaded for free. You can do a number of things with this app, such as checking the status of your tax refund or subscribing to tax tips.
We also continue to enhance our website, IRS.gov, which is the most convenient way to get tax information. We also post videos on YouTube to help taxpayers understand their tax obligations. Check these out at www.youtube.com/irsvideos. Our news feed on Twitter, @IRSnews, is another excellent source of tax information.
Keep in mind that a number of federal tax incentives that were enacted in 2009 as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are still in effect for 2011. These include the American opportunity credit and the expanded earned income credit. Make sure to check to see if you qualify for these and other important deductions and credits.
Remember that the fastest, safest and easiest way to get your refund is to e-file and use direct deposit. E-file has become so popular that nearly eight out of 10 individual taxpayers now e-file their return. It’s now the first choice for about 112 million taxpayers.
Taxpayers below a certain income level can qualify to use free tax preparation software through the Free File program. Plus, everyone can e-file for free using a fillable form available at IRS.gov.
We know that it takes time to prepare and file a tax return, but the IRS wants to help you fulfill your tax obligations and will continue to go the extra mile to provide assistance.
Sincerely,
Douglas H. Shulman
We have designed the instructions to make your tax return filing as simple and clear as possible. We did this by arranging the instructions for Form 1040EZ preparation in the most helpful order.
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“Section 2—Filing Requirements” will help you decide if you even have to file.
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“Section 3—Line Instructions for Form 1040EZ” follows the main sections of the form, starting with “Top of the Form” and ending with “Signing Your Return.” Cut-outs from the form connect the instructions visually to the form.
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“Section 4—After You Have Finished” gives you a checklist to help you complete a correct return. Then we give you information about filing the return.
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“Section 6—Getting Tax Help” has topics such as how to get tax help, forms, instructions, and publications, and getting refund information, and useful tax facts.
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IRS e-file. This alerts you to the many electronic benefits, particularly tax filing, available to you at IRS.gov. | |
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Tip. This lets you know about possible tax benefits, helpful actions to take, or sources for additional information. | |
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Caution. This tells you about special rules, possible consequences to actions, and areas where you need to take special care to make correct entries. | |
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