All You Need To Know About Tax Filing: From Extension to Apps You Could Use!

The tax day has come and gone. The traditional date, which was April 15, has been pushed to July 15, thanks to the IRS. This was due to the coronavirus pandemic and the impact it caused on the economy of the USA.

The penalty for failure-to-file is $300 for the year 2020. This will become $330 in the year 2021 due to the Taxpayer First Act of 2019. To avoid paying the fine amount, you should have either postmarked or e-filed your tax return by midnight on July 15. It is possible to file an extension.

And according to the instructions on Form 4868, which is the Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File US Individual Income Tax Return, the taxpayers can avail an extra three months to file, making October 15 as the due date. People who have filed for an extension with the IRS have a lot of work to do.

Taxpayers normally face problems while sorting deductions, how to handle student loans, and the calculation of capital gains. To solve these problems, there are plenty of software providers who have made this process less cumbersome and more user-friendly. They are sometimes free packages or sometimes charged a nominal fee that provides nearly all the features as the big names available in the market.

Given below are some of the best software that is suitable for taxpayers’ needs.

1. Turbotax by Intuit

This company offers a myriad of solutions to all types of taxpayers and helps taxpayers even with the most complex of tax situations. However, its best feature is live, personal support.

Something that is a must-have for many people while filing taxes online. For a certain user fee, TurboTax also gets you the assistance of a certified tax professional. You could get this through on-demand support via a live video chat.

2. H&R Block

What H&R block lacks in intuitiveness (like TurboTax), it makes up with its multiplatform option. One of the best features is the 60-day 100% satisfaction guarantee. The downside is that free in-person support for audits, those people who opt for the tax-pro review will only get this benefit.

3. Jackson-Hewitt Online

Jackson-Hewitt has a straightforward tax-filing interface. It has the best-tax software with refund insurance. Besides that, it also offers the best built-in calculator to help the taxpayers find out the finer details. This includes the calculation of depreciation, amortization, etc.,  among other heads.

It also offers a worry-free guarantee plan, where the filer can be reimbursed, if the filer receives a reduced refund or if they end up facing additional tax liabilities.

4. Taxslayer

Taxslayer can be rated as one of the best software when it comes to overall pricing. One of the major perks of taxslayer is the fact that it offers a no-interest advance on a tax refund. This Georgia-based company enables users to file their state and federal returns online. However, the top reason to pick this app is that you do not have to shell out a penny on getting this app.

5. Credit Karma Tax

It offers a very user-friendly interface, and one of the main advantages of credit karma tax is that it does not charge for state returns. It also explains various tax-related terminologies and also has live technical chat support. One of the major limitations of it is that you can’t import a tax return from a competitor’s software.

6. Taxact

One of the key USP of taxact is it offers a $100,000 accuracy guarantee. This means that the person who files his/her taxes can receive up to $100,00 for any difference in liability or refund, IRS Penalties, and interest plus a refund for taxact software fees. This feature alone is enough to make it the best tax software if the person who is filing his/her taxes has a high taxable income or a complicated tax scenario where errors are possible.

Although there is numerous software that is available and offers a host of other benefits, these are some of the software that offers various features across various price points, which are beneficial to a wide range of people. While there are many software that offers free solutions, each of these software we just spoke about, has a unique feature that gives them an edge over the others.

And that is how they can position themselves against each other in the market. They have proved immensely beneficial to all people by helping them solve their tax-filing problem. However, the decision on which tool to pick from these should depend exclusively on your tax filing needs. So, do your research and start filing your taxes today!