# I'm FUCKED!!! (tax-related) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 15, 2004, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084 "2004-04-15T01:25:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/41 "2004-04-15T18:29:49Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > So why doesn’t the government pay _ **me** _ interest when I receive my overpayment check?! Not to be a smartass about it (he said, while preparing his smartass answer), but the answer is, because the law is not written in such a way as to require the government to pay you interest. ---
**Author:** ![caphis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19adc/32.png) [@caphis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caphis)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/42 "2004-04-15T18:55:02Z")
> [@missbunny](#): > > Just so people know: yes, you are supposed to file every year. But since penalties are based on the amount you owe, if you don’t owe any money and you don’t file, then the IRS really doesn’t care. They are happy to keep your refund for as long as they can, and after 3 years, you don’t get it back anymore. > > I didn’t file for 7 years. Combination of not doing it one year; continually procrastinating; losing the necessary papers, etc., then not wanting to file for one year when I hadn’t filed for the previous year. I didn’t owe any money and would have gotten small refunds ($10-$100). I did lose some money - admittedly a very stupid thing for me to let happen - but there is no penalty or anything to worry about as long as you don’t owe. > > I am just a regular filer; was able to do a 1040EZ for a number of years; no funky deductions or credits, no dependents. So I didn’t raise any red flags at the IRS, although they did kindly inform me several times that I hadn’t filed and I wasn’t going to get my refunds unless I did. But nothing else ever happened. Someone who has, at some point, filed with a high income and lots of deductions might create more interest with the IRS. Piddly ol’ me they didn’t care about at all. YMMV. > > P.S. I still haven’t filed last year’s return, and I won’t be filing this year’s tonight. I’m due refunds on both years so the IRS doesn’t really care. Yes, I’ll do it soon! Wow. If you can fill out a 1040EZ and are getting money back, but for some reason _don’t want to_, then you should send me copies of your W2s and I’ll do them for you in 10 minutes. I’d GLADLY accept $10-$100. ---
**Author:** ![TaxGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@TaxGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TaxGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/43 "2004-04-15T20:35:00Z")
The government **is** required to pay you interest on an overpayment of tax. However, if too much tax is withheld from you, and then you file on time and receive a timely refund, the amount that was over-withheld is not technically defined as an overpayment. An overpayment exists only if you overpay your taxes for a tax year and then don’t get a refund until after the time to file for that tax year. It does suck a little that the government doesn’t pay interest on over-withheld amounts, but the government can’t know your true tax liability until you file, so it doesn’t really know that it’s holding your money all year. So, it can’t really plan to use it and then pay interest, treating the amounts as if you had bought government bonds for the year. ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/44 "2004-04-15T21:03:29Z")
Caphis, I know, I know, I was an idiot. I did get my refunds for as far back as I could but I probably donated $300 to the govt. Yes, I am a fool. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/45 "2004-04-15T21:22:33Z")
If the 400 is less than or = to 10%, you can get a 30 day extension to pay the rest. or another way of stating this “if you have paid 90% of what you owe, you CAN get an extension to pay the rest.” I’ve done this 3 times, no problem. ---
**Author:** ![kimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f0a364/32.png) [@kimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kimera)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/46 "2004-04-15T21:41:43Z")
> [@Rex Fenestrarum](#): > > No, you’re not fucked. My former boss neglected to take out state taxes ALL YEAR last year and now that he laid me off I have no $$$ to pay the $1327 I owe North Carolina. Is there anything you can do legally to get your money back from your former employer or are you just screwed? I ask this because I strongly suspect that my current boss is not paying the govt my state taxes. The paychecks I get are either handwritten or printed without any information about what is going for taxes and such and such. He will print out details but only on request and after a great deal of reluctance. He’s taking the taxes out of my paycheck, but is there anyway to check if they actually are going to the govt or not? And if they aren’t going to the govt, am I going to be left having to pay for them? I REALLY can’t afford to pay anything to the govt. I’ve gotten back about $500 this year and that’s without Earned Income Credit because I am under 25. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/47 "2004-04-15T21:56:04Z")
> [@ava](#): > > He’s taking the taxes out of my paycheck, but is there anyway to check if they actually are going to the govt or not? And if they aren’t going to the govt, am I going to be left having to pay for them? I am not a tax lawyer either, but to my knowledge an employer who withholds taxes and fails to remit them to the government is personally liable for them. The employee is not liable. Make sure you keep your documentary evidence that taxes were withheld. Do they show on your W-2? If so, then you’re fine. In my layman’s opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/48 "2004-04-15T21:58:32Z")
Just to add to the good financial advice being offered in this thread, talking to your creditors and paying whatever you can is usually a good idea for any and all outstanding debts. It’s when you ignore them and hope they go away that things escalate and get nasty. **Yumanite** , you’ve said that you’re indifferent to money matters. Here’s my advice for you to live a long, financially healthy life: **Don’t get into debt.** It’s sooo easy to get into, and soooo hard to get out of. If you want any more financial advice from someone who’s made most of the mistakes, feel free to e-mail me. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/49 "2004-04-15T22:57:37Z")
I know this is not an easy time for many people out there, so I would simply like to extend my genuine sympathy to all those in this thread who consider themselves fucked. Best of luck to you all. May your problems be resolved as painlessly as possible. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2004, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/50 "2004-04-15T23:54:07Z")
> [@TaxGuy](#): > > 1. The statute of limitations on a tax year where a taxpayer does not file a return never ever runs. Therefore, twenty years from now the IRS could go after you for your 2003 taxes. > > 2. You’ll go to jail. The amount of time you spend in jail will be determined under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines according to the “tax loss” you caused (there’s a schedule that says something like $X.XX = Y years). > > 3. Penalties will be imposed and interest will keep compoundng. After a while the interest (imposed on both the principal, the penalties, and old interest) will just be massively huge, and the IRS is very unsympathetic to requests to abate interest. > > . A quibble- on point #2- the IRS has to show evidence of Criminal Intent in order for you to go to jail. Criminal Intent could include being a member of a Tax Protest group or having illegal income, however. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/51 "2004-04-16T19:51:51Z")
> [@](#): > > My former boss neglected to take out state taxes ALL YEAR last year and now that he laid me off I have no $$$ to pay the $1327 I owe North Carolina. THAT’S fucked. Note to all: At least a few times a year, look over your pay stub very carefully and make sure that all relevant withholdings are being taken out. No matter whose fault it is, it is YOU who will owe the money. I was a payroll clerk for a small city a few years ago. I had one employee come in and give me a royal tongue lashing come April 30th because he owed 1% earnings tax to his local municipality. I had taken out the 1% for the city in which we WORKED as I was required to do. However, I did not take out an additional 1% for the city in which he LIVED. And he happened to reside in the only municipality in the area that did not have a reciprocity agreement with us. (Some local municipalities will forgive all or a percentage of earnings taxes to employees who are paying an earnings tax to another local municipality.) What cracked me up was that he blamed me because I hadn’t withheld the money. I guess he expected me to research where each employee lived, determine the local tax rate (if any) and just withhold that money from his pay without his consent or request. When I asked him why he didn’t come in after his first paycheck didn’t show the additional 1% taken out, he admitted that he never looked at his paystub. Argh! ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/52 "2004-04-16T20:02:00Z")
> [@gooti](#): > > Just to clear things up… > > I work in a CPA firm. An extension gives you additional time to **file** a return. Any taxes owed are due on the 15th (postmarked by then, anyway). > > My advice would be, as other posters have suggested, to go ahead and file the return and wait for the total + interest/penalty fees to come back from the IRS. > > **From there you can set up a payment plan and pay the total owed in fairly small increments (usually four, but they will work with you on that). However, the payment plan adds separate fees to the total as well.** > > So, once you get the dreaded letter from the IRS listing your fees, you have the choice of paying it off all at once or paying a certain amount/month that will eventually end up costing you more money in the long run (pretty much like any other debt that you might owe). > > It’s a PITA, but it’s not the end of the world. Don’t panic…our clients do this all the time and no one is homeless or in jail. Okay, I speak from experience (or should I say, my husband’s experience). You can make a payment plan, but if you have money in your checking or savings account, they will TAKE IT. My husband had worked out a payment plan with the IRS and was paying faithfully, on time, each month. Then he gets a call from his bank and they tell him the IRS cleaned him out, and to borrow money from someone to cover the checks he’d written (like mortgage, utilities, everything). The IRS considers their payment to be your most important payment. Until you get this straightened out, make all your payments by money order. You’d be surprised how heartless these fucks can be. ---
**Author:** ![caphis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19adc/32.png) [@caphis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caphis)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/53 "2004-04-16T20:15:46Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > What cracked me up was that he blamed me because I hadn’t withheld the money. I guess he expected me to research where each employee lived, determine the local tax rate (if any) and just withhold that money from his pay without his consent or request. I will admit that the employee should have looked over his paystubs prior to tax time; however… Call me crazy, but I think it’s the employer’s job to know more about tax law than the employee. IMO, it’s akin to a cashier asking a customer if they know how much sales tax they’re supposed to charge. Yes, I expect my employer to know where I live (that’s why I tell them, isn’t it?) and know what to tax me. Every employer I’ve ever worked for (4) has done this. No, they haven’t just withheld the money without consent, they asked me beforehand. I had a form to sign to withhold tax for that reason. Considering that the employer knows where its employees live, and that you guys knew that that was the only municipality without a reciprocity agreement, I think your employer failed on the part of at least alerting the guy to this fact. I’m no expert on tax law, and quite honestly, I don’t even know what tax bracket I fall into. I fill out forms with instructions. I expect my employer to know how much to tax me. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2004, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/54 "2004-04-16T20:27:17Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > So why doesn’t the government pay _ **me** _ interest when I receive my overpayment check?! If they do not get your refund to you within a specified period of time they will pay interest (IIRC 90 days or something). I don’t know if that is still the case but it used to be. Note: My mom is a an assistant dept manager for one of the personal tax help lines at the IRS. As much of a panic attack as many people have hearing this, call them. If you have a question, they can answer it, you want to know your options, they will tell you. They can also back anything they tell you in writing, so if you need a hardcopy of the answer, you have something to take to an audit to back up your actions. It is normal for written responses to be requested so its not any kind of inconvenience on their part to request it. The people that answer those lines have no agenda, they do not get bonuses for “busting” people and there is really no incentive for them to bully you. They are not the collections/criminal investigations people. Those folks are the scary ones you don’t want crawling up your accounts with a microscope. Generally speaking the IRS isn’t going to bother looking for you unless you owe over $10,000 in back taxes and are still generating W-2’s from an employer. If you fail to file for a few years and they don’t see any financial activity attached to your SSN they will figure you died and flag the account for further review if any kind of income is reported to that SSN. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2004, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/55 "2004-04-17T01:48:45Z")
> [@](#): > > Call me crazy, but I think it’s the employer’s job to know more about tax law than the employee. IMO, it’s akin to a cashier asking a customer if they know how much sales tax they’re supposed to charge. No, it’s akin to me as a cashier saying: “Sir, that’s $25.00 plus $1.50, which represents Georgia’s 6% sales tax . Ah, but I see from your driver’s license that you live in East BuFu, New York. As a cashier, hence a sales tax expert, I am aware that just last month the state of New York imposed a non-reciprocal 1.25% sales tax on all items purchased outside of the state of New York or on the internet. You didn’t know that? Wow. Lucky I asked! Because if you don’t pay now, you’ll owe it come tax time. So would you like for me to collect that amount now and mail it to New York on your behalf? I’m not mandated by law to do this, nor do I get paid one red cent from New York for this courtesy, however since I collect sales tax for the state of Georgia, I feel I should be acquainted with each state’s tax code so that I can notify each customer of the laws that governs him.” ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2004, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/56 "2004-04-17T17:19:52Z")
Well, I just set up a payment plan with the IRS for my son because I discovered, at 7 pm on April 15th that my son, who gets paid as a non-employee (no taxes taken out at all) and made less than $6000 last year, owes $447 (plus $14 to the state) Thank God for Turbo tax, because I would have had no clue or time to find special forms. Yes, I know it’s my fault for waiting so long, but even with a month or more warning we couldn’t have come up with that money. I sent them the required payment of $25, drawn on my checking account, but they never asked for any bank info other that the name of the bank. As long as I make the payments on time, they can’t go after MY account, can they? Now if his employer would only pay him his back pay, we could pay this whole thing off next month. ---
**Author:** ![caphis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19adc/32.png) [@caphis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caphis)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2004, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/57 "2004-04-17T17:47:50Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > As a cashier, hence a sales tax expert, I think the major difference is that a cashier is not required to be a sales tax expert, but I would expect my payroll manager to be a little more on top of things. Cashiers scan things and push numbers, and the computer tells them what to ask for. Like I said, perhaps your company is different, but at least for all of the employers that I’ve worked for (3 national companies, 1 local/regional), they’ve all provided me with information about my local tax laws and how much I should have taken out. Then, they each gave me forms to sign stating that I understood this and I agreed to have it taken out for these purposes. ---
**Author:** ![mouthbreather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a698b9/32.png) [@mouthbreather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mouthbreather)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2004, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/58 "2004-04-17T22:54:35Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > Okay, I speak from experience (or should I say, my husband’s experience). You can make a payment plan, but if you have money in your checking or savings account, they will TAKE IT. My husband had worked out a payment plan with the IRS and was paying faithfully, on time, each month. Then he gets a call from his bank and they tell him the IRS cleaned him out, and to borrow money from someone to cover the checks he’d written (like mortgage, utilities, everything). The IRS considers their payment to be your most important payment. Until you get this straightened out, make all your payments by money order. You’d be surprised how heartless these fucks can be. Was this before or after their move to become a “softer, more gentle IRS” ? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2004, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/59 "2004-04-19T15:51:43Z")
> [@mouthbreather](#): > > Was this before or after their move to become a “softer, more gentle IRS” ? Before. I suppose they could be nicer about it than they used to be, but I don’t trust 'em as far as I can throw my house. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2004, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084/60 "2004-04-19T23:53:33Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > Okay, I speak from experience (or should I say, my husband’s experience). You can make a payment plan, but if you have money in your checking or savings account, they will TAKE IT. My husband had worked out a payment plan with the IRS and was paying faithfully, on time, each month. Then he gets a call from his bank and they tell him the IRS cleaned him out, and to borrow money from someone to cover the checks he’d written (like mortgage, utilities, everything). The IRS considers their payment to be your most important payment. Until you get this straightened out, make all your payments by money order. You’d be surprised how heartless these fucks can be. That is only supposed to happen if you “default”. I do agree in the "jackboot days’ of the IRS the list of things that would make you default was long and confusing. One was filing a new 1040 with another balance due. But I would be willing to bet that somehow your husband “defaulted”. Things are different now. I’d rather owe $$ to the IRS than most CC companies. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-fucked-tax-related/240084.md?page=4)