We’re now into that time the year that accountants and other tax preparers refer to as “tax season.”
For the rest of us it’s panic season. We scramble to get together our tax documents and hope that we won’t have to pay taxes.
How many of you have filed your return the day it was due? I’m raising my hand (not easy to type like that).
Stressful, isn’t it?
Add to the stress the fact that not everyone files taxes the same. Some are individual filers while others file as self-employed. Corporations file taxes too.
But the tax deadlines aren’t all the same in every case. It’s enough to make your head spin, wondering “when are the tax deadlines for my taxes?”
Below you will find Federal Income Tax deadlines for 2013. Use these dates to your advantage and plan enough time to prepare your taxes before they are due.
Individual income tax filing due dates
When it comes to filing income taxes, everyone is well acquainted with “April 15”— a date in America that’s so universally recognized that it sits in a category with the Fourth of July and December 25th.
Make sure you get your taxes done by April 15th.
Did you know last year and the year before, April 15th wasn’t April 15th, if you know what I mean. The IRS does adjust that date based on the calendar, and the past couple of years were a couple of those exceptions.
If you are really on top of your taxes, the IRS started accepting e-file and Free File returns in January.
Need an extension to file?
Filing an extension moves the filing date out six months, to October 15, 2013.
The extension is automatic with the filing of Form 4868 (Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return). You must file the tax extension form no later than the tax filing date of April 15th.
It’s important to remember that the extension is NOT an extension to pay your taxes, but only to file the return.
Any tax liability required by the final return must be paid by April 15 otherwise tax penalties and interest will be incurred.
What about estimated tax payments for the self-employed?
Make sure you know the federal income tax deadlines for 2013!
Many taxpayers, particularly the self-employed, are required to make estimated income tax payments. This is done by sending tax payments with Form 1040-ES.
The due dates for estimated tax payments are:
1st payment, April 15, 2013 – For the period January 1st through March 31st
2nd payment, June 15, 2013 - For the period April 1st through May 31st
3rd payment, September 16, 2013 - For the period June 1st through August 31st
4th payment, January 15, 2014 - For the period September 1st through December 31st
Corporate income tax return (1120) filing dates
Since so many people are self-employed—many maintaining corporations in the process—it’s worth noting that corporate entities work on a different filing schedule.
The filing deadline for both corporations and S corporations is March 15. Or rather, the 15th of the third month after the corporation’s tax year ends. Many corporations follow the calendar year. If the corporation doesn’t then the third month rule applies after their fiscal year ends.
If you cannot file by the due date, you can file Form 7004, Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File Certain Business Income Tax, Information, and Other Returns. This will provide a 6-month extension of time to file (September 16, 2013). The corporation must file Form 7004 by the regular due date of the return.
Tax estimates are also required to be paid by corporations four times per year.
The due dates for the tax estimate installments are:
1st payment, April 15, 2013
2nd payment, June 15, 2013
3rd payment, September 16, 2013
4th payment, December 15, 2013
If any date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the installment is due on the next regular business day.
Check with your accountant or income tax preparer for these and other significant tax date, or go to IRS.gov for more information.
Remember, if you are mailing in taxes they must be postmarked by the due date. It’s not enough to just put your mail in the mailbox, you have to make sure it will be processed by the post office by the due date.
Don’t wait until the last minute. You never know what may come up or get lost. Give yourself a time cushion to prepare your taxes. It will feel SO much better to have them taken care of before their due date.
Federal Income Tax Deadlines to File Taxes for 2013,
My filing date depends on whether I owe them or they owe me. If I’m entitled to a refund I file as soon as possible. If I owe more I wait until the second week of April. Of course since becoming self-employed I get to file 4 times a year – Oh Joy!
That is another consideration. Many who owe wait as long as possible to file. Still, it’s important to give yourself enough time to actually prepare your taxes. You can have them done way before you actually file them.
Yes I prepare them in January. Then decide whether to file right away or wait. Since I’ve been filing quarterly I haven’t really needed to wait though since adjustments are made throughout the year. It’s a pain to do your taxes 4x per year, but there are benefits.
I can imagine. I’ll be doing that this year for sure. Fun times!
It’s always best to get your taxes sorted as soon as possible, especially if you have your own business as this frees up the time to sort out all of your other finance issues out as well.
There are so many things that can come up. You don’t want to risk late fees and such because you waited until the last minute.
Thanks for keeping us all on track!
No problem. But these are just words. You have to act on these dates in order for them to be effective.
This weekend I am doing my taxes. Waiting for last minute is not at all good.
Nope, it’s not. Ever see what the central post office looks like on due day? Insane.
We’re making an appointment to meet with our CPA for the next couple of weeks.
I prefer to get mine done as soon as possible. If I don’t I find it’s like everything else in my life, I spend way too much time thinking about it and being down about all the things I have to do. If I do them right away, I don’t have to spend time thinking about doing them.
I totally agree. When you wait it just gets more stressful.
This is the information about taxes I was exactly looking for since the tax season is approaching so quickly. It’s so much easier to read it in the form of an article like this than going on government web sites and trying to figure it all out by yourself. thanks for sharing!
I’m very happy to say I will not need an extension this year, for the first time in about 5 years! I got mine done as early as I could this year because I read about the fraud that was going on. People were steal social security #s and filing tax returns for other people. Once one person files with a given SSN, another return cannot be submitted, and they have your return check mailed to them. I can only imagine how much a pain this is to sort out with the IRS, so I did it as early as possible to protect myself this year.