Posts tagged as:

Seniors

Ask the taxgirl: Tax Help for Those Over 55

January 29, 2009 · 6 comments

Taxpayer asks:

I went to the website that you referred to for free e-file. Why is it that the free e-file websites have a 55 year age limit and gross income cap of $56,000. Why is there nothing available (for free) for people over 55 with a combined income over $56,000? I even called the IRS hotline thinking that perhaps they could direct me to a website that I might be able to use, and they seemed to be unaware of the age and income limit.

Taxgirl says:

Try the AARP. You can find their contact info in this post that I wrote for Seniors Support. I am not 100% sure what the age limits are for the tax services but since the AARP is open to those who are age 50 and above, I’m guessing that’s the magic number.

And despite what the rep at the IRS hotline says, there are special filing sites for seniors. I know because I volunteered at one (at our local senior center) for eons. Try calling (again) the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 and specifically ask for a Tax Counseling for the Elderly site near you. They should be able to give you a contact number – you can ask about income limits when you call the TCE site directly.

Finally, don’t send me any nasty emails about calling those folks over 55 seniors. I didn’t. The post is titled “Tax Help for those over 55″ because that’s the subject of the reader’s question. I do not claim to know when it’s appropriate to call someone “senior.” I do know that there are a couple of folks in a certain small southern town who are pleased as punch when senior means relatively young at a restaurant buffet (especially if crab legs are on said buffet)… So don’t get irritated and send me nasty emails for calling anyone a “senior” too early. Just consider this a buffet of tax advice.

Like any good lawyer, I need to add a disclaimer: Unfortunately, it is impossible to give comprehensive tax advice over the internet, no matter how well researched or written. Before relying on any information given on this site, contact a tax professional to discuss your particular situation.

Have a question? Ask the taxgirl! – Now on Facebook!

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IRS Seeks Seniors Who Haven’t Filed: You’re Picking Up the Tab

June 23, 2008 · 7 comments

Surprise! Having a “free check” for folks by requiring them to file when they don’t normally have to file isn’t quite as simple as you’d think.

The IRS has announced that more than 25% of eligible seniors have not filed tax returns for 2007. This means that those seniors will not receive a rebate check

So yes, the IRS is going to spend more money sending out another mailing to advise seniors to file. Nice, huh?

Yes, I sound a little bitter. It’s not that I don’t want folks to get their checks. It’s because this economic stimulus package has been a disaster from start to finish – full of mixed messages, IRS mistakes and misinformation from the administration.

And now, we get the price tag. In addition to the $168 billion in “free money” being mailed to taxpayers (which will clearly be made up in later years), the costs of administering the economic stimulus package may reach close to a billion dollars.

IRS initially received $202 million to carry out the economic stimulus legislation – the cost, as mentioned before, of all of the ads in the Super Bowl.

The Social Security Administration received a supplemental of $31 million and Financial Management Service (which manages the Offset Program) received $64 million.

Add that to the reallocation of hundreds of IRS collections staff to answering taxpayer telephone calls – estimated by the IRS to be $565 million in foregone enforcement revenue. These costs are in addition to the significant reduction in IRS’s telephone service, which has been overwhelmed (by a factor of 6) by calls about rebate checks – the costs of the resulting reallocations have not yet been reported.

Add in more “publicity” for the programs as noted above – the initial (non-targeted) mailings cost $42 million. And the costs keeps rising.

I’ll tell you what’s being stimulated – clearly disguised government pork.

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