[BobC]

Thanks Bob. I'm not in that situation, but I would've thought what I proposed would've been OK to do, and not a "trick." I appreciate your clarification. I do agree with you that when it comes to the IRS, it's best to play by the rules and sleep well at night.


Very true Mark, very true.

The real trick is to make sure you get everything onto your tax return that the IRS knows about and has record of (W-2s, 1099s, etc.), and to then make sure you have everything reported in the right place, on the right forms, nothing is missing, and all the numbers add up properly (ie: you didn't screw up the math). When you electronically file your return, no person at the IRS actually looks at it. It goes into their automated system and is processed by their computers. It will automatically check for missing items, bad math, missing forms, and so on, and if it finds something is off, will generate a letter/notice to you about what they found wrong. So you want your return to be able to go through the IRS's computer checking system without a glitch. It is usually better to use a tax software program to do your return (if not an accountant/tax preparer) as the software typically makes sure the math is good, and usually alerts you to missing od otherwise deficient things on your tax return. It also then usually lets you electronically file your return so it goes right into their system, untouched by human hands. LOL

It is when you prepare your return and paper file it, actually mail your return into the IRS, that a human has to go ahead and enter everything into the IRS's system for you. Obviously, you now have a human looking at your tax return, and they can possibly make a mistake in entering it into the IRS's computer system for you. Don't worry though, these aren't going to be actual tax auditors entering your paper filed returns into the IRS's system, but still, the more hands that have to touch your return, the more chances for errors.