–Alex Andrews
If you are a US citizen, filing a tax return is a process that a lot of us put off to the last minute and it’s not unusual for someone who is making very little income to not even bother to file. Many senior citizens, folks who are on disability or social security and people who earn very little sometimes don’t file a tax return. It’s not going to be any big surprise to the IRS to have some folks – who haven’t filed in a while because they don’t make any money – to file a return for 2019. The 2019 tax forms are very simple and everything can be done electronically so you don’t have to mail anything or make appointments at the IRS office. We’ll be putting up more details and information you need to know over the next couple of days.
It’s a good idea for everyone to file a tax return every year because a lot of public benefits are based on your taxable income. If you filed a tax return, that is almost ALL that is required to prove income to qualify for things like food stamps or emergency funds.from local charities and food banks. Having a tax return filed can also help you get identification documents because it is the social security verification that is needed for the “Real ID” requirements that most states require to get a drivers license or a state ID card.
NO ACTION IS NEEDED BY A LOT OF PEOPLE.The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service announced that distribution of economic impact payments will begin in the next three weeks and will be distributed automatically, with no action required for “most” people.
If you already filed a tax return for 2019, the process is automatic. If you haven’t filed a 2019 return yet, the IRS will use your 2018 return to generate your payment.
The deadline for filing tax returns has been extended to July 15th but DON’T WAIT until the deadline – especially since the stimulus checks will start going out in three weeks.
You have to have an adjusted gross income of less than 75K, and 150K if you are married. If you are single, your payment amount will be $1200. If you are married your payment amount will be $2400. Tax filers who make more than that have different amounts coming to them. Parents will get an extra $500 per child. A dependent child can only be “claimed” by one parent.
People who typically do not file a tax return WILLneed to file a simple tax return to receive an economic impact payment. Low-income taxpayers, senior citizens, Social Security recipients, some veterans and individuals with disabilities who are otherwise not required to file a tax return will NOT OWE TAX.
Payments will ONLY be made to a bank account in the recipients name. PHYSICAL CHECKS WILL NOT BE DISTRIBUTED. You will have to provide a bank account and routing number in order to receive your stimulus payment. Some prepaid debit cards – like Green Dot – provide a bank account routing number and account number for card holders. It might be worth getting a Green Dot debit card or something like it for this specific purpose.
If you haven’t filed for 2018 or 2019, you CAN still get a stimulus check by filing a 2019 return as soon as possible.
The IRS says it will NOT default taxpayers who are delinquent in filing their tax return for tax year 2018. However, they say taxpayers should file any delinquent 2018 return (and their 2019 return) on or before July 15, 2020. People who have not filed their return for tax years before 2019 should file their delinquent returns. (More than 1 million households that haven’t filed tax returns during the last three years are actually owed refunds; they still have time to claim these refunds.) The IRS says they are only going after high income taxpayers who are extremely delinquent and who owe a lot of money to the IRS.
If you file your taxes and discover that you owe money – you can set up a payment schedule with the IRS over a five year period and you will STILL RECEIVE YOUR STIMULUS MONEY.
You might not know what to report as your occupation and you may not know if you are filing as an “employee” or an “independent contractor” or as “self-employed”. You may not know where to access your 1099 or W-4. You may not have any of these forms as a “gig” worker so you may have to estimate your income. There are many ways you can describe your labor and its worth noting that when New Zealand decriminalized our labor, tax officials reported a pretty dramatic increase in the number of “entertainers” who suddenly filed – and paid – their taxes. There is more information here about different taxpayer filing categories.
If you have any concerns about filing your 2019 return, please seek out the advice of a tax accountant that specializes in the adult industry. It’s not expensive and it’s worth it to have their name and number at the bottom of your tax return because the IRS will contact them directly if they have any questions or concerns about your tax return. We recommend X Tax Pros in Las Vegas. They can file your taxes electronically. Their number is (702) 253-7499 and you can fill out their contact form to ask for more information at https://xtaxpros.com/. You can also call the SWOP Community Support Line at 877-776-2004 to get a few more recommendations about who to call and get help filing your taxes. If you are a Tax Preparer with adult industry experience, you can call and sign up to help our community get their taxes filed and qualify for their stimulus check!
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