13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
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Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#2As a citizen of a country where tax is handled entirely by the government, schemes where for-profit corporations are part of the tax collection infrastructure seems absurd. As absurd as for-profit courts or for-profit election polling stations.
The article mentions that the tax software maker opposes the government doing this, but doesn't mention public opinion. What does the average American think about this?
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#3As a citizen of a country where tax is handled entirely by the government, schemes where for-profit corporations are part of the tax collection infrastructure seems absurd. As absurd as for-profit courts or for-profit election polling stations. The article mentions that the tax software maker opposes the government doing this, but doesn't mention public opinion. What does the average American think about this?
Depending on how straight forward the IRS makes it, considering they already know what most people owe and yet still force us to jump through hoops, then I’d be willing to give it a go instead of paying a company to help me with my taxes or using one of the various “free” websites that usually just try to sell you something else.
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#4As a citizen of a country where tax is handled entirely by the government, schemes where for-profit corporations are part of the tax collection infrastructure seems absurd. As absurd as for-profit courts or for-profit election polling stations. The article mentions that the tax software maker opposes the government doing this, but doesn't mention public opinion. What does the average American think about this?
Part of the problem is that both parties have ended up making our tax code so convoluted as sops to their own special interest groups. Group A needs a tax break for this! Group B for that! And so if you have a bog-standard boring return, fine, but if your financial situation ends up in certain buckets such as renting out property, getting RSUs, etc., then sometimes it's cheaper to hire an accountant than leave money on the table not understanding your deductions.
And then people in less-complicated situations get intimidated and think they need tax-prep software. Or they're lazy like me and use TurboTax so they can click through everything in an hour and be done with it.
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#5In the 8 years since I lived in the United States my income taxes in other countries have been almost unbelievably easy. Typically I look at the calculated amount provided by a government website, compare it to what I think it should be if there is done discrepancy, upload some receipts or whatever for deductions, then click submit.
It is beyond me why the experience should be any how different in the United States. And don't tell me, oh but there's 50 States which makes it complicated. I've lived in 5 countries in those years, four of which I had to pay taxes and every one was this easy.
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#6As a citizen of a country where tax is handled entirely by the government, schemes where for-profit corporations are part of the tax collection infrastructure seems absurd. As absurd as for-profit courts or for-profit election polling stations. The article mentions that the tax software maker opposes the government doing this, but doesn't mention public opinion. What does the average American think about this?
Part of the problem is that both parties have ended up making our tax code so convoluted as sops to their own special interest groups. Group A needs a tax break for this! Group B for that! And so if you have a bog-standard boring return, fine, but if your financial situation ends up in certain buckets such as renting out property, getting RSUs, etc., then sometimes it's cheaper to hire an accountant than leave money…
The tax code is complicated simply because wealthy people do not want to pay their fair share.
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#7In the 8 years since I lived in the United States my income taxes in other countries have been almost unbelievably easy. Typically I look at the calculated amount provided by a government website, compare it to what I think it should be if there is done discrepancy, upload some receipts or whatever for deductions, then click submit. It is beyond me why the experience should be any how different in the United States.…
"And tax politics make strange bedfellows. Fighting alongside H&R Block and Intuit are anti-tax activist groups like Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform. H&R Block and Intuit love taxes—that’s how they make their money. Grover Norquist wants to cut taxes wherever possible. But on this issue, their interests are aligned. H&R Block and Intuit want to make it difficult for you to file on your own. The anti-tax activists think that if taxpaying is too easy, voters will be less likely to resist the federal government’s growth. Both want to make it as painful as possible for you to do your taxes yourself."
https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2018/07/18/tax-filing-...
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#8In the 8 years since I lived in the United States my income taxes in other countries have been almost unbelievably easy. Typically I look at the calculated amount provided by a government website, compare it to what I think it should be if there is done discrepancy, upload some receipts or whatever for deductions, then click submit. It is beyond me why the experience should be any how different in the United States.…
JW, how do these countries handle non-employement or self-reported income (e.g. capital gains of real estate, equity, or even selling products online)?
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#9As a citizen of a country where tax is handled entirely by the government, schemes where for-profit corporations are part of the tax collection infrastructure seems absurd. As absurd as for-profit courts or for-profit election polling stations. The article mentions that the tax software maker opposes the government doing this, but doesn't mention public opinion. What does the average American think about this?
> What does the average American think about this?
That all depends on the government's execution. If they can deliver a system that is more convenient to use, cheaper (no, government services are not "free") and provides better results, then I'm all for it.
Re: 13 States join the IRS direct-file test after tax prep firms dropped the ball
#10In the 8 years since I lived in the United States my income taxes in other countries have been almost unbelievably easy. Typically I look at the calculated amount provided by a government website, compare it to what I think it should be if there is done discrepancy, upload some receipts or whatever for deductions, then click submit. It is beyond me why the experience should be any how different in the United States.…
JW, how do these countries handle non-employement or self-reported income (e.g. capital gains of real estate, equity, or even selling products online)?
A lot of stuff has to be reported at source these days, e.g. in Belgium where I live, Airbnb reports your income from hosting to the revenue service, your bank reports how much you paid on your mortgage (deductible), if you're unemployed then the benefits agency will communicate that, so will child care (deductible), and so on. And as the parent said, you can always add/edit amounts as necessary, which indeed will often be necessary for things like equity.