Tax season

Consumer tax prep software maker TaxAct has signed an agreement with the health insurance exchange GetInsured to help taxpayers compare and apply for health insurance.

The Internal Revenue Service was unable to keep up with demand for telephone and correspondence services last tax season despite efficiency gains from processing more tax returns electronically, adding Web services, and shifting resources away from enforcement, according to a new government report.

Last tax season marked an increasing level of noncompliance by tax preparers with the Internal Revenue Service’s due diligence reporting requirements for the Earned Income Tax Credit, according to a new report reviewing the IRS’s performance during the delayed tax season.

The Internal Revenue Service announced today that the 2013 tax season will start on January 31, and encouraged taxpayers to e-file or use the Free File service to get their refunds more quickly.

When it comes to next tax season, tax preparers’ biggest concerns all revolve around lateness.

H&R Block has improved the user interface for its online and iPad tax preparation software.

As we come down to the wire for the beginning of busy season, it’s important to review some of the things we may already know, or think we know, about reporting and filing requirements.

Tax practitioners will be charging more this year for tax preparation, according to an annual survey by the National Society of Accountants.

Ernst & Young has published the latest edition of its annual tax guide ahead of the New Year.

More than 122 million returns were e-filed during this year in what the IRS calls a “milestone” for e-filing.

Tax preparers face a roster of issues going into the 2014 filing season

The IRS is starting this year's Earned Income Tax Credit due diligence compliance audits of return preparers.

Last week I moderated an Accounting Today Webinar, sponsored by SurePayroll, on the 2014 Tax Season Toolkit.

The on-again, off-again nature of the federal tax provisions traditionally known as tax extenders is leading to uncertainty and unnecessary complexity, according to tax policy experts at the American Institute of CPAs.

Check out the digital edition of the November 2013 issue of Accounting Today.

CCH Small Firm Services will embark on a seven-city roadshow later this month to demonstrate the improvements made to its ATX 2013 professional tax software.

The Internal Revenue Service does not always identify potentially mistaken claims for General Business Credits when processing tax returns, according to a new government report that found unsupported claims for the credits totaling $1.3 billion for 2011.

Anonymous visits by government auditors have uncovered accuracy problems with some of the tax returns prepared by volunteers who staff the Internal Revenue Service’s Volunteer Program, according to a new report.

The Internal Revenue Service issued its annual inflation adjustments for more than 40 tax provisions, including the tax rate schedules, and other tax changes for 2014.

The IRS has begun accepting applications and renewals of the Preparer Tax Identification Numbers required of professional tax preparers.