Tax season has been in effect for over a month now, and anyone who has yet to get started should consider whether they should file by themselves or hire an expert to do it for them.
Filing taxes alone or hiring an expert both have their benefits and drawbacks; a person with a relatively uncomplicated filing process could most likely file without help, while a person who recently got married or started their own business in 2022 would probably want an expert's help, according to Forbes.
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What to consider when filing your own taxes
Several factors should be considered before deciding on whether a taxpayer should file taxes by themselves, including whether the taxpayer worked multiple jobs in 2022, got married sometime last year, opened their own business, or worked across multiple states, among other things to consider. In the case where a taxpayer falls into any of these categories, hiring an expert would most likely be the safer, and simpler, option.
Beyond these considerations, time is another factor that should be considered, as most taxpayers spend 13 hours filing their taxes. Taxes this year are due on Tuesday, April 18, meaning there are currently under two months left to file taxes.
What steps to take when filing your taxes by yourself
In the situation where the taxpayer does decide to take the plunge and file their own taxes, they should then consider what software they will use. A possible contender for all taxpayers who made $73,000 or less in 2022 is the Internal Revenue Service's Free File program, which lets all taxpayers whose income did not go over $73,000 file taxes for free.
Once the software in question has been decided, the taxpayer should then gather whatever documents are needed, such as W-2, 1099 forms, interest or dividend statements, charitable contribution receipts, and investment forms. All businesses are required to deliver employees their W-2 forms by Jan. 31.
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What to consider if you call an expert
If filing taxes alone sounds too daunting, there are more than enough experts who can be hired to file taxes. However, several steps should still be taken before hiring, such as checking the professional's experience in the field, which can be checked using the IRS's Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers tool available online.
After the taxpayer finds several possible contenders to file their taxes, they should ask all of these possible tax filers questions about their hiring, such as how much it costs to hire them, when they are available to meet during the tax season, and what sort of experience they have with other taxpayers in the same field of work as yours. The taxpayer should also make sure the tax filer has a valid preparer tax identification number (PTIN), which is required by the IRS for all tax filers.
The IRS has accepted tax returns since Jan. 23, the start of the 2023 tax season, and since Feb. 10 has issued 13.3 million federal income tax refunds, up by 48.4% compared to last year, according to data released by the agency on Friday.