IRS to open e-filing on January 20, 2015

Tax Season Opens As Planned Following Extenders Legislation

IR-2014-119, Dec. 29, 2014

WASHINGTON -- Following the passage of the extenders legislation, the Internal Revenue Service announced today it anticipates opening the 2015 filing season as scheduled in January.

The IRS will begin accepting tax returns electronically on Jan. 20. Paper tax returns will begin processing at the same time.

The decision follows Congress renewing a number of "extender" provisions of the tax law that expired at the end of 2013. These provisions were renewed by Congress through the end of 2014. The final legislation was signed into law Dec 19, 2014.

"We have reviewed the late tax law changes and determined there was nothing preventing us from continuing our updating and testing of our systems," said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. "Our employees will continue an aggressive schedule of testing and preparation of our systems during the next month to complete the final stages needed for the 2015 tax season."

The IRS reminds taxpayers that filing electronically is the most accurate way to file a tax return and the fastest way to get a refund. There is no advantage to people filing tax returns on paper in early January instead of waiting for e-file to begin.

http://www.irs.gov/uac/Newsroom/Tax-Season-Opens-As-Planned-Following-Extenders-Legislation-2014

2014 Quick Refund Estimator Available

Refunds Today is proud to announce the release of the 2014 Quick Refund Estimator.  This time saving tool will allow you to prepare an estimate of your client’s anticipated refund in just seconds!!!! 

This product is included with all Plus and Premier software packages and is available NOW. For those in the Basic or Standard packages, a trial version is also available.  To download the 2014 Quick Refund Estimator, full or trial version, login to the Refunds Today website at www.refundstoday.com and click on the Downloads section. You’ll find the appropriate download link in the Other Module Updates section in the Left pane.
Below are a few outstanding features of the Refunds Today Quick Refund Estimator:

• Simply enter: filing status, number of dependents, and W-2 information
• Updated to reflect current tax law changes
• Calculates 2014 estimated Federal Tax, Child Care Credit, Child Tax Credit, EIC, Additional Child Tax Credit, Estimated Federal Refund and even EIC Combat pay
• Estimates Health Insurance Penalty for households without health insurance coverage for 2014, 2015, and 2016
• Provides a client letter concerning the estimated federal tax and includes a liability disclaimer to be signed by the client or prospective client
• Good for computing estimates and for double-checking the accuracy of tax return entries in the Refunds Today Software

If you don’t have the Plus or Premier package, you can purchase the 2014 Quick Refund Estimator for as little as $50.  Better yet, we’ll let you “Try it before you buy it” with our Trial Version download (see above). Once you reach the maximum number of trial estimates, you will be provided with a link that will allow you to purchase and download the FULL unlimited version of the Refunds Today Quick Refund Estimator. Or, at any time, you can logon to the Refunds Today website at www.refundstoday.com and click on 2014 Catalog to purchase.  

If you have any questions or any issues with downloading the 2014 Refunds Today Tax Estimator, please do not hesitate to contact Refunds Today at 323-261-0240.

Special Pricing on The Tax Book

In your business, time is money.  To make sure you don't waste time looking for those tough tax answers, Refunds Today has solidified a partnership with The TaxBook™ - the industry leading tax resource assistance tool which was voted the #1 Tax & Accounting Research System by the CPA Practice Advisors Reader's Choice Awards.  The TaxBook is a printed, spiral bound notebook that puts all the tax answers you need right at your fingertips.  This comprehensive resource tool will help you spend less time researching complex tax scenarios by providing clear answers in easy to find tabs, indices, and Table of Contents.
The TaxBook 1040 Edition - includes comprehensive 1040 tax subjects.

The TaxBook Deluxe Edition - includes comprehensive 1040 tax subjects, as well as: C Corporations , S Corporations-1120S, Partnerships and LLCs-1065, Estates, Trusts, and Fiduciaries-1041, 706, 709, Financial Planning, Social Security, Exempt Orgs, Payroll and Labor Laws-940, 941 and Business Tools and Worksheets.

Simply click on the following link and login to be redirected to the "Tax Assistance Tools" page on the Refunds Today website. www.refundstoday.com

Senate Will Pass Extenders Before End of Week

Senate Will Pass Extenders Before End of Week, Says McConnell,(Dec. 10, 2014)

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on December 9 declared that the Senate will pass the Tax Increase Prevention Bill (HR 5771), a package of some 54 tax provisions, before it adjourns at the end of the week. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., was less sanguine, saying that the upper chamber will turn to tax extenders after Senate lawmakers approve a defense spending bill, legislation to keep the government operating beyond December 12 and an omnibus appropriations bill.

"There are three things we’re going to do," McConnell said, speaking to reporters following the weekly caucus luncheons. "We’re going to pass the National Defense Authorization Act, we’re going to pass the omnibus/CR (continuous resolution) and we’re going to pass the tax extender bill before we leave here this week."

HR 5771 extends individual, business and energy tax incentives through 2014 and makes technical corrections to existing tax laws. It also includes the House-approved Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Bill of 2014 (HR 647). The ABLE Bill would create tax-favored accounts for individuals challenged by disabilities.

The timing could leave the Senate working into the weekend as the House has yet to produce an omnibus appropriations bill and a CR necessary to keep the government from shutting down. Because of House rules, a bill must be made public for 48 hours before a vote can be held. As of press time, the House had not produced an omnibus bill, which means that chamber cannot vote on the measure before late in the evening of December 12 at the earliest, which will put a squeeze on Senate lawmakers and likely bump their adjournment date into the weekend.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., have also been engaged in talks in the hope that they can make the charitable giving tax credits permanent, but Reid was skeptical. He said that, with the Senate’s full plate, it was hard to imagine that lawmakers could tackle any new legislation. "I think it will be hard to get any new legislation up," he noted. "We have stuff we have to work through. Wyden made a presentation to the caucus. If we can get it up we will."

By Jeff Carlson, CCH News Staff

Bank Modules are Available

All Bank Modules v2014.1 are now available for download.

Refunds Today recommends you download and install these updates as soon as possible.
You may download the update from the Refunds Today secure website at www.refundstoday.com.

• Login with your user name (office number) and password then click on “Downloads”
• In the Left Pane select “Other Module Updates” and then choose Your Bank Module to begin the download

Should you have any questions or need assistance please do not hesitate to contact a Refunds Today Customer Support Representative at 323-261-0240.

System Update 2014.29.02 is Available

Refunds Today System Update 2014.29.02 is now available for download.

Refunds Today recommends you download and install this update as soon as possible.
You may download the update from the Refunds Today secure website at www.refundstoday.com.

• Login with your user name (office number) and password then click on “Downloads”
• In the Left Pane select “1040 Program and Forms” and then choose Refunds Today System Update to begin the download

Should you have any questions or need assistance please do not hesitate to contact a Refunds Today Customer Support Representative at 323-261-0240.

New Website Password Requirements

With the security of your information in mind, Refunds Today has strengthened our website password requirements for

www.refundstoday.com. We now require all passwords used to be at least 8 characters in length, and contain both letters and numbers. 

To go along with this, we have also changed how you can request a forgotten password. You are now required to choose and answer Password Reset questions before your new password is emailed to you, not unlike other websites.