HOWARD (NBC 26) — The Internal Revenue Service began accepting and processing 2022 tax returns on Monday for the 2023 tax season.
Nick Letter, a tax preparer with Advisors Management Group in Howard, said some people should prepare to get a smaller refund compared to last year.
"What that stems from is that the last couple of tax seasons, there's been some stimulus programs from the pandemic that some people have gotten on their tax returns," Letter said. "Last year in particular for those that have children, the child tax credit was temporarily increased."
Letter said that though filing taxes is a yearly routine for most people, there's still room for mistakes. The most common one he sees is people missing the required documents or forgetting information, like a part-time job they might have held.
He said the best way to avoid this is to keep track of and triple check everything being submitted, and don't rush to submit, specifically when missing documents.
However, he also said to avoid waiting too long to submit which is another common mistake people make.
Letter said this year, the IRS is hiring more staff, so this could mean faster processing times and shorter hold times on the phone, but this isn't a guarantee, and those filing should still leave enough time before the deadline in case they need to ask questions.
Whether someone chooses to file on their own or uses a tax preparer, Letter said it's most important to be aware of any tax law changes for the year and of personal records.
"Really think through your tax documents. A lot of people don't do that. Look at last year's tax return, especially if you're doing it on your own or even if you're using a preparer," Letter said. "Look at last year's tax return to give you some idea of, 'Okay, what did I have last year?' Odds are that's going to be similar to this year."'
The deadline to file this year is Tuesday, April 18.
