New data shows one in three Americans procrastinate on filing their taxes. Mark Gallegos, Illinois CPA Society member and tax partner at Porte Brown in Chicago, joined WBBM's Noon Business Hour to discuss why that might be a big mistake.
Below is a transcription of the interview between WBBM's Rob Hart and Gallagos.
Hart: And procrastinating to file your taxes is something that everybody has done at one point in their life. And as far as accountants are concerned, I mean tax filing season began January 27th, but, if you file after April 1, are you considered a later filer?
Gallegos: That would be considered a later filer, correct.
Hart: And what are some of the mistakes? What's the one, you know, risk that you run if you are an April 1st person or an April 10th person or, heaven forbid, an April 14th or 15th person?
Gallegos: Well, number one, faster refunds. You want to get your refund faster. So the IRS processes your returns on a first-come, first-served basis. So it slows down the processing time, so it'll take longer for you to get a refund. Also, you know, tax fraud and all kinds of identity theft. Scammers are out there looking to steal returns and Social Security numbers and file claims ahead of you, potentially. So get your return in to avoid any potential issues in that area. And the last-minute rush, I mean, between gathering all your documents, fixing any errors, and basically, you know, you don't want to forget about it. I know people say, oh, I got plenty of time between now and April 16th. We've got eight weeks or so. But the reality is, you know, spring break and other holidays and things that come up, and next thing you know, the date has come on you.
Hart: And I think for all of us who lived through the COVID-19 pandemic, when everything shut down -- the depths of the COVID pandemic nearly five years ago -- the lesson of you never know what the future holds. I think we all learned that in a very visceral way. And I remember, I filed my taxes that year in early March. But a week later, everything shut down, and the whole country went to remote work, including the people who process your tax returns at the IRS. So it took a very long time for us to get our refund, even though I filed a month ahead of time because of this very sudden, unexpected event.
Gallegos: Yes, and the earlier you get in, you avoid those events. But also, you will get your return process quicker. And typically right now, if you're e-filing your return, it's about 21 days to get your refund, maybe sooner. But if you file by paper, it could take four to six weeks. And then that processing time takes longer as you get closer to April 15th.
Hart: Now, also in terms of just if you have a basic return and it's not that complicated. There are a number of online tools available to you to make things a lot easier and cut the amount of time that you have to expend on filing your taxes. And some of those tools are free.
Gallegos: Absolutely. Plenty of websites, the state of Illinois, all kinds of other software out there that will help you. Even the IRS itself has a free filing program. If you just got a W-2, I mean, that's the easiest way. If you have more complexity, then you may want to use a tax advisor.
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