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Can I File My Taxes On a Phone or Tablet?

Let’s face it, we no longer run home to use our desktop computer. Instead, we have everything in the palms of our hands.

30 years ago, just about everyone drove to a tax filer to file their taxes. The annual routine became nothing but a memory when taxpayers realized they didn’t have to leave home to file their taxes and could do everything online. The age of e-commerce has allowed businesses to grow in the cyber world while transforming the tax filing process.

Can the 56% of Americans with a smartphone use it to file taxes?

Today, 80% of Americans age 18-34 have a smartphone, while 56% of all Americans have one. With phones and tablets basically being an extension to our bodies, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that we not only want to talk, text, tweet and read a book on one device, we also want to file our taxes from our phones. The big question is, can you really file your taxes from the palm of your hand? With RapidTax, you can.

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What Is The 2013 Child Tax Credit & Additional Child Tax Credit?

The 2014 tax season is here and you may be wondering what federal tax credits you’re eligible for on your 2013 taxes.

If your children are under 17, don’t forget to claim the 2013 child tax credit. The credit allows up to $1000 (per qualifying child), to be subtracted from the income tax you owe. If you are taking the 2013 child tax credit, you may be able to claim the additional child tax credit and receive a tax refund.

If you qualify for the child tax credit, you can claim it and avoid the hassle of extra paperwork (which often goes along with claiming it), by filing your taxes on RapidTax.

What is the Child Tax Credit and Who Qualifies?

The child tax credit is a federal tax credit up to $1000 per child, for individuals with a qualifying child (or children), under age 17. To receive the child tax credit, you must meet six requirements, provided by the IRS.  The requirements to claim the 2013 child tax credit are as follows;

  1. The credit may only be for a qualifying child.
  2. The child must have been 16 years old or younger at the end of 2013.
  3. You must provide at least half of the child’s support.
  4. You must claim the child as your dependent on your federal taxes.
  5. The child must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national or U.S. resident alien.
  6. The child must have lived with you more than half of 2013.

What is the child tax credit phase out?

If you meet the requirements (listed above), the 2013 child  tax credit amount can be up to $1,000 per child. Don’t get too excited about the extra $1000, the total amount you can claim depends on your modified adjusted gross income, meaning there are income phaseouts.

To make life easier, RapidTax has created an income phase out chart to refer back to when filing your 2013 taxes. The charts below explain the income child tax credit phase outs (income levels above the stated, receive a smaller child tax credit) along with the child tax credit amounts, based on how many children you are claiming.

2013 Child Tax Credit

What is the additional child tax credit? Can I get a refund?

The additional child tax credit is any child tax credit amount which is refunded, due to the credit being excess to a person’s tax liability. Basically, if you want to take the child tax credit and realize you don’t have any tax due, you will instead tax the additional child tax credit (and receive a refund). The table below will help you understand the 2013 child tax credit you’ll receive this year.

2013 Additional Child Tax Credit

Filing your taxes and claiming the child tax credit doesn’t necessarily have to be a complicated process. Claiming the child tax credit 2013 is straightforward and simple when filing your taxes on RapidTax. Tax season 2014 is here, file today!

1/30/2014

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IRS Accepting E-Filed Tax Returns

E-File Your 2014 Tax Return today!

The 2015 tax season began on January 20, 2015 and will end on April 15, 2015.

You can e-file your 2014 taxes with RapidTax throughout the 2015 tax season.

How to Get Your Refund Early in 2015 

Want your refund as quick as possible in 2015? We don’t blame you. Follow these steps to receive your refund as quickly as possible;

1. Get Organized: Gather together all your tax information, tax forms, etc. that you’ll need to prepare your tax return. You’ll avoid wasting hours of your time frantically searching for them last minute.

2. Create a RapidTax account: At the start of January, RapidTax will have the 2014 Tax Application aviable for users to enter their 2014 Tax Return information. With that said, create an account on RapidTax at the start of the new year and start entering your tax information.

3. Choose Direct Deposit: If you opt to have your tax refund direct deposited into your account than you’ll probably receive it within 21 days. Avoid having your refund mailed to you via an IRS check, it will take much longer.

4. E-File: Electronically filing is MUCH faster than paper filing. Thanks to sites like RapidTax, you can e-file your taxes with ease, avoid waiting for your tax return and refund to be processed via paper filing (and of course, you’ll be able to skip a trip to the post office).

5. Avoid Mistakes: If you mis-report information on your tax return, the IRS may reject your return or take longer processing your return. Either scenario will cause a delay in getting your refund. To avoid this from happening, double check the information you’ve entered before submitting your tax return.

E-File with RapidTax!

To get started on your 2014 taxes, create an account on RapidTax.

As always, our tax team is standing by to help you. Reach out by phone, email or chat with any questions you may have.

1/29/2014: Photo via Caden Crawford on Flickr