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Where’s My Alabama State Tax Refund?

Find out how to check the status of your Alabama refund and how long you can expect to wait

Waiting for a tax refund can be one of the most frustrating experiences out there. After all the hard work of preparing taxes, we want our money now – not several weeks or months from now.

The IRS is notorious for delays, but state tax authorities are just as bad, if not worse. Unfortunately Alabama is no exception – delays of several months are not uncommon.

Here’s how to track the status of your tax refund as it wends its way through the state bureaucracy and how long you can expect to wait to get your money.

How to check the status of your refund

You can search for the status of your refund online at the Alabama Department of Revenue website. Just follow this link and then click on the “Where’s My Refund?” link under the individuals section of Taxpayer Services. In order to find your refund you will need to enter your Social Security number and the refund amount you expect to receive. Continue reading “Where’s My Alabama State Tax Refund?”

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File Massachusetts Income Tax Online

Figure out if you have to file a MA income tax return and do it online right here on RapidTax

Massachusetts taxes both earned (wages, salaries, tips, etc.) and unearned (interest, dividends, capital gains, etc.) income at 5.25%. Plus there’s a 12% tax on some capital gains.

This means that come tax time you’ll likely have to file a Massachusetts return if you live in the Bay State or earn money there. If you know you have to file, you can get started on your MA return right here on RapidTax, whether or not you have to file a federal return too.

If you’re unsure if you have to file, keep reading.

Who has to file a Massachusetts return?

Whether you have to file a Massachusetts return depends in large part on your residency. Here are the three different categories you can fall into: Continue reading “File Massachusetts Income Tax Online”

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How to File Taxes When You and Your Spouse Move to New York at Different Times

You and your spouse will probably have to file separate returns, but New York does give you the option of filing a joint return – as long as you let it tax all your money

The following is a slightly modified question from one of our readers:

My wife lived and worked in New York City for all of 2012. I lived and worked in Maryland for one month and then lived and worked in NYC for eleven months. I have already filed in MD as a part-time resident. For New York State, though, I am a bit confused. I have filled out a resident return for my wife and a part-time resident return for myself (including a part-time NYC resident worksheet for myself). Do we file jointly as we did for our federal return or do we each file separately? Does this affect our standard deduction? It seems like the two forms we filled out (IT-201 and IT-203) should be filed separately.

This is precisely of the sort of question that boggles taxpayers across the country. State tax residency is such a popular topic on this blog precisely because it is so complicated.

Every taxpayer is responsible for filing a resident return in the state where they live, unless that state happens to be one of the nine that don’t have an income tax. Continue reading “How to File Taxes When You and Your Spouse Move to New York at Different Times”