Back to School Tax Credits

Well, folks, Labor Day’s just a stone’s throw away. You know what that means: no more white clothing and school is definitely back in session.

In the time you’re saying goodbye to your summer and hello to college, you’re probably not thinking about your taxes. But, you know, it might not be a bad thing to touch on when you’ve got a sec; those who pay for college in 2016 may be eligible for receiving tax savings on their 2016 federal return.

Here’s a bit info from the IRS about back-to-school tax credits:

American Opportunity Tax Credit
The AOTC is an education credit worth up to $2,500 per year for eligible students. This credit is only available for the first four years of higher education and is 40% refundable. If you’re eligible for the credit, this means you can get up to $1,000 of the credit as a refund, even if you don’t owe any taxes.

Lifetime Learning Credit
Another education credit, the LLC is worth up to $2,000 per tax return. Unlike the AOTC, there isn’t a limit on the number of years you can claim the LLC for eligible students.

Qualified Expenses
When calculating your credit, you may only use qualified education expenses paid. Qualified expenses include tuition costs and other fees or related expenses eligible students must cover to enroll in and attend an eligible institution. Speaking of…

Eligible Educational Institutions
You’ll need to make sure that the school you’re attending is considered an eligible educational school before receiving an education credit. Eligible institutions are those that offer education beyond high school, so that includes most colleges and universities. Some vocational schools and other postsecondary schools may also qualify you for a credit.

Stay Tuned with ExpressIRSForms
While our services have less to do with individual tax filing and more to do with businesses who need to file information returns, like W-2s, 1099s, and ACA forms, we do try to provide as much IRS-related information as we can! So stay tuned to our blog for more IRS updates, as well as tax and e-filing tips and facts.

And if you do have any IRS e-filing questions in the meantime, we’re available to help with that as well. Just give us a call or send us a live chat or email - we’re here for you 24/7!

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The Forms of ExpressIRSForms

Boy, oh boy, has it been a big year for ExpressIRSForms! Growing from the simple, dependable e-filing base ExpressTaxFilings created with its 2012 launch, ExpressIRSForms had a booming first season, providing you with more e-filing capabilities than ever before.

The expansion into ExpressIRSForms brought with it e-filing support for twice as many IRS forms as before. To catch you up on all the forms we’ve added, here’s a bit about all the forms you can e-file at ExpressIRSForms.

Form 1099
The Form 1099 is a classic, used to report when a taxpayer has received income from sources other than a wage-paying job. That means it needs to be filled out by you (the employer) for all of the independent contractors and other non-employees you paid more than $600 to throughout the year for work related to your business.

Depending on how the payee received that moolah is which 1099 form you need to complete. Luckily, ExpressIRSForms supports four of the most commonly used 1099 forms, as well as their correction and transmittal forms:

• Form 1099-MISC, used to report payment for services performed for a business by people who aren’t employees, like subcontractors, renters, or prize recipients
• Form 1099-INT, which summarizes income of at least $10 from interest income
• Form 1099-DIV, used by banks and financial institutions to report dividends and other distributions over $10 received
• Form 1099-R, which reports distributions of retirement benefits over $10

W-2 Forms
For the people you hired as actual employees, we’ve got Form W-2 generation and e-filing. And when you e-file your W-2s with ExpressIRSForms, a digital copy of Form W-3 (the W-2 transmittal form) is automatically sent to the IRS along with your return. And while we try to make sure your return is sent off without any errors, making corrections to rejected W-2s is a breeze through ExpressIRSForms.

Affordable Care Act Forms
One of the biggest changes from ExpressTaxFilings to ExpressIRSForms was the addition of ACA Forms 1094-B, 1094-C, 1095-B, and 1095-C. Starting with the 2015 tax year (which was filed this past tax season), these forms became required to be filed by certain business owners and health insurance providers. ExpressIRSForms was one of the first IRS-authorized e-filing programs to have software capable of filing ACA forms, and we work every day to make sure we stay the best option for it.

Form W-9
Form W-9 isn’t a form you need to file with the IRS, but it is a form you need to complete to be able to complete the forms you need to file with the IRS. Typically when you hire someone, you’ll have them fill out and sign a Form W-9 to have a record of the information you’ll need to fill out their tax information returns each year, whether that’s a 1099, W-2, or ACA form. ExpressIRSForms gives you the ability to handle getting all that information and e-signature through a secure portal within your account. How simple does that sound?

Wanna Know More?
We get it, August isn’t a big time to think about your information returns. Or the upcoming tax season. That’s why we aim to make everything about your information return e-filing easier. So take a minute, check out our site, create an account, give us a call if you have a question. Then, go enjoy the rest of your summer, and come back in January when we’ll have everything ready for you to complete your 2015 return!

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ExpressIRSForms E-filing Features: Address Book

Wouldn’t it be great if your IRS e-filing software remembered not only your business’s information but your employees’ information, year to year? It sure would make it easier to e-file your 1094, 1095, 1099, and W-2 IRS information return forms.

Okay, so maybe something like that isn’t on your front burner at the moment, so to speak. But now that you’re thinking about it, wouldn’t it be nice to have?

Well, guess what? You can! With ExpressIRSForms.

With your ExpressIRSForms cloud-based account comes a categorized Address Book to help you keep track of your business(es) and employees, basically anyone you’d need to report tax information for or about.

And that part about “cloud-based” means anywhere you have access to the internet you’re able to access your account. So anytime you need to pull up contact information for one of your employees, just log into your account through our website, which is mobile-friendly for your convenience.

You can add employees to your Address Book by actually entering them into your Address Book (individually or by bulk upload), or by filing your returns. Once you create a return for a business and enter your employee forms, their contact information is saved to your Address Book. This means next year, when you need to file for the same all-star employees again, their contact information will already be filled in and all you’ll need to do is update any financial data.

Of course, the Address Book is just one of many awesome features that come with your (absolutely free) ExpressIRSForms account. Head on over to our site today to learn more or get started creating your account!


Got questions? We’re here to answer! Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET, we’re available by phone (704-684-4751) and live webchat. We also offer 24/7 email assistance at support@ExpressIRSForms.com.

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Have You Heard About Tax Transcripts

Did you know that you can request a tax transcript, similar to those transcripts you needed throughout school, pretty easily from the IRS?

Now, you may be wondering, “Why would I need a tax transcript? It’s getting toward the end of the summer and tax season is way over and school has been over. Why bring up transcripts now? We don’t need no stinking transcripts!”

True, you may not need a tax transcript. But these little guys come packed with some pretty useful information if you want to work on your upcoming tax returns or if you need to amend a prior one. Additionally, a lot of this information is necessary if you want to apply for a home or business loan or for financial aid. So it might be good to know how to get a hold of your tax transcript. You know, for future reference.

You can get a tax transcript for the current tax year and one for each of the past three years, which is usually enough to cover any info you’ll need. Tax return transcripts are going to have most of what was on your reported tax return from that year, as well as what was on any accompanying forms or schedules. Tax account transcripts have your marital status, return type, adjusted gross income, and taxable income. It’ll also include any changes you or the IRS made to your return after you filed it.

There are a few different ways you can get your tax transcript for your individual return:

• Online - You can view and print your transcripts online by going to the IRS’s website and using their tax transcript tool. You will need to create an online account with the IRS for this option if you don’t already have one.
• Phone - To order your tax transcript over the phone, call (800) 908-9946 and follow the prompts. If you have the IRS2Go mobile app, you can use this to request a transcript as well.
• Fax - You can request a tax transcript by completing Form 4506T-EZ and faxing it to:
• (512) 460-2272, if you filed a return in AL, KY, LA, MS, TN, TX, a foreign country, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the US Virgin Islands, or have an APO or FPO address.
• (559) 456-7227, if you filed a return in AK, AZ, AR, CA, CO, HI, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, MI, MN, MT, NE, NV, NM, ND, OK, OR, SD, UT, WA, WI, or WY.
• (855) 821-0094, if you filed a return in CT, DE, D.C., FL, GA, ME, MD, MS, MO, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, RI, SC, VT, VA, or WV.
• Mail - Lastly, you can snail mail you request for a tax transcript by mailing Form 4506T-EZ to one of the following locations:
• Filers and residents of AL, KY, LA, MS, TN, TX, a foreign country, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the US Virgin Islands, or have an APO or FPO address, mail your form to RAIVS Team, Stop 6716 AUSC, Austin, TX 73301.
• Filers and residents of AK, AZ, AR, CA, CO, HI, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, MI, MN, MT, NE, NV, NM, ND, OK, OR, SD, UT, WA, WI, or WY, mail your form to RAIVS Team, Stop 37106, Fresno, CA 93888.
• Filers and residents of CT, DE, D.C., FL, GA, ME, MD, MA, MO, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, RI, SC, VT, VA, or WV, mail your forms to RAIVS Team, Stop 6705 P-6, Kansas City, MO 64999.

Businesses! Heads up, because your fax and mailing options are a little different. To request a tax transcript for your business, you’ll need to complete Form 4506-T. And, again, depending on where you are depends on where you’ll send it.

• If your business was in AL, AK, AZ, AR, CA, CO, FL, HI, ID, IA, KS, LA, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NV, NM, ND, OK, OR, SD, TX, UT, WA, WY, a foreign country, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the US Virgin Islands, or APO or FPO address
• fax your form to (801) 620-6922 or
• mail it to Internal Revenue Service, RAIVS Team, P.O. Box 9941, Mail Stop 6734, Ogden, UT 84409.
• If your business was in CT, DE, D.C., GA, IL, IN, KY, ME, MD, MA, MI, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, RI, SC, TN, VT, VA, WV, or WI
• fax your form to (859) 669-3592 or
• mail it to Internal Revenue Service, RAIVS Team, P.O. Box 145500, Stop 2800 F, Cincinnati, OH 45250.

Stay tuned with ExpressIRSForms for more tax tips as we get ready for the next filing season! If you have any questions about e-filing with us in the meantime, we’re happy to answer. Just give us a call at (704) 684-4751 or send us an email to support@ExpressIRSForms.com.

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ExpressIRSForms Features: Express Import

Unless you were born a middle-aged accountant, complete with bowtie, taxes might not be your favorite thing in the world. The numbers, regulations, and deadlines can be overwhelming. But taxes, like regular hygiene, need to get done.

Don’t stress out: your taxes will get done with the help of ExpressIRSForms. With our step by step instructions, you’ll have your IRS tax forms correctly filled out and submitted in a matter of minutes.

Get started with our quick import feature for ACA Forms 1095-C and 1095-B.
First, determine whether you need form 1095-C or 1095-B.

Form 1095-C is given out from large employers to employees if the company has 50 or more employees. The form is given to full-time employees who work more than 30 hours a week and are enrolled in the company’s insurance policy.

Form 1095-B is given to employees that work full time at smaller companies with less than 50 employees. You will also get a 1095-B form if you have your own insurance directly from an insurance company, not through your work.

Once you have determined which form you need, download our template for it. The templates are clearly organized Excel files that map out what information you need to enter about you and your employees and where.

Verify that you have your employee’s social security numbers and last names correct and begin entering in their information.

Enter information about your employees including their personal details, the offer of coverage, and covered individuals. Don’t change the format or headers. Also, make sure there are no blank rows between the rows of your employee’s information.

We make it almost impossible to enter information incorrectly because we have examples of how everything should be entered on our site. For example, a phone number can be listed as xxx-xxx-xxxx or xxxxxxx.

If the employee is covered for all 12 months of the year, enter their coverage code with each corresponding month, otherwise only enter the code with their applicable months. You can also enter information about your employees if they’re self-covered.

If you’re an insurer with Form 1095-B, you’ll enter details about the business offering coverage to employees and fill out the corresponding information about insurers or employers.

Once you entered everyone’s information, upload the file. As the file is uploaded, it’s scanned for errors and points out where fields are missed and where information is misspelled or incorrect. Errors, if any, will be listed under ‘view errors’ with a brief explanation of why the error is incorrect. You’ll be able to quickly fix them and upload your file again.

As the file uploads, it will also count the number of employees so you can see how many of your employees were successfully imported and if any were skipped. Don’t worry if a few employees are missing, simply add them to your form and reupload it.

When every employee is listed and there are no errors on your form then it’s time to celebrate, because you can submit your forms directly to the IRS!

Need a little more help?
We are here for you, every step of the way with our amazing support team. We will answer your calls Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST and provide 24/7 email support. You can also chat with us online in English and Spanish! We will answer any and every question that you have to make filing your taxes a quick and easy process.

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