Ethereal 1040 - tax return preparation -- Statistical Data Included
WHILE YOU don't have a choice about whether to file your income taxes, this year you have more choices than ever about how to file your forms. An explosion of tax-filing Web sites promise to make quick work of your return--usually for less than $25 and in some cases free. If you're expecting money back from the IRS, electronic filing will speed up your tax refund.
Most sites offer a try-before-you-buy feature, requiring payment only when you're ready to print your return or file it electronically. So you may want to take a Web site out for a spin to see if this is the year you decide to pocket the tax-preparation fee you usually pay your accountant, or swap your software-in-a-box for an Internet address.
Online filing isn't for everyone. If you are concerned about trusting your personal financial information to cyberspace or you prefer more extensive guidance than most Web sites offer, you'll probably be happier with one of the leading tax-software products: Kiplinger TaxCut (H&R Block, $19.95, which includes tax advice from editors of this magazine) and TurboTax (Intuit, $39.95 before $10 rebate). Both programs offer a rebate that refunds the cost of electronically filing one federal return and preparing one state return. Not all states accept electronic filing.
"They didn't inundate me with information," says Tincher, who received his 1999 refund in less than two weeks. He says the site was easy to navigate and the program's interview questions prompted him to claim a tax credit for his wife that he might have overlooked if he was preparing his return on his own.
Tincher used the H.D. Vest service to file his 2000 return, but he says the redesigned Web site is packed with banner ads he tried hard to ignore.
After a tax-filing season plagued by technical problems last year, Block rebuilt its Web site from the ground up and added several new features this year to attract taxpayers who want a little--or a lot--of help with their income-tax returns.
Block charges $19.95 for online preparation and filing of your federal and state tax returns. For an extra $30, you can ask for a professional tax preparer to review and sign your return, or for $20, you can ask a tax adviser a specific question over the phone or by e-mail.
If you plan to use an online tax preparation service, get cracking. Forrester Research predicts that six million returns will be prepared online this year-three times more than in 2000--meaning Internet servers could get overloaded and you could be stuck trying to meet the April 16 tax-filing deadline.
Most sites offer a try-before-you-buy feature, requiring payment only when you're ready to print your return or file it electronically. So you may want to take a Web site out for a spin to see if this is the year you decide to pocket the tax-preparation fee you usually pay your accountant, or swap your software-in-a-box for an Internet address.
Online filing isn't for everyone. If you are concerned about trusting your personal financial information to cyberspace or you prefer more extensive guidance than most Web sites offer, you'll probably be happier with one of the leading tax-software products: Kiplinger TaxCut (H&R Block, $19.95, which includes tax advice from editors of this magazine) and TurboTax (Intuit, $39.95 before $10 rebate). Both programs offer a rebate that refunds the cost of electronically filing one federal return and preparing one state return. Not all states accept electronic filing.
"They didn't inundate me with information," says Tincher, who received his 1999 refund in less than two weeks. He says the site was easy to navigate and the program's interview questions prompted him to claim a tax credit for his wife that he might have overlooked if he was preparing his return on his own.
Tincher used the H.D. Vest service to file his 2000 return, but he says the redesigned Web site is packed with banner ads he tried hard to ignore.
After a tax-filing season plagued by technical problems last year, Block rebuilt its Web site from the ground up and added several new features this year to attract taxpayers who want a little--or a lot--of help with their income-tax returns.
Block charges $19.95 for online preparation and filing of your federal and state tax returns. For an extra $30, you can ask for a professional tax preparer to review and sign your return, or for $20, you can ask a tax adviser a specific question over the phone or by e-mail.
If you plan to use an online tax preparation service, get cracking. Forrester Research predicts that six million returns will be prepared online this year-three times more than in 2000--meaning Internet servers could get overloaded and you could be stuck trying to meet the April 16 tax-filing deadline.
WHILE YOU don't have a choice about whether to file your income taxes, this year you have more choices than ever about how to file your forms. An explosion of tax-filing Web sites promise to make quick work of your return--usually for less than $25 and in some cases free. If you're expecting money back from the IRS, electronic filing will speed up your tax refund.
Most sites offer a try-before-you-buy feature, requiring payment only when you're ready to print your return or file it electronically. So you may want to take a Web site out for a spin to see if this is the year you decide to pocket the tax-preparation fee you usually pay your accountant, or swap your software-in-a-box for an Internet address.
Online filing isn't for everyone. If you are concerned about trusting your personal financial information to cyberspace or you prefer more extensive guidance than most Web sites offer, you'll probably be happier with one of the leading tax-software products: Kiplinger TaxCut (H&R Block, $19.95, which includes tax advice from editors of this magazine) and TurboTax (Intuit, $39.95 before $10 rebate). Both programs offer a rebate that refunds the cost of electronically filing one federal return and preparing one state return. Not all states accept electronic filing.
"They didn't inundate me with information," says Tincher, who received his 1999 refund in less than two weeks. He says the site was easy to navigate and the program's interview questions prompted him to claim a tax credit for his wife that he might have overlooked if he was preparing his return on his own.
Tincher used the H.D. Vest service to file his 2000 return, but he says the redesigned Web site is packed with banner ads he tried hard to ignore.
After a tax-filing season plagued by technical problems last year, Block rebuilt its Web site from the ground up and added several new features this year to attract taxpayers who want a little--or a lot--of help with their income-tax returns.
Block charges $19.95 for online preparation and filing of your federal and state tax returns. For an extra $30, you can ask for a professional tax preparer to review and sign your return, or for $20, you can ask a tax adviser a specific question over the phone or by e-mail.
If you plan to use an online tax preparation service, get cracking. Forrester Research predicts that six million returns will be prepared online this year-three times more than in 2000--meaning Internet servers could get overloaded and you could be stuck trying to meet the April 16 tax-filing deadline.
Most sites offer a try-before-you-buy feature, requiring payment only when you're ready to print your return or file it electronically. So you may want to take a Web site out for a spin to see if this is the year you decide to pocket the tax-preparation fee you usually pay your accountant, or swap your software-in-a-box for an Internet address.
Online filing isn't for everyone. If you are concerned about trusting your personal financial information to cyberspace or you prefer more extensive guidance than most Web sites offer, you'll probably be happier with one of the leading tax-software products: Kiplinger TaxCut (H&R Block, $19.95, which includes tax advice from editors of this magazine) and TurboTax (Intuit, $39.95 before $10 rebate). Both programs offer a rebate that refunds the cost of electronically filing one federal return and preparing one state return. Not all states accept electronic filing.
"They didn't inundate me with information," says Tincher, who received his 1999 refund in less than two weeks. He says the site was easy to navigate and the program's interview questions prompted him to claim a tax credit for his wife that he might have overlooked if he was preparing his return on his own.
Tincher used the H.D. Vest service to file his 2000 return, but he says the redesigned Web site is packed with banner ads he tried hard to ignore.
After a tax-filing season plagued by technical problems last year, Block rebuilt its Web site from the ground up and added several new features this year to attract taxpayers who want a little--or a lot--of help with their income-tax returns.
Block charges $19.95 for online preparation and filing of your federal and state tax returns. For an extra $30, you can ask for a professional tax preparer to review and sign your return, or for $20, you can ask a tax adviser a specific question over the phone or by e-mail.
If you plan to use an online tax preparation service, get cracking. Forrester Research predicts that six million returns will be prepared online this year-three times more than in 2000--meaning Internet servers could get overloaded and you could be stuck trying to meet the April 16 tax-filing deadline.
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3:15 AM
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