If you are a procrastinator when it comes filing your income tax return, rest assured you are not alone. The IRS reported that it had received 90 million tax returns as of March 30th (of an estimated 168 million) so clearly, a lot of returns will be coming in under the wire!

I’ve heard from a few clients in the past week or so that have yet to file their 2022 taxes, asking what dates they need to adhere to and/or what actions they need to take by tax day. Thought it was worth a quick refresher.

When is tax day again?

While it is usually the 15th of April, in 2023 the actual due date for taxes is April 18th, 2023 (this is due to the 15th falling on a weekend and the 17th being a holiday in Washington DC (Emancipation day))

What if I won’t be done in time?

There are a few reasons you may not be able to file by April 18th. Perhaps you have put it off too long and don’t have enough hours left to wrap it up. Or maybe you failed to get your tax preparer all of your information on time, resulting in their need to extend. Or you could be invested in certain companies that won’t get you the required tax forms (ie: K1s) until the summer. Not to worry. You can file an extension for the return itself (but you still need to make sure you’ve paid in enough taxes by April 18th or you will possibly incur penalties and interest).

What else needs to be done by April 18th?

If you have already filed (good work!), be sure that you make any retirement plan contributions you included on your return before that date as well. This may include items such as contributions to self employment plans (individual 401ks, SEP IRAs, etc) or individual retirement accounts like IRAs or Roth IRAs.

Also remember that April 18th is also the end of the first quarter for estimated tax payments. So if you are self-employed or make estimates for any other reason, be sure you get those in as well.

What do I need to consider if I extend?

If you extend, you now have until October 16th to file your return. However as noted above, if you have not yet paid in enough for 2022 taxes (via safe-harbor estimates, estimated payments, and/or withholdings), you will incur penalties and interest once you do file. Do your best at estimating any liability and make additional payments by April 18th to avoid this issue. Then in the coming weeks/ months, get your return completed and make sure any retirement plan contributions are made in advance of the date you eventually file.

Filing taxes is one of many trials of adulthood. Keep your head down and get it done – you’ll be glad you did!