Tax Day, the date individual tax returns are due to the government, is nearby. For many individuals this is unimportant because they submitted their taxes several weeks ago as soon as they received all the required documents. For others, Tax Day, which is April 15 each year, means time to finally setup an appointment to meet with their Kalamazoo accountant.
Federal income tax came into existence with the Revenue Act of 1861. Its motive at the time was to supply financing for the Civil War. This was later repealed as it was thought of as unconstitutional. It was not until 1913 that the Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was added. This amendment made it possible for Congress to levy taxes at their own will. At that time, Tax Day was March 1. Then in 1918, Tax Day was changed to March 15. Again, in 1955, it was changed to our current Tax Day, which is April 15. If the fifteenth of April falls on a weekend or holiday, Tax Day is changed to the first available business day. For example, this year Tax Day is April 17.
Income taxes are levied on incomes of both companies and individuals. The distinction between the two is that individuals are taxed based on their annual income and companies are taxed based on their net income. Both, however, are allotted some deductions. In either case, whether you are an individual or a company, it is time to start thinking about filing your annual tax return.
While some people will never do their taxes without the help of an accountant, others forgo spending the extra money and prepare their taxes on their own. While seeking an accountant for help with Kalamazoo tax prep may seem like the logical choice, doing them with no help is much less complicated than one may think. There is an array of software available that make this process foolproof. TurboTax is probably the most commonly used. It walks you through step-by-step, asks all the appropriate questions and checks what you have entered along the way. QuickBooks is another option. This software is different from TurboTax. It is accounting software that is advantageous to use for individuals who have more complicated taxes to file.
If you are like many individuals out there who have yet to file their taxes, do not worry, you still have time. You could either seek the advice of an expert who will prepare your taxes for you, or you can decide to download accounting or tax preparation software and do them on your own. Just remember, Tax Day is April 17, 2012.