Eight days later than normal
The IRS may owe taxpayers late fees, but good luck collecting.
Today is the first day the Internal Revenue Service is processing tax returns for 2012. Normally, the IRS starts processing returns around the 20th of January, but was delayed because of the fiscal cliff negotiations.
Many of the provisions in the deal pertained to tax code for 2012 and for 2013 which means the IRS had to make changes to their processing software and forms to reflect the changes to the tax code prescribed in the fiscal cliff deal.
Certified Public Accountant Robert Fumagalli says the delay will cause tax refunds to come back slower, and will delay the acceptance of more complicated filings because some of the new tax rules still have to be programmed into IRS software.
Fumagalli is giving the same advice to his clients, so the sooner the better. He advises people to file as soon as possible to avoid having to file for extensions or pay late fees.
