by Martha Eisenberg | Aug 19, 2020 | Tax Tips & News
We remain hopeful that we will be able to welcome you back for in-person meetings before the end of the year, but for now, our small entry way and social distancing guidelines make that impossible. Below are some updates, as well as protocols we will be following until we are confident that neither we nor our clients are at risk of exposure to COVID-19.
- Summer Hours are:
Monday – Thursday: 8:00 am to 4:00 pm
Friday & Saturday: Call for availability
- If you need to come to our office to drop off or pick up documents, we ask that you call in advance to let us know you are coming, and if possible, schedule an exact time so we know when to expect you.
- When you arrive, kindly call us from the parking lot so we can arrange to either meet you or leave your documents for retrieval in our office entryway.
- We also request that you wear a mask during any interaction with our staff—for your protection as well as ours!
- Although we are keeping regular hours, we are still not equipped to hold any in-person client meetings at this time.
- Our entire office building remains locked on Sundays, so no documents can be dropped off or retrieved.
We are all looking forward to the day when our doors are open and we can get back to some kind of “business as usual,” but for now, we thank you for helping us stay safe and healthy.
by Martha Eisenberg | Jul 6, 2020 | Tax Tips & News
Ordinarily, with extra staff during tax season we are able to reach out to clients personally during tax season to make sure we have everything we need.
Unfortunately, we don’t have the resources this year to contact clients individually, so we are asking everyone who still has not sent us their documents to contact us right away so we can determine if there is still enough time to file, or if we need to file an extension for you.
Please note: We must hear from you in order to file an extension on your behalf.
Thank you again for your help as we near the finish line!
by Martha Eisenberg | Jul 6, 2020 | Tax Tips & News
As we told you in our last update, IRS reports that it currently has more than 10 million pieces of unopened mail—many of which are paper returns—due to office shutdowns from COVID-19. In the meantime, on July 1st IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig said that he expects all processing and call centers to be open and fully staffed by mid-month, to coincide with this year’s deadline.
This is welcome news for anyone who filed in March or April and is still waiting for their refund. IRS indicates that they are working through oustanding returns in the order in which they were received, and asking people to be patient—and not to call—if you have already submitted your return.We do not have access to any information about the status of your refund, but you may find an update through the “Check My Refund Status” link on the IRS website.
Just make sure you are ready with the following before clicking through:
- your social security number
- your filing status
- your exact refund amount.
Here is a link to the Refunds page or your convenience: https://www.irs.gov/refunds
by Martha Eisenberg | Jun 24, 2020 | Tax Tips & News
School is officially over, we just celebrated the longest day of the year, and (illegal) fireworks are flying off the shelves—all signs that July is almost here.
This year, it also signals that the automatic three-month tax day extension for 2020 has been whittled down to just a few weeks!
We continue to process returns as they come in, but one of the challenges we are facing is that part of our staff only works from January through April. That means we are short-staffed as we enter the home stretch this year, so it’s more important than ever that we have everything we need as soon as possible to keep things moving as the July 15th deadline approaches.
So, for those of you who put aside your taxes to take care of other responsibilities during the pandemic, now is the time to get us your information to avoid having to file for another extension. Do it today! You won’t regret it.If we do have your information, thank you, and you should be hearing from us soon. We can’t overstate enough how much we have appreciated your patience and understanding.
by Martha Eisenberg | Jun 24, 2020 | Tax Tips & News
Like businesses all over the country, IRS is facing work backlogs and staffing challenges that are causing delays in communication and processing—and frustration among taxpayers.
Recently, we received a brief update from IRS with the good news that more than 11,000 employees were called back to work on June 1st. The bad news is that they are reportedly returning to more than 10 million pieces of unopened mail, and a case load that dates back to mid-March, when the shutdown began in earnest. We also learned that some IRS offices that had reopened had to close again due to local spikes in cases of the virus. What this means for all of us is that getting answers from IRS about specific personal tax situations will continue to be a difficult task for the foreseeable future.
In the meantime, if you have more general questions, irs.gov provides many helpful tools and resources that don’t require endless hours on hold listening to muzak. We recommend starting there if you have questions.
