Most people can’t stand filing their taxes, but many people don’t often think about the cost for the roads they drive on, the cost for the national parks that they enjoy, or the cost for the police officers and firemen that protect them. Although taxes are typically considered an inconvenience, it must be done in order to keep the things citizens need on a daily basis.
There are different types of taxes, for both individuals and businesses. There are income taxes, property taxes, and sales taxes. Income taxes are mainly to benefit the federal government while both income and sales taxes benefit state governments. On the other hand, county and city governments utilize property taxes to increase revenue. Governments levy these different types of taxes on individuals and businesses to cover the costs of their expenses. If the people are not taxed, there’s no money for the government to take care of things that benefit society as a whole for example, roads, schools, and national defense/state or local police protection, etc., according to the U.S Department of the Treasury.
There are some advantages of filing. Many citizens that are categorized under the low income tax bracket are eligible for a tax refund. Also, for those who take care of children under the age of 13 or care for someone who cannot take care of themselves they can receive a tax credit that may help counteract the cost of their care. For citizens who pay for tuition or enrollment fees for themselves, a spouse, or a dependent, they will receive a tax break or credit which will decrease the amount they would have to pay for taxes or increase the amount they will receive from the government according to the U.S. Tax Center.
At the end of the tax season, after everyone has filed their taxes, the government decides which people will receive money back from the government due to an over payment of taxes while others will have to pay in to the government because they have not paid enough. Tax returns should come within three weeks of the day they were filed.
Not everyone has to file, but most people do. Factors that dictate if one needs to file taxes include: annual income, age, marital status, and if someone has a dependent. Some tell-tale signs that a person must file include: if said person makes more than $10,000 in the previous tax year as a single filer, or more than $20,000 filing jointly (married) they will have to file. Similarly if a citizen is self-employed and earns more than $400, they will have to file. If taxes were not taken out on any form of wages or tips, taxes will be owed on them, and the person will need to file. For more information on who should file taxes, go to irs.com.
Dependent, single students under the age of 65 who are not blind have to file if their income in 2015 was more than $6,300 according to irs.gov. Some scholarships are taxable, so students should look into their financial aid packages before determining if they do or do not need to file.
Taxes can be filed online or printed from the official IRS website, completed, and mailed. There are different softwares made to help with completing taxes, such as TurboTax. There are also companies like H&R Block that file taxes for people, so they do not have to worry about doing it themselves. H&R Block also has a checklist for what information one should have handy to complete their taxes here: http://www.hrblock.com/tax-offices/tax-prep/tax-prep-checklist.html.
Many college students have not filed taxes before and may not have been taught how to file. Some students are either exempt from filing for some reason, or have their parents file their taxes for them, but eventually everyone must learn how to file their own taxes.
“It should be mandatory for colleges to require freshman students to take an annual tax filing class in the fall semester. It should be a requirement because it is necessary to know how to file taxes,” said Lauren Broom, freshman, criminal justice major.
People tend to be thrown into filing their own taxes, and may make some mistakes the first time or two. If colleges or high schools had a mandatory class to teach students about things adults must know when they move out on their own, it should make a smoother processes for everyone.
