Is the New 1040 Form Really Going to be a Postcard?
President Donald Trump and his administration have made many promises in light of recent tax reform. In addition to reducing most taxpayer’s overall tax obligations, the administration also promised to unveil a “postcard-sized income tax return” to simply tax filings for the 2018 tax year.
It is important to note the government aims to have a form the size of a postcard, not an actual postcard tax filing. A postcard tax filing would likely lead to serious identity theft concerns.
Will the Trump administration deliver a post-card sized 1040 income tax return form? So far, it appears they are coming close. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) along with the United States Treasury Department recently unveiled a proposed draft of the new 1040 income tax form. The form is not exactly a postcard. The IRS’ current draft is slightly larger than an average postcard and utilizes both sides of the piece of paper it is printed upon.
What do we know so far about this form? We know it is shorter than the current 1040 form, but we also know it is not necessarily more simplistic. Although the form itself is short, proper completion requires the taxpayer to utilize a number of schedules. These complex schedules could lead to mistakes and potential questions from the IRS.
What can we learn from the most recent unveiling? It may be more important than ever to carefully keep paperwork used to file out your tax returns in 2018. The government is still providing guidance on the rules for the 2018 tax year and the chance for a mistake is high. As such, anyone that is questioned by the IRS could find themselves the subject of an audit. Having paperwork in order to support the filings can help reduce the risk of additional penalties and fees.
