The IRS Reminds Truckers They Have Extra Time

Truckers should wait until November to file their federal highway use tax returns – a three-month extension -- in this new YouTube video.

Watch this and other videos on the IRS’s YouTube Channel

Be Ready to File Form 2290 for Heavy Highway Vehicles

As the month of November moves closer and closer, you will want to be able to get your Form 2290 taken care of as swiftly as possible once it is made available. It is unfortunate enough that the filing process was delayed, but to avoid any future confusion about the issue, it would be beneficial to be ready to file once the form is available.

In order to make the filing process easier with the IRS using Form 2290, it is very important that you keep accurate records, just like you would when filing any other type of tax return. It is crucial for anyone filing form 2290 to maintain their records for at least 3 years prior to the filing date for any taxable highway vehicles registered to them. For fleet owners and small trucking companies who have filed form 2290 in the past, it is wise to always keep the 2290 records on hand, as one never knows when IRS inspection may take place. It is even important to save these returns if they are only for a part of a year. In the case of a suspended vehicle (public highway use was less than 5,000 miles/year) it is still necessary to keep records of Form 2290’s filed for them as well.

You will need to gather the following information before filing form 2290 to accelerate the filing process. You will need a description of all vehicles for which you are filing as well as a VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) for each one. You will also need to know the gross taxable weight of the vehicle.  It is also necessary to report the date the vehicle was acquired, as well as the name and address of the previous owner. The first use month for the taxable period is also required for reporting. If a vehicle is considered to be suspended, keep a record of actual highway mileage. If the vehicle is an agricultural vehicle, then keep accurate records of the number of miles it is driven on a farm or field. Keeping proper records of your 2290 information will be a great help to you in the unfortunate event of an audit.  It will also make the task of filing this form much easier.

ExpressTruckTax.com is an IRS authorized E-File provider who can help you file form 2290 as well as keep secure online records of previously filed form 2290’s. For more information on the 2290 filing process, heavy vehicle use tax, IRS payment methods, etc visit the Express Truck Tax website or call our Truck Tax experts at 704-234-6005. You can also email any questions to support@ExpressTruckTax.com.

IRS New Heavy Vehicle Use Tax (form 2290) Regulations for 2011

There are several taxes that are imposed on those in the trucking industry each year. Heavy Vehicles travelling on public highways are subject to HVUT, or Heavy Vehicle Use Tax. These taxes can be filed by filing a Form 2290. Truckers, owner operators, and trucking companies were recently notified by the IRS that their next highway use tax return for filing HVUT (which is usually due on August 31) will instead be due on November 30, 2011. The primary reason for the extension of the due date is to reduce confusion and multiple filings of Form 2290 that could result if Congress reinstates or makes changes to the current highway use tax after September 30, 2011.

The previously mentioned Heavy Vehicle Use Tax applies to trucks, truck tractors and buses with a gross taxable weight of 55,000 pounds and above. There are also many detailed rules and regulations that apply to vehicles with minimal road use, logging/agricultural vehicles, vehicles transferred during the year, and also those whose first use month was during July. In typical scenarios, vans, pick-ups and panel trucks are not taxable because would [under normal circumstances] fall below the 55,000 pound requirement.

The recently determined filing deadline of November 30 for Form 2290 (Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax Return) applies to the tax period beginning on July 1, 2011. This does not only include those vehicles that were used during July, it also includes those whose first use month was during August or September. According to recent statements from the IRS, 2290 tax returns should not be filed and payments should not be made until November 1, 2011.

Regulations for new vehicles that need to be registered will also take effect. Any new vehicle that needs to be registered during July through October of 2011, state DMV’s are now required to accept a Stamped Schedule 1 from the previous year since it is not possible to receive a stamped Schedule 1 until November of 2011. If a vehicle was acquired within the current tax year, and there is not a stamped Schedule 1 for the previous year, the owner only needs to provide some form of proof of purchase to prove that the vehicle was recently placed in his/her possession.

Fortunately, once the Form 2290 is available, the electronic filing service: ExpressTruckTax.com will be able to E-File the form and send it to the IRS in minutes. Express Truck Tax is an IRS Authorized E-File provider for filing Form 2290. The E-Filing Process is very simple; the form can be completed in minutes, and it can be sent to the IRS as soon as it is finished. It is such a time saver when you compare it to waiting in the IRS office for hours or sending it via postal mail and waiting weeks for the IRS to process it.  All you will need is your basic information about yourself, and your truck.

How to File Internal Revenue Service Taxes Online?

As you already know, it is becoming increasingly popular and more and more recommended to paying bills online. The same goes for your taxes. The process for a single return can actually be rather quick, easy, and completely painless. The IRS itself has authorized certain programs in which to file .These programs help increase the accuracy of your filing, as well as a secure way in which to transfer a tax payment. A tax payment made online takes only an instant, and is done over a secure connection; when sending tax payments via postal mail, it can take days to get there (and there is hardly a way of knowing if it was received until it is too late).

The IRS encourages everyone to E-File their tax returns because it is quicker and easier to process for the IRS. This is also a less costly option for the IRS. If you are considering E-Filing your Tax Return, there are a few things that you should look for:

A system to file tax returns is by nature going to be complex, but that does not mean that it cannot be user friendly. If a system is too complicated to figure out and there is no customer support options that should be a red flag.

Along with being user friendly, the questions asked should be completely understandable. If you cannot understand what is being asked, check the help guide, or contact the customer service.  If there is no customer service available at all, it may be a good time to find another tool.

It is important to remember that the IRS itself has created a list of authorized E-File providers. This list is posted on the Official IRS Website. Anyone planning to E-File a tax return should definitely check their E-Filing source and make sure that they are indeed an authorized E-Filing Service.

One of the best ways to E-File many different types of tax returns is through Express Tax Zone. They offer a wide variety of tax tools for e-filing. You can file something as easy as a tax extension, or something more complicated like Heavy Vehicle Use Tax. The Website for filing Truck Taxes online is www.ExpressTruckTax.com. It is a very simple process to file a complicated task. If you need assistance, you can contact their US-based customer support team of Truck Tax experts. They are available either by online chat, email (support@expresstrucktax.com), or by phone: 704.234.6005.

IRS Tax Implications for those in the Trucking Industry (form 2290, form 8849)

For many Owner-Operators of Heavy Highway Vehicles, the benefits of self employment make being on the open road a very exciting experience. However, due to the heavy regulation of the Trucking and Transportation Industry, there are various taxes you must pay for self-employment income earned as an independent truck driver. Since self-employed individuals are not subject to tax withholding, there is more control over periodic tax payments throughout the year, which can be cut down by claiming deductions for business expenses.

Self-Employment Tax

The Self-Employment tax applies to truck drivers who operate their own business. These taxes are imposed in order to fund the Social Security and Medicare programs. The disadvantage of paying these taxes as a self-employed individual is that you owe twice as much as taxpayers who earn their income from employment. This is because employers are responsible for paying the other half of these taxes for their employees. There is somewhat of a silver lining to this though, the IRS does allow you to claim a deduction for 50 percent of the self-employment tax payments you make as an adjustment to income.

Truck Driver Deductions

You are not required to pay income tax or self-employment tax on your gross earnings from self employed truck driving. Instead, it calculates your tax due on net earnings, which is equal to your gross earnings minus all deductions you can claim. In order to claim a deduction, the expense must be ordinary and necessary to operate your business. This may cover any number of expenses you incur, but typically, truck drivers may deduct the cost of gasoline, oil, truck repairs, insurance and parking charges. You may also deduct the cost of the truck itself by including the lease payments or depreciation of the purchase price in your deductions. And, if you ever stay in a hotel during those long road trips, you may deduct your lodging expenses also.

Other Truck Taxes

IRS Form 2290 is meant to send information about the usage of a commercial truck and to pay taxes on that use to the IRS. You can use this form for a single truck filing, or up to twenty-five vehicles can be reported on one form. The major reasons for filing the form include:

• Calculating and paying the taxes owed on Heavy Highway Use Vehicles
• Claiming a suspension of the tax for vehicles driven less than 5,000 miles during the applicable period (or 7,500 miles if agricultural use)
• Claiming a credit for a sold, stolen or destroyed vehicle

The typical Tax year for Form 2290 is from July 1st to June 30th of the next year. The form and any payment are typically due by the end of August of the corresponding year. The IRS requires that forms with 25 or more vehicles to be electronically filed.

As mentioned Earlier, the typical tax year is from July 1 to June 30, but this year it has changed. Due to legislation being held up in Congress, there has yet to be a legislation enacted to collect these Heavy Vehicle Use Taxes. The IRS has announced that it will not be accepting these 2290 forms until November 1 of this year.

Stay Alert for Internal Revenue Service Phishing Scams

Scammers are like cockroaches; they are unwanted, yet they never seem to go away.  Recently, there has been a set of IRS phishing emails that have been infesting the web. There have been at least two versions. One claims to be from "info manager@irs.gov" and another from "support manager@irs.gov." These emails can look convincing with headers that read: "IRS notification." Although it may seem authoritative, neither of these are legitimate and should be ignored, deleted, or forwarded along to phishing@irs.gov. Do Not reply and Do Not open the attachments.

Here is the plain text version of one of the emails:

Important Information about your tax return

We are unable to process your tax return

We received your tax return. However, we are unable to process the return as field.

Our records indicate that the person identified as the primary taxpayer or spouse on the tax return did not provided all the required documents shown on the tax form. Our records are based on information received from the Social Security Administration.

Based on this information, the tax account for the individual has been locked

What you need to do

Print out the attached notification and list of missing documents, fill it in, add the documents and send the following information to the address shown in the attached notification.

List of required documents:

• A copy of this letter
• Notification letter
• A photocopy of valid U.S. Federal or State Government issued identification.

Keep this notice for your records.

As you can see, this email is littered with typos and grammatical errors. That is always a Huge Red Flag if you are receiving an email that is supposedly from a professional organization. In addition to that, it is commonly known that the IRS does not send unsolicited e-mails to taxpayers. Therefore, most emails claiming to be from the IRS are most likely a scam.  

Be very careful with these emails. Most of them try to get you to reveal your personal or financial information. Do not reveal any of this information via e-mail. Better yet, Do Not reply to the email at all.  Don’t follow any links from these e-mails to any web sites where you might be asked for the same information.
Other e-mails may have attachments or links which download viruses or other malware onto your computer. Some of this malware, has the capabilities to retrieve financial and other personal information from your computer. Even if you don't manually input personal information into these sites, the malware allows the scammers to track your personally identifiable information.

Key Point to Remember: the IRS will never initiate contact with you via email. They will not ask you to click links to fix your tax information or verify your tax account. Neither will you be advised of a mistake in your refund via email. If you are concerned that you need to contact the IRS, then you should call them (1.800.829.1040). Don't click on an attachment or reply to an email claiming to be from the IRS.

So to recap: delete, delete, delete. Do Not open links. Do Not open any attachments. Do Not investigate on your own. The IRS can handle any investigation if necessary. If you would like to make the IRS aware of it, you can forward the e-mail to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov then DELETE the email.

This Information has been provided by the Truck Tax Team at www.ExpressTruckTax.com.