Our income tax dead line in Canada is April 30. So income tax is on my mind. I wonder how many countries in the world have an income tax system. I wonder what are the tax filing deadlines in other countries?
I did my own income tax until 2018 when I decided that for my skills it took too much time. I knew what was going on but it was hard work. I now have someone do my tax. However, now I don't really know what is going on. You can't have it both ways.
I filed my first tax return in 1958. It was one page both sides. I put in my income . Everybody was given a thousand dollar deduction. So fill it out and pay the tax man. Simple. I wish the tax system could have remained simple. So various governments tinkered with the system trying to raise more tax income and then make things more palatable by giving some benefits. So they take with one hand and give with the other. They also think we don't know what they're doing.
I taught for two years in a small isolated Inuit settlement. Usually 6 to 10 of the men got work at a nearby mine for a few months. These people did not read or write. However, the mining company had to send these men T-4 slips. When the men got these slips they would come to me and ask for money. I had to explain to them that we had to fill out a form and send it to the government and then they would get money. They had no other income except from the mine. So I ended up filling out a few tax returns. The were happy to get the income tax return.
So my return is done and filed. How about you? Have you found out how much money the tax man wants?
Mine is relatively simple, but still, easier to have done.
ReplyDeleteNone of it's easy.
DeleteWow! A one-page tax return is hard to imagine. You were kind to help the Inuit men. Have you seen the movie "Theo and Chloe"? It was just on PBS a few days ago, and is based on a true story about an Inuit elder who went to NYC to get people to listen about climate change he was seeing at that time, around the '60s. It was a good movie. Linda in Kansas
ReplyDeleteThe Inuit are very aware of daily weather and climate.
DeleteI am pleased to say that I have never had to fill in an income tax form in my entire life. It's not my idea of a good time. As a teacher my income was always taxed at source before I got my greedy little hands on the dough.
ReplyDeleteThat's soft!
DeleteMy hubby does our income tax each year, it has been done. Take care, have a happy weekend.
ReplyDeleteGood that your tax can be done without too much difficulty.
DeleteWe usually get some back but we never do them before mid April.
ReplyDeleteGood that you get some back.
DeleteWe used to get money back at tax season, but this year we paid an extra $48. Done already, thank goodness!
ReplyDeleteExtra $48.00? Sue the government!
DeleteI have to get working on that, Red! The US deadline is April 18th this year. I do my own taxes using an online program. It isn't too difficult once I get all of my papers in order...
ReplyDeleteYes, on line programs are the ticket.
DeleteApril 15th for us. We cannot do our own taxes. The tax form itself is just 4 pages, but the supporting documentations and forms add up to 30 pages or more, front and back. We never know how it will go. It is complicated by things such as repairs vs. upkeep weighed which determine actual profit. We both retired last year, so that will change things up quite a lot. We wait with bated breath. Last year we owed thousands, which was a hard hit, but that was a one off due to some unforeseen things that have not duplicated. Still...we are watching our pennies, just in case it happens again.
ReplyDeleteMy husband files the taxes each year. He finished this year's a few days ago. Happy to be done with that!
ReplyDeleteI'm lucky because Roger does our taxes. It's pretty easy most of the time. A "fill-in-the-blanks" routine.
ReplyDeleteFill in the blanks and make sure your addition is right.
DeleteI started off doing my own taxes back when they were just a single page and only took a couple hours to do. But then they got more complex so I started going to places to do them for me. I noticed however that they were just entering amounts into boxes that their computer program prompted them to do and could never answer any complex questions I had about reducing tax liability in future years. Their prices went up a lot every year. So I eventually just bought a tax program (Turbo Tax) for a tiny fraction of the cost of what I was paying someone else and it does a fine job of prompting me for various numbers to put in and also gives me advice on how to properly fill it out. The cost of it is also deductible here.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, my wife's income is so varied, it is impossible to predict from year to year. We went from nearly getting fined because we owed too much to getting an embarrassingly high refund this year and we changed nary a form for how much tax to withhold.
I still dream of those days of a single page tax form and hope that perhaps I'll live long enough to see it again.
We do them near the filing deadline and always got money back.
ReplyDeleteI think the government sets it up so that you get some back to make you feel good. They take a lot from you.
Deletei just checked last date for income tax in our country ,it is 31st of July .
ReplyDeletei have seen hubby filling income tax form few times some years ago but i think he has hired someone to do it for him since few years because i don't see him doing it anymore .i should ask him about though
The forms have become more complex as the years go by . They take more time and are more complex.
DeleteI remember my mother used to do her and my father's tax returns. It was a long process but she persevered. I did my own in the 70s and then my husband (an accountant) took over. Now my brother (also an accountant) does my mother's and mine. I am trained as an accountant but I stopped to raise our kids and when I went back I didn't want to do taxes, just accounting, and they let me :) You are wise to outsource; the returns can be very complicated now and it's H-E-double hockey sticks dealing with CRA.
ReplyDeleteI was stubborn until 2019 when I started hiring someone.
DeleteNot yet but all the paperwork is on the table waiting to go. Hubs does ours and uses TurboTax. I enjoyed your story about tax time at the Inuit settlement.
ReplyDeleteUsing a tax program makes it much easier.
DeleteHi Red, For individuals in the United States, the federal income tax deadline for 2023 is Monday, April 17, 2023. This is the deadline for filing federal income tax returns and for making any payments owed to the IRS for tax year 2022. This post encourages me to quit procrastinating and get my taxes done. Yes, I do my own, and use TurboTax. I think I will do them next week. Good on you for getting yours done! John
ReplyDeleteThere are many good programs to do your taxes. I never used one.
DeleteMine is done and payment due April 14th. I have to look around for money.
ReplyDeleteYou're prompt . It's better to be early than late.
DeleteI should get on it.
ReplyDeleteYes, Yes! Don't laze around!
DeleteHere in the USA the tax deadline is April 15 but because of natural disasters my tax preparer said in California we have until Oct. 15 to file. I gave him my paperwork this week so we can file soon; I like having a professional do my taxes, it is so complicated.
ReplyDeleteThe forms are impossible for most citizens.
DeleteYou are truly a kind soul, Red.
ReplyDeleteWe have sent our taxes to our accountant and she'll be taking care of it. They say an AI will be able to do all this work for us someday. Sure would be nice.
Wow, I think about the years I've been filing taxes. I've mostly done it myself but for several years I farmed it out. then it got to be too much headache and expense when they started charging by each piece of paper. I then started doing it myself once again. I prefer it that way for now because with the software these days all you need to do is plug in your numbers and the software does all the figuring out for you.
ReplyDeleteI used to do them online, even though both my husbands were accountants. Now we have a tax accountant!
ReplyDelete