Personal loan agreement form

Rule #1: File on time. Even if you don't have all the money to pay the taxes you owe in full, filing your paperwork on time will still save you money in the long ran. Miss the mid night April 15 deadline, and the penalty fee meter starts ticking, and it will cost you.

It's important to know that the IRS will work out a payment plan if you can't pay your taxes in full by April 15. All you have to do is request the Installment Agreement Program If you owe less than $10,000 in taxes, you're automatically accepted There's a $43 service fee, and you'll have to pay interest charges on your outstanding tax balance. But these fees are lower than the penalty fees you'll have to pay for tax delinquency.

If what you owe is extremely large or you can prove that paying your taxes in installments would create an economic hardship for you and your family, there is yet a nether option. You may want to negotiate an Offer in Compromise plan using Form 656. In this case, you make the I RS a counteroffer and propose the tax amount to be paid. If the IRS agrees, your tax bill is reduced to that amount. To qualify for this option, you must be prepared to make a full disclosure of your assets, income, liabilities and living expenses.

If for some reason you can't complete your tax return by the April 15 deadline, request an extension, This will move the filing deadline to August 15. Just remember, a filing extension doesn't give you more time to pay the money you owe. By April 15, you must still pay something on your estimated tax bill and expect to be charged interest on the balance due.

If the IRS owes you, change your withholding and say "No tax refund, please." A refund check makes many of us feel as if we've done something right and we're being rewarded with a little windfall. But the reality is, if you get a tax-refund check, it's because you had too much money withheld from your paycheck for tax purposes. You gave Uncle Sam a yearlong interest-free loan This year keep your refund for 2004 in check by changing your withholding with your employer, Ask to fill out a new W-4 form. The change will be effective immediately, and your goal is for your annual withholdings to just about equal your tax liability come April 15 each year.

But how do you figure out how to decrease your withholding? Look at what your withholding was, and write down any changes you're expecting in your life this year: Is your dependent child turning 21? Are you buying a house? Gary Ambrose, a certified financial planner with the New York-based Personal Capital Management, says: "As your life changes, your deductions change, your income changes, and the tax codes change, so must your withholding."

For help, you can consult IRS Publication 919, "How Do I Adjust My Tax Withholdings?" (order from irs.gov). But if you're someone who gets cross-eyed reading about deductions, exemptions and how they all correlate, don't frustrate yourself. Go to a trusted financial planner or tax preparer. Don't be embarrassed that you can't figure this out on your own. Tax codes aren't straightforward or easy--that's why people hire trained professionals

It does occasionally happen that too little gets withheld from your paycheck for Uncle Sam. You haven't had enough withheld when you "discover" at the end of the year that you owe money. This frequently happens when you work more than one job, or your spouse works, or you have significant income that isn't subject to withholding (such as rent, dividends, interest income or capital gains) or you owe other taxes (like self employment or household-employment taxes). If you underestimate, it's expensive. You might end up owing interest and a penalty for underwithholding.

Finally for those of you who say, "But the tax refund check is my yearly savings; thats why I love the refund?' Okay. If you faithfully dump the check into savings or investments, more power to you. It beats blowing it on a new pair of shoes.

Valerie Coleman Morris is an anchorwoman with CNNfn.