According to the IRS, nearly 1 in every 7 Americans file for an extension so they can submit their personal income tax return in October instead of April. There are many reasons why someone would choose to do so, but coming soon, all personal income tax returns are due to the IRS.
If you had a household employee last year (nanny, senior caregiver, etc.), it's vitally important that you remember to include your Schedule H with you return. Some families forget to do this because they've long wrapped up the books on their caregiver or they haven't had a caregiver at all this year. However, the Schedule H is a summary of the household employment tax liability accrued in a tax year, so if you forget to include it, the IRS may assume no taxes were paid. This can result in notices and/or fines for unpaid taxes – along with time-consuming conversations with the IRS to straighten things out – which is obviously something everyone wants to avoid.
The devil is always in the details with household employment, or "nanny taxes," so make sure you're on top of all your tax-related items if you're scrambling to file by the deadline.
