If you are among the many Atlanta area residents who filed your taxes before the deadline, you might be eagerly waiting for your refund to show up in your account. The IRS has a standard time-frame for how long it takes them to process most tax returns. Though they provide an expected date for you to receive your refund, issues can occur that cause delays.
There is nothing wrong with you making a list of the things to spend your refund on. Regardless of how much money you expect to receive, here are some myths about tax returns you should know about.
1. It is possible to expedite a tax refund
You may have heard that calling the IRS will get your refund bumped to the front of the process. There is nothing wrong with speaking to IRS representatives. However, they will only provide you with the same information you receive on the Where’s My Refund Tool. Once you file your tax return, you have to wait it out. There is nothing you can do to receive your refund any sooner other than to wait.
2. Acceptance means no audit
Once the IRS accepts your tax documents, they need time to review and verify them. The issuance of a refund does not mean that processing is complete. The IRS runs your return through other screening processes to ensure there are no discrepancies, mistakes or other issues that indicate a tax audit is necessary. The IRS uses several different auditing strategies when choosing. Most people receive their refunds and end up with audit notices several months or years later.
3. Audits only cover a few years
The IRS processes millions of tax returns every year. Once an individual is selected for a tax audit, the IRS can go back and inspect any of their previous year’s tax filings. The bigger the discrepancies on an audited tax return, the more years the IRS will audit. Many people believe the look-back period is 10 years. However, most audit reviews involve a look-back period of three to six years.