With tax season just around the corner, it’s that time of the year when everyone starts fretting about their returns.

But you don’t have to join this stress parade. By following a few tried-and-tested practices, you can do your taxes without taking a massive burden on your shoulders. 

This not only transforms the seemingly difficult process of filing taxes into a breeze but also helps you steer clear of common mistakes. This way, you can file your taxes on time, while also being accurate in your returns. 

To help you achieve these goals, here’s a fun guide to stress-free tax filing prep. 

8 Easy Steps To Handle Your Taxes Stress-Free

Determine how to file your taxes

While navigating tax season as a business owner or a salaried individual, you need to decide if you want to file your tax returns by yourself or do it through a professional accountant. For the former approach, you can download the IRS e-File or Free File, as well as other third-party apps. But if you want to delegate the responsibility to someone, you can find various seasoned accountants locally or online. 

Choose a filing status

Once you have decided who will be filing your taxes through apps like Intuit Accountants, you can choose your filing status. Typically, people either file taxes as a single person or a married couple filing jointly. But you can also file as a head of household, a married couple filing separately, and a qualifying surviving spouse. You can look into these tax status options and decide which one suits your financial profile the most. 

Gather your records

You should also make sure to gather all your financial records like your proof of income, bank statements, and records of charitable donations. Similar to how you may use an electronic signature to handle documents digitally, you can utilize a digital document management app to keep your financial records in a single place online. This can lead to easy handling of financial documents, especially if you choose to file your taxes digitally. 

Pick your filing method

You can either file your taxes online or mail them to the IRS. But due to the time it takes for mail to reach its destination, doing your taxes the analog method means that the IRS will receive your tax returns with a little delay. That’s why filing your taxes online is more convenient. You can also use services like DocuWare to further simplify the process with digital documents. 

Decide how to approach deductions

When you file your taxes, you can choose between standard deductions and itemized deductions. Standard deductions reduce a preset amount from your taxable income according to your filing status. However, itemized deductions let you add different deductions to the mix. While the latter process is more time-consuming, it can often be more beneficial. You can learn how to save time on bookkeeping to fast-track your way through it. 

Learn about applicable tax credits

While you need to pay additional taxes on your gains from accounts like CIT Platinum Savings, you can also benefit from applicable tax credits at times. This includes options ranging from the Child and Dependent Care Credit to the Residential Clean Energy Credit. Depending on your spending, income, and overall financial situation, you can determine which of these credits you can claim to reduce the total amount of taxes you owe. 

Max out retirement contributions

Your retirement contributions are made to an individual retirement account (IRA) that either helps you deduct your contributions from your taxable income or saves you from paying taxes when you make any withdrawals. This is different from getting top ETFs for a strong investment portfolio. Either way, you should max out your contributions whenever you can to reduce your overall tax bill. This can lead you to financial comfort in your golden years. 

Start preparing ahead of time

If you have used apps like TickTick, you may know how important it is to get started on important tasks ahead of time. This couldn’t be truer for filing tax returns, where every day counts for avoiding delays, rectifying errors, and helping you feel peace of mind. While the typical tax filing deadline is April 15, you should get a headstart and submit your taxes as soon as possible to prevent unnecessary issues. 

When you keep these suggestions in mind, you can say goodbye to tax season stress and file your returns with a smile on your face. This can also help you build a habit of filing your taxes more comfortably every year.