Filing Back Taxes As A Member Of The Armed Forces

If you are filing back taxes as a member of the armed forces, it is important to know and understand that you may qualify for a deferral.

Those that are in the Reserves, and those that are on active duty within the various armed services may experience this particular deferral, but the individual attempting to acquire this when filing back taxes must show, without a doubt, that their ability to properly make payment on the taxes that they owed was affected by the fact that they were actively participating within the scope of their military service. The name of the act that permits this qualification when it comes to filing back taxes is referred to as “The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act”.

If you are filing back taxes as a member of the armed services, you must be considered to be “active” in any of the following services of the military: Coast Guard, Army, Marine Corps, Army, as well as the Air Force. If you serve in the National Guard and you are in a status that is considered to be “Federalized”, you may also be qualified for this relief when it comes to filing back taxes. In addition to individuals in the military services, if you are considered to be a “Commissioned Officer” of what is identified as a “Uniformed Service”, you may also qualify.

Examples of this type of position include work with the agency referred to as the “National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration” as well as the “Public Health Service”. For more information regarding the relief associated with these agencies when filing back taxes, refer to “The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act”.

If you are filing back taxes as a member of the armed services, or another qualified agency, it is important to understand that your deadline will be extended for a period of up to six months once the active service is concluded. During this time frame, you will not incur any fees associated with interest payments or specific IRS penalties in regards to filing back taxes.

While taxpayers are typically subjected to this, the IRS understands that the men and women serving our country are making a tremendous sacrifice and wish to extend a large amount of consideration and appreciation towards these individuals.

If you are filing back taxes as a member of the armed services and qualify for this IRS debt relief, it is important to understand that you must actually file for this. Unfortunately, at this time, it is not an automatic process.

When filing back taxes as a member of the active military services, there are a couple of resources that you can use in order to learn more about the relief that you may experience. The first is the publication that is offered by the IRS that is identified by the number “3”. This is called “Armed Forces’ Tax Guide”. The second is a direct link on the IRS website called “Tax Information for Members of the U.S Armed Services” which can be found at: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=97273,00.html .

When filing back taxes, you may also review the act that allows for a penalty free time frame which has been covered in this guide, “The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act”. By reviewing this information, you will be able to identify the resources available to you when it comes to filing back taxes while serving in the military or another qualified agency.

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Filing Back Taxes

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Filing Back Taxes As A Member Of The Armed Forces

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