Most people don’t look forward to filing their tax returns or paying taxes. There really isn’t much to look forward to as it is a tedious process that can take weeks to complete. Some people even have lousy luck raising the interest of the IRS.

The trouble is most of these people’s mistakes are not intentional. They lack proper tax preparation and, in all probability, must have rushed through the filing process. Lack of preparation and attention to detail are the most common faults of people who often get flagged by the IRS. Let’s face it. Even if audits are not criminal, they are embarrassing and distressing events people can do without.

Filing accurate tax returns and paying correct taxes are not impossible with the proper preparation and a good headstart. A good headstart is essential in filing because taxpayers get more lead time to organize and prepare the necessary documents.

Even if there is lots of tax software available, it is wise to allot a significant amount of time to reviewing past returns, current returns applications, and tax laws. Tax laws are dynamic; they can be changed or revised between the last tax season and the one coming up. There might be some essential things in the revised policies that can affect your returns and deductions. Pleading ignorance of the new policies is unacceptable to the government and the IRS because everybody is presumed to know the law.

Taxpayers should review their current applications, primarily if they’ve been audited. According to the IRS, taxpayers repeating audited mistakes are not uncommon.

Regarding mistakes, “forgetting” additional income sources is most people’s predominant mistake. The IRS also compares issued forms against reported income on the returns for the disparity. Still, regarding disparity and comparison, returns are checked for names and SS numbers, so they must mirror those in the SS records. Wrongly issued forms must be returned and reported to the issuer for corrections.

Wrong sums are also common mistakes due to rushing. Though tax software is usually thought of as a late taxpayer’s savior, early filers can use this software to check their computations. Tax charges can usually be avoided by printing correct sums on returns.

Taxpayers are encouraged to file their returns even if their current financial situation makes them unable to pay their taxes. Installment payment is an option that IRS offers.

Tax matters are sensitive and can be subjected to random auditing. It is advised that taxpayers keep and file their returns of six years, at the very least, for reference if they are ever called for auditing.

Lastly, since the agency is the one that gets burdened by tax problems, the IRS is open to assisting taxpayers. With proper preparation, filing tax returns can be an easy process.