If you haven’t received your W-2, follow these four steps:

1. Contact your employer  If you have not received your W-2, contact your employer to inquire if and when the W-2 was mailed.  If it was mailed, it may have been returned to the employer because of an incorrect or incomplete address.  After contacting the employer, allow a reasonable amount of time for them to resend or issue the W-2.
2. Contact the IRS  If you do not receive your W-2 by Feb. 14, contact the IRS for assistance at 800-829-1040. When you call, you must provide your name, address, Social Security number, phone number and have the following information:

   •  Employer’s name, address and phone number

   •  Dates of employment

   •  An estimate of the wages you earned, the federal income tax withheld, and when you worked for that employer during 2011. The estimate should be based on year-to-date information from your final pay stub or leave-and-earnings statement, if possible.

3. File your return  You still must file your tax return or request an extension to file by April 17, 2012, even if you do not receive your Form W-2. If you have not received your Form W-2 in time to file your return by the due date, and have completed steps 1 and 2, you may use Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement. Attach Form 4852 to the return, estimating income and withholding taxes as accurately as possible.  There may be a delay in any refund due while the information is verified.
4. File a Form 1040X  On occasion, you may receive your missing W-2 after you file your return using Form 4852, and the information may be different from what you reported on your return. If this happens, you must amend your return by filing a Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.

This article was obtained from the IRS website:  IRS Tax Tip 2012-20, January 31, 2012

For assistance with this and other tax return matters, make an appointment with one of the accountants at Laciak>cpa by calling 219-864-7000.

The Internal Revenue Service opened the 2012 tax season on Wednesday by extending the tax-filing deadline until April 17. Taxpayers will have until Tuesday, April 17 to file their 2011 tax returns and pay any tax due because April 15 falls on a Sunday, and Emancipation Day, a holiday observed in the District of Columbia, falls this year on Monday, April 16.

According to federal law, District of Columbia holidays affect tax deadlines in the same way that federal holidays do, giving all taxpayers two extra days to file this year. Taxpayers requesting an extension will have until Oct. 15 to file their 2011 tax returns. The IRS will begin accepting e-file and Free File returns on Jan. 17, 2012.

The IRS also announced a number of improvements to help make this tax season easier for taxpayers. This includes new navigation features and helpful information on IRS.gov and a new pilot program to allow taxpayers to use interactive video to get help with tax issues.

The IRS is conducting a limited rollout of its new videoconferencing technology at 10 IRS offices and two other sites, and may expand to further sites in the future. A list of locations is available on IRS.gov. Perhaps not coincidentally, H&R Block also introduced a videoconferencing service this tax season.

The IRS has updated the front page of the IRS Web site to make it easier for taxpayers to get key forms, information and file tax returns. The front page also has links to taxpayer-friendly videos on the IRS YouTube channel. More improvements are planned for IRS.gov in the months ahead.

“At the IRS, we’re working hard to make the process of filing your taxes as quick and easy as possible,” IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said in a statement. “Providing quality service is one of our top priorities. It not only reduces the burden on taxpayers, but also helps in filing an accurate return right from the start.”

The IRS said it expects to receive more than 144 million individual tax returns this year, with most of those being filed by the April 17 deadline. The IRS also reminded paid tax preparers they must have and include a Preparer Tax Identification Number on all returns they prepare. All PTINs must be renewed for 2012. Tax preparers can obtain or renew PTINs online here.

• PAYROLL TAX CUT for employees extended through February 29, 2012. (Social security tax rate on wages up to $110,100 will be 4.2% rather than 6.2 %.)
• ADOPTION TAX CREDIT decreases to $12,650 for adoption of an eligible child.
• SECTION 179 maximum deduction decreases to $139,000, with a phase-out threshold of $560,000.
• STANDARD MILEAGE RATE for business driving remains at 55.5¢ a mile. The rate for medical and moving mileage decreases to 23¢ a mile, and the rate for charitable driving remains at 14¢ a mile.
• ESTATE TAX top rate remains at 35%, and the exemption amount increases to $5,120,000. The ANNUAL GIFT TAX exclusion remains at $13,000.
• 401(k) maximum salary deferral increases to $17,000 ($22,500 for 50 and older).
• SIMPLE maximum salary deferral remains at $11,500 ($14,000 for 50 and older).
• IRA contribution limit remains at $5,000 ($6,000 for 50 and older).
• KIDDIE TAX threshold remains at $1,900 and applies up to age 19 (up to age 24 for full-time students).
• NANNY TAX threshold increases to $1,800.
• TRANSPORTATION FRINGE BENEFIT limit decreases to $125 for vehicle/transit passes and increases to $240 for qualified parking.
• SOCIAL SECURITY taxable wage limit increases to $110,100. Retirees under full retirement age can earn up to $14,640 without losing benefits.
• HSA CONTRIBUTION limit increases to $3,100 for individuals and to $6,250 for families. An additional $1,000 may be contributed by those 55 or older.

Our Winter 2011/2012 edition of Tax & Financial Briefs features the following topics along with Joe Laciak’s Tax Talk and Geoff Laciak’s Because Your Money Matters:

• Tax rules provide relief when disaster strikes
• Act now to lower your 2011 tax bill
• Understand “sunk costs” in making decisions
• Review your beneficiary choices for needed changes
• Scams against the elderly: Know the danger signs to protect your family

Please complete the online Newsletter Sign-Up form to have our newsletter mailed to you.

What do you do when you have a co-worker who is productive, talented, creative, loyal, and an all-around nice guy? Well, in lieu of a 90-day golf trip around the world, we offer our heartfelt thanks for the privilege of working with Dale for the last 20 years.

Going into the rare Senate weekend vote, the expectation was that the House of Representatives would accept the Senate bill passed on December 17, thereby (1) assuring that individuals’ take-home pay would not go up in January, and (2) deferring a longer-term extension of the payroll tax cut reduction until early next year. However, on Sunday, December 18, House John Boehner (R-OH) said that House Republicans oppose the short-term Senate payroll tax cut bill, and would stick with the version of H.R. 3630 that the House passed on December 17. The House-passed bill would extend the payroll tax cut for one full year, and make other tax changes, including a 2-year extension of 100% bonus first-year depreciation. Boehner said that the House would vote on the Senate bill, and that House Republicans would move another bill that reflects a one year extension of the payroll tax cuts. He also said that he would like to hold a House-Senate conference to work out the details of a final agreement.

The timing and shape of further Congressional action on extension of the payroll tax cut extension is uncertain. After passing the two-month extension of the payroll tax cut, the Senate adjourned for the year, but will hold pro forma sessions twice a week while it is out of session. If the House makes changes to the Senate passed bill—the Senate-passed two-month extension bill is expected to be considered in the House today December 20—it will be necessary to call the Senate back into session for a conference committee to consider the House-passed version of the bill to resolve the differences.

If the Senate bill (with only a two-month extension) were to be signed into law without any subsequent legislation that extended the payroll tax cut through 2012, there would be considerable extra work ahead for both the IRS and employers. A two-month only extension of the cut would mean that the IRS would need to revise 2012 Forms 941, Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return, to take into account the 2% difference in employee Social Security withholding tax rates in the first two months of 2012 as compared to March 2012. The return would then need to be revised again in the second quarter of 2012 to eliminate the 4.2% rate. Employers would need to separately track employee Social Security wages for the first two months of the year and adjust their payroll systems to account for the 2% increase in the withholding rate beginning with wages earned on March 1.

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