File by April 15 or request a tax extension, avoid IRS penalties, speed up your refund and learn why general-purpose AI can be risky for taxes.
If you’re pulling up the rear when it comes to filing your income taxes, you now have less than 48 hours to get your return in — or file for an extension — by April 15 before 11:59:59 p.m. local time. You’re hardly alone in your dash to the deadline. As of April 3, the IRS had received 99.8 million returns — or about 40 million fewer than the total number that had been filed by last year’s mid- April due date.
Here are some last-minute dos and don’ts to make sure you avoid hitting any snags along the way. General-use AI is not your tax friend The IRS and tax pros use AI. Tax prep software providers use AI. So, you wonder, “Why not me?” Several reasons, according to former IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel.
Werfel, who oversaw the IRS’ early use of AI to improve taxpayer service and compliance, appreciates the tool’s promise in the tax arena. But he’s raising red flags for DIY taxpayers who plan to lean on — or have already relied on — free, general-use AI platforms to field personal tax questions and help prepare their returns. “Beware the generic solutions,” said Werfel, who is now a strategic advisory board member at management consulting firm Alliant.
For starters, unlike AI programs designed for tax purposes, general-use platforms have not been engineered, trained and tested for tax compliance and accuracy, especially for the more detailed, specific questions you may have due to the new tax law from last July that created a slew of new tax breaks for individuals. Even tax pros are taking it slow as they try to apply the complex rules governing who is eligible to claim them and how much of their income is now deductible. The quality of the information you get from a general-use platform also depends on the quality of your prompts. If you don’t have any informed sense of what you’re asking about , you’re less likely to put in useful prompts, which could result in confusing, incomplete or incorrect information. As enrolled agent Tom O’Saben put it in a press call, “I use AI tools every day. But I have an idea of where we want to go.”
The personal financial details you input are also less secure. “You’re handing over your most sensitive information to a platform where you have very limited understanding or assurances … in term of how your data will be used,” Werfel said. And, he added, AI-assisted returns may be automatically flagged by the returns processing system at the federal or state level, which may take your return out of the fast-track lane and set it aside for human review. That can mean a real lag in getting your refund or just getting closure on issues your return raises for the tax agencies. “If you think, ‘I’m just going to use Chat GPT,’ you’re taking a big risk that you’re going to be moved into the slow lane,” Werfel said.
Have last-minute questions or need help filing for free? You might get the information you need by using the IRS’ Interactive Tax Assistant. Or if you’re a low-income filer who is at least 60 years old, you can get free tax and filing assistance at a VITA site or by calling 800-906-9887. AARP also offers free tax assistance. Members of the military may get free help with filing and tax questions through MilTax.
Avoid gratuitous penalties and interest If you think you still owe money to the IRS for 2025 but you don’t think you’ll be able to file by April 15, here is how to avoid getting hit with penalties and interest. First, submit Form 4868 to get an automatic extension to file your return, penalty-free, until October 15. Then, by April 15, send the IRS payment of what you owe, or as much of it as you can. If you don’t file for an extension and have a balance due: You’re likely to get hit with a late-filing penalty equal to 5% of your outstanding balance for each month or part of a month your return is late, up to a maximum of 25%. “If your return is more than 60 days late, the minimum penalty is $525 or the balance of the tax due on your return, whichever is smaller,” per the IRS.
You also may be subject to a late-payment penalty, which is typically half of 1% of the tax you still owe that hasn’t been paid by April 15, up to a maximum of 25%. On top of that, you will owe interest on your balance due until it’s paid, plus interest on any penalties you’re hit with but haven’t paid. If you file for an extension but don’t pay what you owe by April 15: You will escape the late-filing penalty, but you will still owe interest on your outstanding balance and may be subject to the late-payment penalty plus interest on that too. Better to file an extension than a return if you’re missing information.
Double-check your work Boring but essential: Before filing your return, check your math and proofread everything – especially your Social Security number or taxpayer ID number. Also, make sure you have included on your return information from any third-party provided tax form you received that the IRS also was sent a copy of . Any inadvertent mistakes, typos or omissions will slow down the processing of your return and delivery of your refund.
Speed your refund If you expect a refund and want to get it within the typical 21-day window after you file, provide the IRS with your direct deposit information on your tax return for the account of your choice . You may split your refund across up to three accounts by filling out Form 8888. As of April 3, the average refund paid was $3,462. If you don’t provide deposit information, you’ll get a letter from the IRS asking for it within 30 days of processing your return, per the National Association of Tax Professionals. If you’d prefer a paper check, NATP said, “he letter will also include information on exceptions and provide a dedicated phone line for requesting an exception and issuance of a paper check. After six weeks, the IRS will issue a paper check to prevent interest from accruing on the refund.”
Plan to mail things in? Take note. Speaking of paper, it would be most efficient if you filed your return and made payments electronically. If, however, you plan to mail in one or both, be aware that there has been a change in when the U.S. Postal Service postmarks mail. To ensure your materials are both postmarked and considered mailed on the same date , “take the mailpiece to a Postal Service retail location and request a manual postmark at the retail counter …. The manual postmark will be applied free of charge,” per USPS. If you want a record or proof of the date when the post office first took possession of your package, opt for a certificate of mailing, registered mail or certified mail.
What to do if your electronically filed return doesn’t go through Since a lot of people will be electronically filing returns between now and a minute before midnight on April 15, it’s possible the e-filing system may have glitches, O’Saben said. If you attempt to file your return electronically and it doesn’t go through by the April 15 deadline, you will five days — until Monday, April 20 — to try again and not get hit with a late filing penalty if you have a balance due, he noted. If your return is still being rejected by Monday, O’Saben recommends mailing it in, but only after you fill out and attach to it Form 8948, where you can indicate that your attempts at electronic filing were unsuccessful.
Income Tax Deadline April 15 Tax Deadline Tax Extension Form 4868 IRS Filing Tax Refund Direct Deposit Late Filing Penalty Late Payment Penalty Tax Interest IRS Interactive Tax Assistant Free Tax Help VITA Tax Assistance AARP Tax Help Miltax E-Filing Manual Postmark Certified Mail Form 8948 AI Tax Advice Tax Return Errors Return Irs April Interest Ai Refund Form Balance Information General-Use Ai Paper Check Extension Gratuitous Penalty Help E. G.
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