SCP Financial Services, LLC

Beware of Stimulus Payment Scams The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury Department, or any other government agency will not contact you by phone to collect information for stimulus payment processing. Period. Be alert for phishing scams. ... Government agencies will not email or text you to collect information for stimulus payment processing. Watch for suspicious emails or texts with links or attachments requesting information for processing stimulus deposits or checks. If you receive one, do not click the link or open the attachment. It’s a scam. Delete it. Be alert for state-related scams. State agencies will also not call, email or text you to collect information or a fee to process a stimulus payment. To date, no state has introduced their own version of a stimulus payment. As of now, we are only aware of one communication a taxpayer will receive from the IRS. No later than 15 days after distributing a stimulus payment, the IRS is required to mail a notice to the taxpayer indicating the payment amount, whether the payment was mailed or deposited, and a phone number to call if the taxpayer did not receive the payment. Victims or targets of stimulus payment scams should report it immediately to the Federal Trade Commission, www.ftc.gov/complaint.

Tax Filing Deadline Extended Amid COVID-19 Outbreak Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced today that taxpayers (individuals and businesses) would now have an additional 90 days, until July 15, 2020, to file their 2019 tax returns. This latest announcement sets both the filing and payment deadlines to the same day, removing any potential Tax Day confusion. The Treasury still encourages taxpayers who may have tax refunds to file now in order to get their refund money.

Here’s what taxpayers can do to avoid the Presidents Day rush Presidents Day weekend marks the busiest time of the year for calls to the IRS, but taxpayers can easily avoid the rush by using IRS.gov. Here are some tips taxpayers can follow to avoid the rush:... Go online IRS.gov has several online tools to help taxpayers get fast answers to common tax questions: Interactive Tax Assistant Tax Topics Frequently Asked Questions Tax Trails Payments Use Where’s My Refund? Taxpayers can access Where’s My Refund? anytime to track their refunds. They can find this tool on both IRS.gov and the IRS2Go app. The IRS issues most refunds in less than 21 days, although some require additional time. Agency customer service representatives can’t answer refund questions unless it has been: 21 days or more since the taxpayer e-filed 6 weeks or more since the taxpayer mailed their return In some cases, Where’s My Refund may tell the taxpayer to contact the IRS. Taxpayers can also call the automated IRS refund hotline at 800-829-1954. Be ready to validate their identity Taxpayers with account questions who need to call the IRS should be ready to verify their identity. IRS phone assistors will ask a series of questions to confirm the identity of callers. Having a prior year tax return handy will help. Avoid the peak days and times The peak call dates are the week after Presidents Day, especially that Tuesday. The peaks time also includes the week before April 15. Taxpayers should also avoid the busiest call hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Folks should try calling before or after those times. Before calling, taxpayers should remember that IRS.gov is available 24/7 to answer their questions. Replace a missing W-2 Employers usually mail or provide Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, to their employees by January 31. Anyone who didn’t get their forms by the end of January should first contact their employer to let them know about the missing form. Even if someone doesn’t get a Form W-2, they must file on time. In this case, they may need to use Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement. Use Free File and free tax prep options Taxpayers who earned $69,000 or less can use free online tax preparation software that does all the hard work. People who want more personal tax prep assistance can use the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance locator. This tool helps people find a location near them where volunteers can help complete their taxes. More information: Choosing a paid tax return preparer Share this tip on social media -- #IRSTaxTip: Here’s what taxpayers can do to avoid the Presidents Day rush. https://go.usa.gov/xdKBt

************FYI************** The Georgia Department of Revenue has stated that it will not begin accepting tax year 2019 Individual, Fiduciary, and Business returns until Monday, February 3, 2020. In the meantime, I can transmit Georgia state returns as usual and they will be automatically held in a queue and sent to state on Monday, February 3, 2020.

Know your rights as a Taxpayer!! https://www.irs.gov/taxpayer-bill-of-rights

Standard Mileage Rates have changed for 2020. Check out the full article on the IRS website https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-20-05.pdf

Georgia Changes Direct Deposit Policy In a continued effort to protect Georgia taxpayer’s information and to combat fraudulent refund issuance, Georgia Department of Revenue (DoR) has added new limitations to their Direct Deposit policy for taxpayer refunds. Effective for this tax season, refunds will now be automatically issued through paper check to the following taxpayers: First-time Georgia income tax filers Individuals who have not filed a Georgia tax return in 5 or mor...e years In addition, the Georgia DoR asks taxpayers to allow 90 business days to process a return and issue a refund. For additional information about other 2017 changes made by the Georgia DoR, click here. See more

Five Things to Know About the Child Tax Credit The Child Tax Credit is a tax credit that may save taxpayers up to $1,000 for each eligible qualifying child. Taxpayers should make sure they qualify before they claim it. Here are five facts from the IRS on the Child Tax Credit: 1. Qualifications. For the Child Tax Credit, a qualifying child must pass several tests:...Continue reading

I made it through another tax season!!! Thank You to all my clients!! Have a great rest of the year!!! Whew.....now I can rest!!!

Hi guys, one of my friends kids is having a fundraiser at school and it's with Yankee Candle and ends today. They ship for a fee unless you purchase $100+, then it's free. If you can, please help out! Start your Christmas shopping for next year. Here is the info... Can you go to WWW.YANKEECANDLEFUNDRAISING.COM and use GROUP CODE 990092224 and SELLER ID# JAYDA75 (so Jayda gets the credit) and see if anything strikes your fancy. Thanks,... SCP Financial Services, LLC See more

**************UPDATE************ IRS Resumes e-File Processing The IRS has reported that their systems are back in production. We expect it will take them some time to catch up with the backlog.

******UPDATE****** IRS Modernized e-File Processing Delays The IRS is continuing to experience issues with their e-File system. They are currently in the process of making repairs and working to restore normal operations as soon as possible. They have not provided an estimate of how much time it will take to fix the issue. Once they are back up, it will take some time for them to process the backlog of returns and resume to normal.

***Note**** The IRS is experiencing delays in accepting electronic files. Will keep you updated once more information is provided.