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https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-confirms-tax-filing-season-to-begin-january-28 IR-2019-01, January 7, 2019 WASHINGTON ― Despite the government shutdown, the Internal Revenue Service today confirmed that it will process tax returns beginning January 28, 2019 and provide refunds to taxpayers as scheduled. “We are committed to ensuring that taxpayers receive their refunds notwithstanding the government shutdown. I appreciate the hard work of the employees and their commitment to the taxpayers during this period,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. Congress directed the payment of all tax refunds through a permanent, indefinite appropriation (31 U.S.C. 1324), and the IRS has consistently been of the view that it has authority to pay refunds despite a lapse in annual appropriations. Although in 2011 the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directed the IRS not to pay refunds during a lapse, OMB has reviewed the relevant law at Treasury’s request and concluded that IRS may pay tax refunds during a lapse. The IRS will be recalling a significant portion of its workforce, currently furloughed as part of the government shutdown, to work. Additional details for the IRS filing season will be included in an updated FY2019 Lapsed Appropriations Contingency Plan to be released publicly in the coming days. “IRS employees have been hard at work over the past year to implement the biggest tax law changes the nation has seen in more than 30 years,” said Rettig. As in past years, the IRS will begin accepting and processing individual tax returns once the filing season begins. For taxpayers who usually file early in the year and have all of the needed documentation, there is no need to wait to file. They should file when they are ready to submit a complete and accurate tax return. The filing deadline to submit 2018 tax returns is Monday, April 15, 2019 for most taxpayers. Because of the Patriots’ Day holiday on April 15 in Maine and Massachusetts and the Emancipation Day holiday on April 16 in the District of Columbia, taxpayers who live in Maine or Massachusetts have until April 17, 2019 to file their returns. Software companies and tax professionals will be accepting and preparing tax returns before Jan. 28 and then will submit the returns when the IRS systems open later this month. The IRS strongly encourages people to file their tax returns electronically to minimize errors and for faster refunds.

Form 8275 is our very good friend this year. If we take positions not supported by final regs (which is a boatload of the new law), that disclosure statement showing why we are taking whatever position we are taking will at least save us from preparer penalties. "Most closely in alliance as this office could determine with tentative/proposed regulations as of the date of filing" basically means "hey, we did our best considering you dweebs had given us nothing better to go on" only said in a polite fashion.

"The IRS does not consider current filing year returns held prior to the date it accepts transmission of electronic returns stockpiled. EROs must advise taxpayers that it cannot transmit returns to the IRS until the date the IRS accepts transmission of electronic returns." https://www.irs.gov/e-file-providers/submitting-the-electronic-return-to-the-irs

I actually did work for a gentleman that did that very thing. I was very young and just totally amazed. I also had to jump into the trash bags and stomp down the trash so that he could get more in. Fortunately, I could wear tennis shoes to jump in the trash.

Colleagues in firms much, much larger than mine have received visits comparing Form 8879 dates with e-file dates. I did have a treasury agent show up at my front door (home office of my sole proprietorship) at 7 a.m. one year to ask questions about a very part-time employee. He scared hubby who asked to see his badge and made him wait outside in the snow until he woke me up. Totally different issue, though. Just don't want another agent showing up!

So do we attach an 8275 to every return with rental property because there is not definition under 162 of trade or business? Whichever way we classify them may be wrong in the end when this is finally clarified (if it ever is).

I guess things are different here. Our local financial institutions are so security conscious, that they now prefer paper copies. Back in the summer of 2017, I went with my largest client to meet with a local bank about the renewal of her commercial real estate loan.. I took with me a DVD with copies of 3 tax returns and financial statements. I went to hand it to the senior loan official who recoiled and asked for paper copies because of their strict security protocols. They also will not accept emails with attached pdfs, encrypted, password protected or unprotected, due to the security risk. I have returned to mailing tax return copies, because that is the only thing they will accept.

I was just a tax training this past weekend and the instructors first words were "RAISE YOUR FEES BY XX%", 200 + people were in agreement.

P.S. The above post is not to imply that those who do duplexing are cheap - we all have our own preferences. I only print one side per page because I have enough trouble just keeping all the many schedules straight nowadays (probably be much worse this year). However ATX generates a lot of superfluous worksheets which I don't print because it seems phony to print A to Z worksheets (Block & Jackson do this frequently) to "pad" the return and make customers think they're getting more work for their money (well, sometimes I do if I'm trying to impress the occasional ingrate who rates my work by the pound). Still, I think many customers prefer to have a paper return in hand which is easily glanced at without making the electronic gizmo translate it. Seems like just another form of the do-it-yourself kiosk approach which saves vendors time and supplies while adding a little more client inconvenience into the mix (at some point the pixels overwhelm us). P.P.S. You're not being a spoil-sport, Mike. Apparently it works for you, so all's well and good. As to the environment, you probably are helping -- office paper sales are down, so toilet papers rolls are now one inch shorter. Too, if you've got the nerve to ask a customer $100 for a hard copy, you're a better man than I am.

The original duplex printing: While I never actually saw this done, I once worked with an accountant (now deceased) who told me that, as a young man in the sixties, he had worked for a CPA who required that no one be allowed to tear off a calculator tape. All calculator rolls were fully expended without being detached, allowed to fall into a cardboard box, turned over, rewound, reinserted, and printed on the other side used until full usage was complete.

I bought stock in a paper company.

I am still waiting for the state of Virginia to decide how they are going to handle the federal changes and whether it will affect the tax returns for 2018. So even if we can file federal by the end of January, I doubt we will be able to file state returns.

What about our prohibition against "stockpiling" signed tax returns, not being allowed to "hold" signed tax returns and e-file days later?

We don't use an RDS, but we do have all of the data resident on a server, and use work stations for the program. 3 of the 4 workstations installed without a hitch. The 4th, which is the newest workstation, will not install. We are waiting for a call back from upper level support to my IT person. Hold times have been outrageous to get any help at all, and we are almost at the 24 hour mark for the call back. I left ATX for taxes after 2012, and now that they have changed the payroll reporting software, this looks like my last year with them at all. Do they not test their programs before release? I could understand with last minute tax changes how testing might be difficult, but printing and filing W2S and 1099s? Really?

Used ATX last year, but not this year. Output a pdf file then pick the pages you want to print.

I agree with a comment above regarding needing to lean on each other for help and guidance. I'm a solo practitioner, so being able to bounce ideas off you folks and get my questions answered in a timely manner has provided tremendous value to me over the years.

I think we are all going to need each other on this board this year. It is going to take some time to get used to they new laws, forms, and software input. Good luck this season. Tom Modesto, CA

I hate to be a spoil sport however about 6 years ago I decided that all of my clients who were computer literate would begin receiving an encrypted pdf file instead of a printed hard copy return. At that time only 2 objected and I advised them there would be an additional $100 fee for paper copies as with a pdf file they can print at will. I now print 3 tax returns per season out of about 130 clients, including business clients. Think of the savings of time, supplies, and especially the environment.

As do we. We keep pdf's of the client copy and the preparer copy (more notes and worksheets, in Drake), plus efile acks once those are in. And a pdf of the scanned tax docs. Those have saved our bacon (client's bacon, too) on occasion. Audits want docs, client can't find - boom; pdf. Best one was a lady who needed a copy of her daughter's adoption papers that got lost in a move - we had 'em.

I've been printing duplex for years and years. And plan to continue it.