Noy Tax

Tax tips for new parents

Kids are expensive. Whether someone just brought a bundle of joy home from the hospital, adopted a teen from foster care, or is raising their grandchild. There are several tax breaks that can help.

Here are some tax tips for new parents

Get the child a Social Security or Individual Tax Identification number
To claim parental tax breaks, the taxpayer must have their child or dependent’s Social Security number, Adoption Tax Identification Number or Individual Tax Identification number. Confirming a child’s birth is the only way the IRS can verify that the parent is eligible for the credits and deductions they claim on their tax return.

Check withholding
A new family member might make taxpayers eligible for new credits and deductions, which can greatly change their tax liability. They can use the IRS Withholding Estimator to check their withholding. Taxpayers should provide their employer with an updated Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate, if they want to change how much tax is withheld from their paycheck.

Check eligibility for these tax credits and deductions

Child Tax Credit
Taxpayers who claim at least one child as their dependent on their tax return may be eligible for the Child Tax Credit. For help figuring out if a child qualifies for this credit, taxpayers can check Does My Child/Dependent Qualify for the Child Tax Credit or the Credit for Other Dependents?

Child and Dependent Care Credit
If taxpayers paid someone to take care of their children or another member of their household while they work, they may qualify for the Child and Dependent Care Credit regardless of their income. Taxpayers who pay for daycare expenses may be eligible to claim up to 35% of their daycare expenses with certain limits.

Adoption Tax Credit
This credit lets families who are in the adoption process during the tax-year claim eligible adoption expenses for each eligible child. Taxpayers can apply the credit to international, domestic, private and public foster care adoptions.

Earned Income Tax Credit
The Earned Income Tax Credit helps low- to moderate-income families get a tax break. If they qualify, taxpayers can use the credit to reduce the taxes they owe – and maybe increase their tax refund.

Credit for Other Dependents
Taxpayers with dependents who don't qualify for the Child Tax Credit may be able to claim the Credit for Other Dependents. Taxpayers can use the Does My Child/Dependent Qualify for the Child Tax Credit or the Credit for Other Dependents tool on IRS.gov to help determine if they are eligible to claim the credit. They can claim this credit in addition to the Child and Dependent Care Credit and the Earned Income Credit.

New Mailing Scam

The IRS is warning taxpayers about a new mailing scam that attempts to mislead people into believing they are owed a refund. Individuals are receiving a letter that claims to be “in relation to your unclaimed refund.” It includes the IRS masthead and is delivered in a cardboard envelope from a delivery service.

The letter, which contains inaccurate IRS contact information, requests personal information from the recipient, including photos of their driver’s license, bank routing information and Social Security number. According to the IRS, the letter contains poorly worded sentences, such as:

“A Clear Phone of Your Driver’s License That Clearly Displays All Four (4) Angles, Taken in a Place with Good Lighting.”

“You’ll Need to Get This to Get Your Refunds After Filing. These Must Be Given to a Filing Agent Who Will Help You Submit Your Unclaimed Property Claim. Once You Send All The Information Please Try to Be Checking Your Email for Response From The Agents Thanks”

The IRS is issuing the following reminders to taxpayers:

The IRS will never initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text or social media regarding a bill or tax refund.
Remain vigilant about fraudulent requests, including in the form of text or email in phishing and smishing schemes. Fake communications will often feature awkward phrasing, misspellings, inaccurate contact information and odd punctuation.
Never respond to suspicious communications or click on a link provided in a text or email as it may surreptitiously load malware or ransomware that keeps the legitimate user from accessing their system and files.
Be wary of messages that appear to be from friends or family but that are possibly stolen or compromised email or text accounts from someone you know. Verify the identity of the sender by using another communication method; for instance, calling a number you independently know to be accurate, not the number provided in the email or text.
Potential scams should be reported to the IRS by sending the email/a copy of the text or SMS as an attachment to [email protected]. The report should include the suspicious email address or phone number and the date, time and time zone as well as the phone number or email address that received the message.
Taxpayers can also report scams to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration or the Internet Crime Complaint Center. For more information, visit the Report Phishing and Online Scams page at IRS.gov.

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance today announced the start of the income tax filing season. The department and the IRS have begun processing income tax returns, including those submitted using the Free File software available on the Tax Department website.

If your 2022 income is $73,000 or less, you can file both your federal and New York State returns at no cost through the Tax Department website using Free File. Hundreds of thousands of New York State taxpayers take advantage of this truly free service each year, saving them hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars in tax preparation fees.

“Too often, taxpayers who use commercial tax preparation software are surprised by charges for additional fees while completing their annual filing,” said Acting Commissioner Amanda Hiller. “For a truly free experience, come to the New York State Tax Department website where there are no added costs or hidden fees—ever.”

When you’re ready to file, gather key information and documents. The easiest and fastest way to receive your refund is through direct deposit. The fastest and most convenient way to check your refund status is to use the Tax Department’s online Check your refund status tool. If necessary, you can also call 518-457-5149 to check on your refund.

Free File is available in multiple languages

Department of Taxation and Finance Welcome to the official website of the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance. Visit us to learn about your tax responsibilities, check your refund status, and use our online services—anywhere, any time!

Taxpayers shouldn’t let gift card scammers ruin the holidays

During the holiday season, taxpayers should be aware of gift card scams thieves commonly use this time of year. Con artists will target taxpayers by asking them to pay a fake tax bill with gift cards. They may also use a compromised email account to send emails requesting gift card purchases for friends, family or co-workers.

This scam is easy to avoid if taxpayers remember that the IRS never asks for or accepts gift cards as payment for a tax bill.

Here's how this scam usually happens:

The most common way scammers request gift cards is over the phone through a government impersonation scam. However, they will also request gift cards by sending a text message, email or through social media.
A scammer posing as an IRS agent will call the taxpayer or leave a voicemail with a callback number informing the taxpayer that they are linked to some criminal activity. For example, the scammer will tell the taxpayer their identify has been stolen and used to open fake bank accounts.
The scammer will threaten or harass the taxpayer by telling them that they must pay a fictitious tax penalty.
The scammer instructs the taxpayer to buy gift cards from various stores.
Once the taxpayer buys the gift cards, the scammer will ask the taxpayer to provide the gift card number and PIN.
Here's how taxpayers can tell if it's really the IRS calling. The IRS will never:

Call to demand immediate payment using a specific payment method such as a gift card, prepaid debit card or wire transfer. Generally, the IRS will first mail a bill to any taxpayer who owes taxes.
Demand that taxpayers pay taxes without the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they owe. All taxpayers should be aware of their rights.
Threaten to bring in local police, immigration officers or other law enforcement to have the taxpayer arrested for not paying.
Threaten to revoke the taxpayer's driver's license, business licenses or immigration status.
Any taxpayer who believes they've been targeted by a scammer should:

Contact the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration to report a phone scam. Use their IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting webpage. They can also call 800-366-4484.
Report phone scams to the Federal Trade Commission. Use the FTC Complaint Assistant on FTC.gov. They should add "IRS phone scam" in the notes.
Report threatening or harassing telephone calls claiming to be from the IRS to [email protected]. People should include "IRS phone scam" in the subject line.