Tax Tip: File a complete and accurate return to avoid processing delays

It is important that you file a complete and accurate tax return to avoid any processing delays. If your return includes errors or is incomplete, it may require further review and could delay your refund. When the IRS needs more information to process your tax return, they will generally contact you by mail.

Some tax returns take longer to process than others for many reasons, including when a return:

• is affected by identity theft or fraud,
• includes Form 8379, Injured Spouse Allocation, which could take up to 14 weeks to process,
• amends your original tax return, which could take up to 16 weeks to process,
• is incomplete or missing information or
• requires further review.
Before filing your return, review it to make sure it is correct and complete. The most common errors include:
• incorrect or missing Social Security numbers or individual taxpayer identification numbers,
• incorrect tax entered based on taxable income and filing status,
• missing or incorrect identification numbers for child care providers,
• withholding and estimated tax payments entered on the wrong line, and
• errors in addition and subtraction.

Did you consider filing your tax return electronically? By electronically filing your tax return, many common errors may be avoided or corrected by the tax preparation software.