IRS Follies

Last year when we filed our 2010 taxes we owed money. The tax preparer told us of a easy peasy new process whereby he would file electronically for us and on April 15th the IRS would deduct the amount owed from our checking account. He said that this is the method preferred and urged by the IRS. Of course it is.

So on April 7th we get a letter from the IRS saying that in preparation for deducting the money they had made an effort to verify our account and were unable to do so. For "our convenience" they included a payment voucher so that we could forward payment by check, since they would be unable to deduct the payment from the account which they were unable to access. I wrote and mailed a check, which they deposited.

Then, of course, on April 15th they went ahead and deducted the payment from our checking account. Why did I not see that coming?

Yes, from the account which they had been unable to access. So now we had paid our income tax twice. I am perfectly happy to pay my taxes, but I am not particularly happy to pay them twice. So I contacted the IRS, who were very friendly and pleasant, were totally unable to explain anything, and could not comprehend my explanation about having paid twice. They kept asking, in fact, why in the world I had paid twice. They did, finally, refund the extra payment.

So this year we owed money and our tax preparer assures us that he has straightened everything out. He files the electronic thing and tells us that on April 17th the IRS will deduct the payment from our checking account.

Guess what came in the mail today from the IRS. Yes indeed; "We are unable to access your bank account," and a payment voucher so that we can pay by check. Oh boy, here we go again.