Whether you are starring at the computer trying to get your Quicken downloaded into your TurboTax or if you are just trying to get yourself to sleep because your taxes are due just think of the fact America does tax less than most other countries.  Even though it does not seem like it.  And know it will be worse next year so enjoy it while it lasts.

I did find some interesting reading on the IRS website today when a friend asked me a question about his medical deduction.  He asked me why the IRS sent him a letter telling him his medical deductions had been reversed from 2006.  We found that TurboTax did not catch an error.  You have to deduct only amount that is more than 7.5% of your adjusted gross income or it will be reversed.

If you have a OPEN from American Express Card you can use OfficialPayments.com/OPEN or Pay1040.com/OPEN to make your IRS Payments. This is a convenient way to pay online with your credit card but it can add another “tax” in a fee that can add up to thousands. The best way is just to pay by check and avoid all the surcharges. Discover Card now offers a business credit card with checks with no fees that would be handy for IRS payments to use as an alternative but its too late to apply for that unless you are planning for your quarterly payments.

If you don’t already know about eftps.gov, you set up an account (takes 15 days to get set up and get docs in the mail), but once you are in, you can send the IRS a payment anytime you want to. You can select which form to attach to the payment (1040 ES, etc). I typically send a payment every month and at the end of the year you can see all these credits that the IRS holds. The site is free and no processing charge.