Tax Deadlines:
The official deadline to file your federal income tax return for your 2018 tax return is indeed April 15 in 2019. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will begin processing tax returns in 2019 on January 28.
Here are some other important deadlines to keep in mind. Below is a list of tax filing dates and important deadlines for 2019, organized by dates.
January 15, 2019
- Deadline to pay the fourth quarter estimated tax payment for tax year 2018
January 31, 2019
- Deadline for employers to mail out W-2 Forms to their employees and for businesses to furnish 1099 Forms reporting, among other things, non-employee compensation, bank interest, dividends, and distributions from a retirement plan
February 15, 2019
- Deadline for financial institutions to mail out Form 1099-B relating to sales of stock, bonds, or mutual funds through a brokerage account, Form 1099-S relating to real estate transactions; and Form 1099-MISC if the sender is reporting payments in boxes 8 or 14
February 28, 2019
- Deadline for businesses to mail Forms 1099 and 1096 to the IRS
March 15, 2019
- Deadline for corporate tax returns (Forms 1120, 1120-A, and 1120-S) for the year 2018, or to request automatic six-month extension of time to file (Form 7004) for corporations that use the calendar year as their tax year
- Deadline to file partnership tax returns (Form 1065) or to request an automatic five-month extension of time to file (Form 7004)
April 15, 2019
- Deadline to file individual tax returns (Form 1040) for the year 2018 or to request an automatic extension (Form 4868). An extension provides an extra six months to file your return. Payment of the tax is still due by April 15. You can submit payment for any taxes you owe along with the extension form.
- Last day to make a contribution to traditional IRA, Roth IRA, Health Savings Account, SEP-IRA, or solo 401(k) for the 2018 tax year. You have until October 15 to fund a SEP-IRA or solo 401(k) if you get an extension.
- First-quarter estimated tax payments due for the 2019 tax year
- Deadline to file estate income tax or trust income tax returns (Form 1041) or to request an automatic five-month extension of time to file (Form 7004)
May 31, 2019
- Deadline for financial institutions to send out Form 5498 to report balances in an individual retirement account
June 17, 2019
- Second-quarter estimated tax payments due for the 2018 tax year
June 17, 2019
- Deadline for U.S. citizens living abroad to file individual tax returns or file Form 4868 for an automatic 4-month extension
September 16, 2019
- Third-quarter estimated tax payments due for the 2019 tax year
- Final deadline to file corporate tax returns for the year 2018 if an extension was requested. (Forms 1120, 1120-A, 1120-S)
October 1, 2019
- Deadline for self-employed persons or small employers to establish a SIMPLE-IRA
October 15, 2019
- Final extended deadline to file individual tax returns for the year 2018 (Form 1040)
- Last day the IRS will accept an electronically filed tax return for the year 2018. If you’re filing after this date, you’ll have to mail in your tax return for processing.
- Final deadline to fund a SEP-IRA or solo 401(k) for tax year 2018 if you requested an automatic extension of time to file.
Federal Income Tax Brackets and New Tax Rates
While the new law maintains the seven-bracket system, Congress tweaked the rates and income levels at which they apply. The seven tax brackets used to be 10 percent, 15 percent, 25 percent, 28 percent, 33 percent, 35 percent and 39.6 percent. Those are the brackets that applied to the tax return you filed in 2018.
The new rates, which relate to the tax return you’ll file in 2019, are 10 percent, 12 percent, 22 percent, 24 percent, 32 percent, 35 percent and 37 percent.
Here is a break down of the federal income tax brackets. Below are the 2018 brackets, which relate to the tax return you are filing in 2019.
(*Following examples are from NerdWallet)
2018 tax brackets and rates for single filers
2018 tax brackets and rates for married couples filing jointly
2018 tax brackets and rates for married couples filing separately
2018 tax brackets and rates for head of household filers
How do tax brackets work?
If you’re confused as to how tax brackets work, you’re not alone: One in 14 Americans don’t even know what a tax bracket is, NerdWallet found in its 2018 Tax Study.
Here’s how it works. For example, if you are file as singers, you pay a 10 percent rate on the first $9,525 you earn. Then a 12 percent rate on the income above that, up to $38,700. Then a 22 percent rate on the income above that, up to $82,500. And so on.
To return to the example above, an individual making $38,700 a year pays a total of $4,453.50 in taxes. That works out to 10 percent of the first $9,525 they earned ($952.50), plus 12 percent on their earnings between $9,526 and $38,700 (which works out to $3,501). If they make $38,701, their tax bill edges up to just $4,453.72 — that’s the $4,453.50 plus an additional 22 cents for the dollar over $38,700, which is taxed at the 22 percent rate.
Think of it this way: Tax brackets apply to income, not to individuals. The same 10 percent rate applies to the first $9,525 earned whether the earner makes $50,000 in a year or $5,000,000.
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