Today is the final day for procrastinators to file their 2012 tax returns. The Internal Revenue Service has pushed back the filing deadline by two days, giving a little extra time for those still feverishly working on their tax returns. While the rush to the Post Office at the last minute to get that April 17th cancellation mark might have been something of an all day event in the past, the overwhelming shift in filing preferences to electronic means has altered that landscape considerably.
According to the IRS website, since electronic filing debuted in 1990, more than 1 billion tax returns have been e-filed. In 2011, 112 million people filed their returns electronically. That’s 77% of all individual returns filed in the United States last year. If those returns had been mailed to the IRS instead of e-filed, the Postal Service would have seen a minimum of $49.3 million in additional revenue for 2011.
The trend towards e-filing shows no signs of slowing down. Every year, tax-filers are bombarded with advertising by the IRS, tax preparation software companies, and the lure of a speedier turn-around-time for refunds. The number of returns mailed in the future will likely dwindle even further as these lures tempt more individuals to e-file their returns.
Given the continuing decline in hard copy tax returns coursing through the mail stream, can you think of a way for the Postal Service to recapture a share of those electronically filed returns? Comment here.
According to the IRS website, since electronic filing debuted in 1990, more than 1 billion tax returns have been e-filed. In 2011, 112 million people filed their returns electronically. That’s 77% of all individual returns filed in the United States last year. If those returns had been mailed to the IRS instead of e-filed, the Postal Service would have seen a minimum of $49.3 million in additional revenue for 2011.
The trend towards e-filing shows no signs of slowing down. Every year, tax-filers are bombarded with advertising by the IRS, tax preparation software companies, and the lure of a speedier turn-around-time for refunds. The number of returns mailed in the future will likely dwindle even further as these lures tempt more individuals to e-file their returns.
Given the continuing decline in hard copy tax returns coursing through the mail stream, can you think of a way for the Postal Service to recapture a share of those electronically filed returns? Comment here.
6 comments:
I don't know if we can ever recoup the e-files since many have already converted and preparers will push for this type of tax returns. But we can and should push for legislation to "vote by mail" for all elections.
I'd like to see voting through the computer servers of the Post Office online. How cool would that be? Going to usps.com to cast a vote. Maybe the PO could get paid by the government to do it too. Sign me up!
You could offer a specially priced Express Mail package where you purchase a prepaid Express Mail envelope with a complimentary copy of Turbo Tax included. For businesses, a much higher package price could be offered to include the business Turbo Tax disc.
The scammers have played into our favor this year. Develop advertising immediately that Tax returns filed with the Postal Service prevent the electronic scamming of your identity to prevent the losses a vast amount of people have incurred this year. There have been many cases of people filing their taxes only to find out that someone already beat them to it with their Social Security number, or other means utilized to impersonate an individual. Affords more protection to send with U.S. Mail as signature required for the return. Certified service available for proof of mailing for the IRS would be need to promoted as well.
Unfortunately, I was not as busy this year on tax day as in past years. Not surprising when you consider that in my state, 8 out of 10 people filed on-line this year.
I filed mine online. Maybe the post office could develop a tax program of their own. That would generate more revenue.
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