When can I file for 2018?
If you manage to file early because the software allows it, your return is just going to sit on a server waiting until the IRS begins to accept returns. If you discover that you need to change something, you will not be able to do it. You will have to wait out the IRS and amend later after they fully process the return. And amending takes about 4 months. Amended returns have to be mailed; you can’t “fix” a mistake and e-file the correction.
The IRS has not yet announced when they will begin to accept 2018 returns. It is unlikely to be sooner than the end of January or even later Many forms are not finalized, and now we have a government shutdown complicating matters.
Tax preparation software cannot be finalized and become available to you until the IRS finalizes the forms and then goes through the process of approving the software. Further, many states do not have their forms ready to use yet.
Employers have until the end of January to issue W-2’s. You may also need to wait for your various kinds of 1099’s and/or 1098’s to come from banks, Social Security, schools, and other financial institutions that will issue them in late January/early February.
Trying to file too early is unwise. With all of the massive tax law changes, new forms, new software, and now the shutdown, it is better to wait for the “bugs” and “glitches” to be worked out before you file. Filing too early because you hope for a quick refund may accomplish just the opposite—your return could end up clogged in a mess that will take weeks or even months to sort out, as many “early” filers have discovered in the past.
**Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to offer the most correct information possible. The poster disclaims any legal responsibility for the accuracy of the information that is contained in this post.**
