Special Income Tax Deductions, Deadlines, and Refunds for the 2006 Tax Year

If you are waiting until April to file your 2006 income tax return, you are not alone. Millions of Americans in 2007 will wait until the last minute to file their 2006 income tax return. This year however, is different than your average year for completing income tax returns. In addition to a slightly longer deadline to file your taxes, (hint: it's not the 15^th and it's not the date printed on your income tax forms!), there are three substantial income tax deductions for 2006 you will not find on the forms produced by the IRS. Not only are there three more deductions for you to benefit from, there is also a special, one-time only tax deduction for everyone (more about that later).

Extended Deadline:

First, if you have April 15^th on the brain, relax! While April 15^th is traditionally the income tax deadline for filing, this year you have two extra days. Because April 15^th falls on a Sunday, a day the United States Post Office is closed, the deadline needs to be moved to the following day...the 16^th....but wait! There is more!

April 16^th is Emancipation day in the District of Columbia. Emancipation day is a legal holiday and not a federal holiday. This means you can still go to the Post Office or your local IRS agency for help. They will both be open for business.

If you are wondering why your 2006 income tax forms say the deadline is April 16^th, there is an explanation. When the IRS printed the forms, they believed the deadline to be April 16^th for filing 2006 income tax returns. Only after the forms were printed did the IRS become aware of the Emancipation Day as a legal holiday and the error revealed. The IRS was nice enough to save a few trees and did not reprint the forms. So if you have been thinking you had until April 15^th, or even the 16^th to file your 2006 income tax return, consider is an extra prize in the bottom of the cereal box! (Just do not use it as an excuse to put off filing your 2006 income tax return too much longer!)

In case you are wondering, in 2008 when you file your 2007 income tax return, April 15^th falls on a Tuesday and is not extended.

One...Two...Three Extra Income Tax Deductions