I live in the city. My tax preparer did my Federal and State returns in April, but did not do my City return. As she filed electronically, I did not realize she did not file the City return. I've recently received a bill from the Collector of Revenue for the City, with late payment charges. Should she assume any responsibility for my late payment charge? She is sending me a completed City return free in the mail, but did not mention anything about reimbursing me for the penalty due.
2007-07-07 03:29:59 · 6 answers · asked by Tertium Quid 2 in Business & Finance ➔ Taxes ➔ United States
There was no city tax withheld on my W-2, because I moved to the city in April of '06. Is it the job of the tax preparer to know what taxes should be filed? Should she have looked at my address & zip code to determine if city taxes should be filed? I want to do the right thing here. So far, she claims to have sent me a city return (that's pro-rated for the 8 months I lived in the city in '06) two weeks ago, that never arrived. Then she said she sent another one by Priority Mail over a week ago. That too hasn't arrived. Something seems fishy to me.
2007-07-09 04:24:21 · update #1
Was there any conversation when you were with her doing your other returns about the city return? I live in PA, and the federal and state can be efiled but the city or municipal return can't. When I do returns, very few of the people have me also do their city return, most of them do them themselves (city returns are very simple), but a few bring in those forms also. In that case I do their return, and give them to them mentioning that this has to be mailed - I make it a point not to just put in in the envelope with the rest of their copies, anything they have to mail stays out when I hand them to them. Rent and property tax rebate forms, which also have to be mailed to the state, get the same treatment.
Are you new to the location where you live, or new to filing returns? If you have filed them before, and the city doesn't allow efile, then you should have asked where the city one was. If the city allows efile and she just didn't do it, she might bear a little more of the responsibility. Did you bring her copies of city forms that you got in the mail?
Legally of course, you are the one responsible for your own returns. But if she has some of the responsibility for the mixup, and just missed it, then it would be decent (not legally required) if she offered to pay the late fees.
The responder who said go to the police is way out of line, by the way - no crime has been committed.
2007-07-07 03:40:31 · answer #1 · answered by Judy 7 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Any time a paid preparer does a return (federal, state, or local), they are required to give you a paper copy. If you received no copy of your local return, and you did not pay for a local return, then there is nothing the preparer owes you.
If you did pay for the return already, then she should pay the late fee.
2007-07-07 13:10:36 · answer #2 · answered by ninasgramma 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Damm return for city taxes. I feel for you........
2007-07-07 10:39:53 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
I sure would ask her, almost demand it even... seems fair to me... it's her goofup... she should at least refund what you paid her to do them
2007-07-07 10:33:16 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
I would go over there and demand that she pay or just contact the police.
2007-07-07 10:32:50 · answer #5 · answered by Gengis 6 · 0⤊ 6⤋
she has to. you paid for her to do your taxes correctly.
2007-07-07 15:42:39 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋