7 easy steps to an early tax refund

By Jeff Schnepper

If you want to get your 2007 taxes in early and get your refund quickly, here are Schnepper's Seven Strategies to getting those dollars in your pockets ASAP. Here's what you have to do:

1. Get started

The first step is the hardest. Stop thinking about it and get moving. Until you actually start your return, you'll never finish it. That's probably going to slow down your refund.

If you don't have all your numbers, just put your name and address on the form. It will get you in the mind-set to move forward.

Your first step is to break the inertia.

2. Accumulate the data

January is collection month. By the end of the first month of 2008, you should have the numbers in hand. Make sure you've gotten W-2s and any statements from your brokers and banks. You'll receive 1099 forms for any interest, dividends, and sales of stock.

Your mortgage company will send you a Form 1098 for any interest and real-estate taxes paid. Get those statements together and review the numbers. They're not always right.

3. Put the numbers in IRS categories

Neither the IRS nor your CPA is going to add up those numbers for you. Well, maybe your CPA. Several years ago, a psychiatrist on the Main Line near Philadelphia paid me $150 an hour to open his mail because he couldn't be bothered. In any case, don't even suggest it to the IRS.

You're going to want to have totals for the income and deduction categories the IRS provides. You'll need that final "number" if you're doing your own return, whether by hand or by computer. If you're having your return prepared, you'll want to give that number to your CPA to minimize his or her bill.

I suggest my clients use what I call the "envelope" system. You create an envelope for each of the IRS income/deduction categories. There'll be an envelope for medical expenses, charitable contributions, job expenses, interest paid, etc. Find all the receipts, all the checks, all the invoices and put them in the appropriate envelope.

If you live in a state without an income tax, don't forget to look for numbers for a possible deduction of sales taxes.

These states are: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming.

In December 2006, Congress extended a number of tax breaks including the sales-tax and college-expense deductions, as well as increasing the tax-free contribution limits to health savings accounts. These breaks are still on the books for 2007. Although they expire after this year, they are likely to be extended for 2008 and beyond.

You can use this simple system all year. Throw all of your receipts into a file or even a shoe box. When you reconcile your checking account, on a monthly or at least a quarterly basis, you break down the checks and receipts according to the categories you selected.

By the end of January, you should have all your checks and receipts broken down in each envelope by deduction category. You add up the receipts and checks (don't double count!), and that's the number you use on your return or give to your preparer.

That's how much you've spent in each deduction category. And, with this system, you never have to fear an audit.

An audit is nothing more than the IRS asking you to prove the numbers you put on your return. You've already done that. Just hand over the deduction-category envelope with the receipts and checks. After a series of matches, it's going to be a quick audit.

4. Analyze the numbers

Sometimes, the raw numbers you have are going to be wrong.

On the income side, you're required to report any and all interest and dividends received, even if you don't receive a Form 1099.

You'll have to match up the sales of stock with the cost of those shares. The number shown by your broker on Form 1099 B is only the sale price. You're not taxed on 100% of that number. You reduce it, on Schedule D of your return, by your cost, including broker's fees. You're only taxed on the net profit.

If you don't sell 100% of your position, you'll have to allocate your costs on a per-share basis.

On the deduction side, you may have deductions not reflected by the raw data.

Say you make your Jan. 1, 2008, mortgage payment on Dec. 31, 2007. The interest you paid won't be reflected on the Form 1098 sent by your mortgage company. That's because they didn't get the check or the online payment until 2008. (If you pay online, be sure your bank records the date that you send the payment properly. A canceled check is still adequate proof.)

Paying before the end of the year transforms your January 2008 payment into a 2007 deduction, and you should run an amortization schedule to compute the additional interest. That additional interest would be shown on line 11 of your Schedule A.

5. Call your accountant

If you're going to have your return professionally prepared, call your accountant now for an appointment.

I know, you're her favorite client. But if you want an appointment tomorrow, you better call her yesterday.

In any case, once you've made that appointment, you've made a commitment to get that return done. And that means you've committed to get ready yourself. Just make sure you've got the numbers in order when you show up. Your wallet will appreciate it.

6. Put ink to paper

Or, at least, open the tax program on your computer. You've got your numbers. If you're doing your own return, put ink to paper. Go to your quiet place and actually do your return.

You've done the real work. Now you're just putting numbers in boxes. Relax; this is really the easy part. Remember, we started with how to get your refund faster.

7. Mail your return

A completed return on your desk that calls for a refund is the IRS' idea of heaven. It's your money. Don't leave it with the IRS. It's bad enough that they've held it all year without paying you any interest on your excess payment. Don't compound the pain by delaying the mailing.

Of course, the best way to speed up your return is to e-file. The IRS appreciates the cost savings and claims it expedites your refund. The IRS is offering what it bills as a free e-filing service. It's not quite free. You may still have to pay a "transmitter" to convert your return into IRS code and send it on.

• For more on e-filing, click here.

In either case, electing a direct deposit of your refund will always get it into your hands faster than snail mail. More than 53 million taxpayers used direct deposit for their 2005 refunds, up from 49 million a year earlier.

Complete lines 73(b), (c), and (d) of your Form 1040, and, coupled with an e-filed return, in theory you could have your refund in your bank account in as little as 24 hours.

Alternately, the IRS now has a Web tool called "Where's My Refund?" that can tell you whether the IRS received your return and whether your refund was processed and sent to you.

You can get more information on the refund tool here. It also has a refund-assistance line, 1-800-829-1954.

Updated Feb. 13, 2008