For the first time, US corporations and tax-exempt organizations have the option of filing their annual income tax and information returns electronically, the Internal Revenue Service announced on Tuesday.
The new system began accepting returns last month, and was developed and delivered through the IRS Business Systems Modernization program. Corporations and tax-exempt entities can now significantly reduce the time that it takes to file their Forms 1120 and 990 by filing them electronically.
The new system provides corporations and tax-exempt organizations with the option to transmit tax return data using a secure Internet connection in place of a modem.
Taxpayers and tax professionals can prepare the returns using IRS-approved software developed by one of several software companies. The returns are then transmitted to IRS through a secure Internet site, which is accessible only to registered users.
“We have worked closely with tax professionals to build a new approach based on industry needs. The successful launch of this modernized e-file process means charitable organizations and most corporations can stop filing massive paper returns,” announced IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson.
The improved process offers several additional advantages: tax professionals can attach documents to returns in Portable Document Format (PDF); error messages are quickly delivered and easier to understand; and returns are processed upon receipt. Also, an IRS return message lets tax professionals know the return has been filed.
In 2003, corporations filed more than 5.7 million corporate income tax returns (Form 1120), and tax-exempt organizations filed 506,000 annual information returns (the Form 990 series), plus 395,000 automatic extension forms.
This is the first release of the new electronic filing system. The project's goal is to replace outdated, proprietary IRS technology with an industry standard process that uses Extensible Markup Language or XML. This is the first XML-based system the IRS has used to receive tax returns over the Internet.
More than 95 percent of corporations are able to file electronically now, and all corporations will be able to do so when another 43 forms and schedules are released later in 2004.
In addition, more than two-thirds of exempt organizations can file electronically now, and an extra 244,000 will be able to file other types of return later in 2004 and 2005.
In the future, the new system is expected to make it possible to file federal and multiple-state returns in a single electronic transmission. The IRS is working closely with several states on this future option.
.
Network Tweets
Network BlogsContent
provided by
|
Archive | Resources | Partners | Site Map | Links | Newsletter Archive | Contact | RSS Feeds | About | Syndication | Advertising & Marketing | Recruitment | Terms & Conditions | Privacy & Cookies
Copyright © 2012 - All Rights Reserved - Tax-News.com
IMPORTANT NOTICE: Tax-News.com has taken reasonable care in sourcing and presenting the information contained on this site, but accepts no responsibility for any financial or other loss or damage that may result from its use. In particular, users of the site are advised to take appropriate professional advice before committing themselves to involvement in offshore jurisdictions, offshore trusts or offshore investments.
Write a comment