Hey, we all make mistakes once in a while. But the one area in your life you need to make sure you’re error-free is when filing your tax return. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) isn’t very forgiving when it comes to mistakes on your returns – which is why we’re sharing seven tax mistakes you should avoid.

1. Careless Mistakes
   Take your time to make sure your numbers aren’t transposed; the names are correct; and you checked the right filing status. As for your filing status, whatever you are on December 31, that’s your status. Play it safe and double/triple check everything.
2. Forgotten Income
   It seems like this would be a hard one to forget, but you’d be surprised. Many people forget extra income like side work, gambling winning and even retirement withdrawals. Review your bank statements to ensure you’ve reported all of your income.
3. Missing Deductions
   The more deductions you report, the larger your potential refund will be. Take a look to see if you have charitable donations, reinvested dividends, student loan interest, moving expenses due to a new job, childcare, the earned income credit and more.
4. Procrastinate Filing
   Face it, we all know when the tax filing deadline is. Even so, April 15 can sneak up on you – so be sure you’ve filed well ahead of that deadline. If you wait till last minute you could rush through your return and make costly mistakes.
5. Not Filing
   Believe it or not, but there are people that don’t file at all. Not sure if you have a tax liability? File anyway, just to be sure. You may have had too many taxes withheld from your income or have credits you’re unaware of. But you won’t know unless you file.
6. Misunderstanding Extensions
   Yes, filing an extension will give you an extra six months to file your return. But it’s important to remember that if you owe taxes, you’ll still owe them by the tax filing deadline – even if you’ve got an extension.
7. Paying Preparers
   Whether you’re used to using an accountant or tax preparer, chances are you can save money and file your tax return on your own. Most people have fairly simple returns that they can do themselves. Especially with user-friendly tax software like TurboTax.

The good news is that WWFCU members can get exclusive savings on TurboTax and get their largest refund guaranteed. Plus, TurboTax can help you avoid most of the above mistakes! Click here to start your return today.