June 1: Summer conjures dreams of lazy beach days. But for full-time coastal residents, June also brings the start of the annual Atlantic (and Gulf of Mexico) hurricane season, which runs through Nov. 30. Federal forecasters once again are forecasting a more active than usual hurricane season. And while the tropical storm season heats up in August and September, now is the time to get ready.
Uncle Sam's official forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center say we could get 13 to 19 total named storms, which are those with winds of 39 mph or higher. Of those, six to 10 are forecast to become hurricanes, meaning winds of 74 mph or higher. Three to five of the storms this season could become major hurricanes; that’s category 3, 4 or 5, with winds of 111 mph or higher.
Regardless of the count, it only takes one to wreak havoc. The countdown clock above can help you keep track of how many more days you have to worry about tracking any size or type of tropical storms. You also might want to check out the ol' blog's Storm Warnings collection of special pages with posts offer tax advice on preparing for, recovering from and helping those who sustain damages from the many ways that that weather goes wild.
June 6: With school out, working parents need to make child care arrangements. Consider day camps. I know, many filled up earlier this year, but check out the options in your area. Not only do day camps offer some supervision of your kiddos while you're at the office, the activities' costs also count toward claiming the child and dependent care credit.
June 10: If your job is as a server at a restaurant or at any other establishment where gratuities from customers are part of your compensation, I hope you get all the tips you deserve for doing your job well. Remember, though, that those tips are taxable income.
Whether you're dining at your favorite eatery or getting food, groceries and/or prepared meals, delivered to your home, if a tip isn't included on your restaurant or delivery bill, click the image above to calculate how much to tip the person who brought it to you.
If you got at least $20 in gratuities in May for your extraordinary services as a food server or hair stylist or parking valet or whatever job where tipping is common, you must report that amount by today. Use Form 4070 to let your employer know the total tips you took in last month.
June 14: Happy Flag Day! It's not a day-off-work federal holiday, but Flag Day has been an official day to celebrate the Star-Spangled Banner since 1949. If you need to buy a U.S. flag to fly today, you also might get a tax break. Several states exempt the national symbol from sales tax. Check with your state's tax department to see if you can save on your patriotic display.
June 15: Happy Father's Day!
Dad might not say so, but he appreciates being recognized, so take time today to let him know you care. And if your father is getting on up in years, take the time when you visit to make sure he doesn't need some added help from you. If you provide papa a little, or even a lot of assistance, there's a chance you could get some help from a couple of tax credits.
June 16: It's Tax Day again, this time for taxpayers living and working abroad. That includes military personnel posted outside the United States or Puerto Rico. This automatic filing delay until mid-June officially is on 6/15, but is a day later this year because the 15th was on Sunday.
Today, June 16, also is the one-day-later deadline for the second estimated tax payment for the 2025 tax year.
June 19: It's Juneteenth. This date marks when Texans finally received word that all slaves were free. And although it is our newest federal holiday, and is celebrated on June 19, not on a nearby Monday, it is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.
June 20: At 10:42 p.m. Eastern Time it’s official. Summer is here, arriving on this longest day of the year.
It’s also a dangerous season for many who don’t have air conditioning. Many charitable groups help people cope with the heat. If you itemize, your gift to such IRS-qualified nonprofits this summer — or any day in any season in 2025 — could be tax deductible on the tax return you file next year.
June 30: If you got an extension to file back in April, you don’t have to wait until the final Oct. 15 deadline to do so. You can get this tax task out of the way so you don’t have to think about it for the rest of the summer. You also might be able to file electroncally at no cost if your adjusted gross income (AGI), regardless of your filing status, is $84,000 or less by using the official IRS.gov Free File website.
Eight software companies are part of this year’s IRS-Free File Alliance partnership option at IRS.gov. They will be available through the Oct. 15 extension deadline, but again, you don’t have to wait. And if your income is too high, you still can file for free by using Free File's Fillable Forms option.
Small Business Tax Calendar: If you run your own company, you know there are myriad important filing, deposit and record keeping dates throughout the year that your company needs to meet. You also can track key business and individual tax deadlines in IRS Pub. 509.
Same thing is happening to us. We filed on Feb 14th. The Wheres my refund site said we should get our refund by 3/11 then 3/16. Then we got 2 different reference numbers to contact customer service. They first said it had to do with the homebuyer credit, then we called and the told us somebody accidentally entered my social instead of my husbands when inputing the info in the system, so then had to wait another 6-8 weeks after it was fixed. Then we had a date of 4/5, which is today. We called today and they first said they were waiting on an amendment to match up with our original return. Called them back again stating we didnt file an amendment and the next rep told us that they recieved all the paperwork and is now ready to process and it should be another 3-5 weeks!! Ugh!!!
Posted by: Kristina | Tuesday, April 05, 2011 at 05:18 PM
I was supposed to get my refund on 3/11 and ofcourse it did not happen. The on 3/16, I had within a few hour period, three codes on WMR: a 1481, a 1206 and 8002. I called the IRS and they said that everything was prcessed and worked out and I should receive my refund within a couple of weeks. Next day WMR gave me a date of 4/5/11 to receive it. Guess what, that day is today; hoever, I now have a code of 8002 on WMR and no date. I called the IRS and they said it was still be processed (apparently that was not done like the last IRS rep told me last onth). Now they say it could be a coupl of more weeks. Does anyone know what in the workd is going on???
Posted by: pwhite | Tuesday, April 05, 2011 at 08:58 AM
Owning a home has many benefits. When you make a mortgage payment, you are building equity. And that's an investment. Owning a home also qualifies you for tax breaks that assist you in dealing with your new financial responsibilities- like insurance, real estate taxes, and upkeep- which can be substantial. But given the freedom, stability, and security of owning your own home, they are worth it.
Posted by: firsthome | Monday, March 28, 2011 at 08:16 PM
Wait 30 days is the standard response. They had no information as to when I would actually get the refund. This is frustrating because we rely on that money to catch up from winter season when my husband works no overtime. Just frustrating!
Posted by: Crystal | Sunday, March 27, 2011 at 10:41 AM
I Just got off the Phone and was told I wouldn't get mine till the end of April.
Posted by: Steve Ledridge | Thursday, March 24, 2011 at 07:18 PM