File taxes by April 15 to avoid penalties, IRS says

April 15 is almost here and the IRS is reminding taxpayers to file by the deadline or request a six month extension.

There are three ways to submit an IRS Form 4868, Application For Automatic Extension of Time To File U.S. Individual Tax Return; electronically, such as by computer; by paying part of your tax due with a credit card through an outside service provider listed on the form; or by mail.

An extension will give you extra time to get your paperwork to the IRS, but it does not extend the time you have to pay any tax due.

Taxpayers who file on time but don't pay all or some of their taxes by the deadline could face interest on the unpaid amount and a failure-to-pay penalty.

"Filing by April 15 allows taxpayers to avoid the failure-to-file penalty, even if they can't pay all of their taxes," said Michael Devine, IRS spokesman.

He said taxpayers who can't pay the full amount by the deadline should pay as much as they can to minimize interest and penalties that increase the total amount a taxpayer owes.

Those who owe taxes and don't file atax return by the deadline may have to pay interest on the unpaid taxes and a failure-to-file penalty.

For more information about e-filing and paying taxes, taxpayers should visit the IRS.gov Web site and choose 1040 Central. Also, the IRS warns taxpayers not to be confused by internet sites that end in .com, .net, .org or other designations instead of .gov; these are not IRS sites.

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