Asal tax resource center

Practical tax tools, without the scavenger hunt.

Use this library to prepare for filing, understand an IRS letter, estimate withholding, organize self-employment records, or check a refund. Official IRS links open the government source directly.

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Calculators & official tools

Start with a reliable tool

Estimates are useful for planning, but they are not a filed return or a professional opinion. Use current-year information and review results before making tax decisions.

Official IRS tool

Tax Withholding Estimator

Review whether federal withholding from wages or pensions is likely too high or too low and prepare for a Form W-4 update.

Open IRS estimator ↗ Jackson Hewitt tool

Tax Refund Estimator

Enter projected income, withholding, deductions, and credits to explore a possible federal refund or balance.

Estimate a refund ↗ Jackson Hewitt tool

Self-Employment Calculator

Estimate Social Security and Medicare tax on net self-employment income and see how wage income may affect the calculation.

Estimate self-employment tax ↗ Official IRS tool

EITC Assistant

Check basic Earned Income Tax Credit eligibility, qualifying-child rules, and an estimated credit using the IRS assistant.

Open EITC Assistant ↗

Document checklist

What to gather before tax preparation

Your exact list depends on your return. Start here, then add records for major life changes, new income, a business, a home, education, or health coverage.

Identity and prior filing

Photo identification for taxpayer and spouse
Taxpayer identification documents for everyone on the return
Prior-year federal, state, and local returns
Bank routing and account numbers for direct deposit
IRS or state letters received during the year

Income records

Forms W-2 and all Forms 1099
Retirement, Social Security, unemployment, and investment statements
Digital asset transaction records when applicable
Rental income and expense records
Business or gig income records, including cash and app payments

Deductions and credits

Childcare provider information and amounts paid
Education Form 1098-T and eligible expense records
Mortgage interest, property tax, and charitable contribution records
Health insurance marketplace Form 1095-A
Estimated federal, state, and local tax payments

Self-employed and business

Income summary by source
Business expense records and receipts
Mileage log and vehicle expense information
Home office measurements and eligible costs
Payroll reports, asset purchases, and prior depreciation schedules

Official IRS destinations

Common federal tax tasks

IRS.gov

Check a refund

Use Where’s My Refund with the taxpayer identification number on the return, filing status, and exact refund amount.

Check status ↗ IRS.gov

View your tax account

Access balances, payment history, tax records, select notices, and other account information.

IRS Online Account ↗ IRS.gov

Understand a notice

Look up a CP or LTR number and review the IRS explanation and recommended response.

Find a notice ↗ IRS.gov

Self-employed tax center

Find federal guidance on Schedule C, self-employment tax, estimated payments, and recordkeeping.

Visit tax center ↗

Important deadline habits

Federal due dates can move for weekends, legal holidays, disaster relief, or special filing circumstances. Confirm the date for your tax year on IRS.gov rather than relying on last year’s calendar.

Individual filers

Calendar-year individual returns are generally due in April. A timely extension normally moves the filing deadline into October, but it does not extend the time to pay an expected balance.

Estimated payments

People with income not fully covered by withholding—including many self-employed taxpayers—may need quarterly estimated payments. Review income and payments during the year instead of waiting until filing season.

Business returns

Partnership and S corporation returns commonly have a March deadline for calendar-year entities, while other entity deadlines vary. Extensions and owner schedules should be coordinated so personal returns are not delayed.

Check current IRS filing information ↗