Tax Transcripts: What They Are and Why You Should Care

A tax transcript is a condensed version of the essential tax information included in your federal tax return. The tax transcript provides an official summary of the information lenders may seek, such as your adjusted gross income, instead of going into the weeds with your financial details for a particular tax year as your tax return would. The information on your tax transcript will be determined by the kind of tax transcript you order, and My Tax Team provides all these facilities.

Tax transcripts used to include a wide variety of personally identifying information, including sensitive data such as your Social Security number. However, this practice has since been discontinued. However, the IRS has recently modified the format to protect taxpayers from identity thieves who may use tax transcripts to submit bogus tax returns or steal data. Now, a significant portion of that information is partly obscured on tax transcripts, which means that even if it were to get into the hands of a criminal, it would be essentially pointless. This idea is best in tax preparation in Dallas.

What Other Kinds of Tax Transcripts are there to Choose from My Tax Team?

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) makes accessible to taxpayers a variety of different tax transcripts. The key distinctions between them are as follows.

  • Tax Return Transcript

When individuals speak about tax transcripts, they most often talk about a transcript of an individual’s tax return, and My Tax Teamunderstands that. Your adjusted gross income is one of the pieces of information that is likely to be requested by lenders and financial aid personnel, and this paper contains all of that information. In addition, it displays the majority of the line items in your tax return and any additional forms or schedules you may have sent. However, it does not reflect any adjustments that you may have made after filing, such as if you were required to submit an updated tax return. 

  • Tax Account Transcript

Even though it is similar to a transcript of your tax return, a transcript of your tax account will display modifications to your basic tax return information after submitting your return.

If you request your transcript online, you may get tax help in Dallas; you may access your tax account transcripts for the current year and up to ten years after filing your taxes. This extended availability period applies to transcripts requested online. However, if you get these transcripts over the phone or via the mail, the only information that will be available to you will be for the current year and the three years before.

  • Transcript of the Record of Accounts

This transcript is far more thorough and includes all the information from your entire tax return and your tax account transcript. In other words, it has all the data from both transcripts. 

  • A Transcript of Wages and Incomes

Instead of requesting a W-2, 1099, 1098, or Form 5498, you will need to seek a wage and income transcript if you require precise information on your income from one of these documents. You can request a “verification of non-filing” letter to support your claim that you did not submit an income tax return for a prior year. For past tax years, you will be required to submit a written request using a paper form, and My Tax Teamcan help you with all these.

How can I Acquire a Transcript of My Tax Return?

Even if the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) isn’t often the most user-friendly government institution to interact with, at least acquiring your tax transcript is simple with this agency. Many individuals will find this to be the most convenient choice. You may request a transcript online using the IRS’s Get Transcript Online facility, which is designed to make the process as streamlined as possible. You should be able to access the transcript you need from that location and print it out or download it. You may also submit your request for a postal transcript by using the online option titled “Get Transcript by Mail.” Get a copy of your tax transcript by calling in. In conclusion, if you want to obtain a tax transcript from the IRS, you may also do it using an automated phone line. 

How Can I Ensure the FAFSA Receives the Information About My Taxes?

If you submit your FAFSA application online, you may use a handy tool called the IRS Data Retrieval Tool, which imports the information from your tax return directly into the application. You’ll find this tool under the area of the form that deals with your financial details.

Bottom Line

If you are unsure about the kind of tax documents required, such as a transcript or a copy of your return, you should verify this information with the entity asking it from you. Several educational institutions will no longer let you use your total tax return. The retrieval of your tax information to provide evidence of your income need not be a challenging task. In most cases, obtaining a free copy of your tax transcript is fast and straightforward and won’t cost you anything.

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