Tax expert Sam Erwin of Hanks Tax Service advises that with the federal and state income tax filing deadlines quickly approaching, it’s crucial to file on time. If you can’t get your numbers together, Erwin says to make sure to file an extension. However, he notes that the extension is only to file your return and does not grant an extension to pay any taxes owed.
Erwin mentioned that while tax changes are expected, they will not take effect this year. “As of right now, what I’m telling my clients is, the laws that are on the books for 2025 are very similar to last year. However, we do know there is going to be a significant tax change coming at the end of the year, which we expect to take effect next year, in 2026,” he said.
Erwin also highlighted that Hawaii will experience major tax cuts in the coming years. “It’s phasing in through 2031 with both the standard deduction increasing as well as tax rates coming down. So, I am looking forward to feeling some of that tax relief on the state of Hawaii side in the next five years,” he added.
When asked for his advice on managing taxes, Erwin said, “My main advice for people is to understand their withholding if they’re wage earners. There was a new form introduced in 2020, and the previous version of zero withholding doesn’t cut it these days. There is a checkbox on the W-4, checkbox 2-C, for multiple jobs or if your spouse works.
I refer to that checkbox as the ‘I don’t want to owe taxes’ checkbox.”
If you owe money to the IRS, you could be subject to two different penalties plus interest if you don’t file and don’t pay what you owe by April 15. The first penalty will come if you don’t file a return on time. You will be charged 5% of your unpaid taxes for every month you don’t file.
The total penalty assessed may not exceed 25% of your outstanding debt. Even if you file for an extension, you still have to pay what you owe by April 15. If you don’t, you will be subject to a penalty that amounts to 0.5% of your unpaid balance every month until you file or until the overall total you pay hits 25% of what you owe.
If you don’t owe the IRS any money, you won’t be assessed a failure-to-file penalty if you don’t file. But you may be penalized in other ways. For instance, you might be due a refund.
timely tax filing steps
If you don’t file, you won’t be paid. Ditto if you are owed refunds from prior tax years for which you didn’t file returns.
Tax Day this year is Tuesday, April 15, 2025. The deadline for paying taxes is midnight on April 15 in your time zone. If you file via mail, the IRS considers your return filed on time if it is postmarked by the due date.
If you need more time to file your taxes, you can request an extension by April 15th. This gives you until October 15th to file without penalties. However, any tax you owe is still due by April 15th.
The extension is only for filing your return. You can request an automatic tax-filing extension online, by mail, or through a tax professional. The IRS has an online tool called “Where’s My Refund?” that allows you to check on the status of your refund.
You’ll need to enter your Social Security number, filing status, and exact refund amount on the return. The tool will show one of three statuses: return received (processing), refund approved (preparing to issue refund by date shown), or refund sent (sent to your bank or in the mail). If your return was accepted, the IRS indicates it could take up to five days for your refund to show in your bank account and up to several weeks for a check to arrive in the mail.
Most states have dedicated online portals for tracking income tax returns. Typically, your refund status will be available roughly four weeks after filing an electronic return and up to 12 weeks if you filed a paper return. After entering your Social Security number and other required details, you will receive a status update on your return.
Refund amounts depend on how much tax was withheld from your paycheck during the year. Last year, the average federal tax refund topped $3,200, according to IRS data. IRS Direct File is a program that allows millions of Americans with uncomplicated taxes to file returns at no cost.
In 2025, Direct File expanded to include 25 states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. The IRS says 30 million taxpayers qualify for this free service if they have relatively straightforward returns.
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