Artículo E-file options.. E-file options.

id="en_US_2025_publink100035459"> E-file options. There are two ways you can use e-file to get an extension of time to file. Complete Form 4868 to use as a worksheet. If you think you may owe tax when you file your return, use Part II of the form to estimate your balance due. If you e-file Form 4868 to the IRS, don’t send a paper Form 4868. E-file using your personal computer or a tax professional. You can use a tax software package with your personal computer or a tax professional to file Form 4868 electronically. Free File and Free File Fillable Forms, both available at IRS.gov, allow you to prepare and e-file Form 4868 for free. You will need to provide certain information from your 2024 tax return. If you wish to make a payment by direct transfer from your bank account, see Pay online under How To Pay , later, in this chapter. E-file and pay by credit or debit card or by direct transfer from your bank account. You can get an extension by paying part or all of your estimate of tax due by using a credit or debit card or by direct transfer from your bank account. You can do this by phone or over the Internet. You don’t file Form 4868. See Pay online under How To Pay , later, in this chapter. Filing a paper Form 4868. You can get an extension of time to file by filing a paper Form 4868. If you are a fiscal year taxpayer, you must file a paper Form 4868. Mail it to the address shown in the form instructions. For more information, see Form 4868. When to file. You must request the automatic extension by the due date for your return. You can file your return any time before the 6-month extension period ends. When you file your return. Enter any payment you made related to the extension of time to file on Schedule 3 (Form 1040), line 10. Individuals Outside the United States You are allowed an automatic 2-month extension, without filing Form 4868 (until June 15, 2026, if you use the calendar year), to file your 2025 return and pay any federal income tax due if: You are a U.S. citizen or resident; and On the due date of your return: You are living outside the United States and Puerto Rico, and your main place of business or post of duty is outside the United States and Puerto Rico; or You are in military or naval service on duty outside the United States and Puerto Rico. However, if you pay the tax due after the regular due date (April 15 for most taxpayers), interest will be charged from that date until the date the tax is paid. If you served in a combat zone or qualified hazardous duty area, you may be eligible for a longer extension of time to file. See Individuals Serving in Combat Zone , later, for special rules that apply to you. Married taxpayers. If you file a joint return, only one spouse has to qualify for this automatic extension. If you and your spouse file separate returns, the automatic extension applies only to the spouse who qualifies. How to get the extension. To use this automatic extension, you must attach a statement to your return explaining what situation qualified you for the extension. (See the situations listed under (2), earlier.) Extensions beyond 2 months. If you can’t file your return within the automatic 2-month extension period, you may be able to get an additional 4-month extension, for a total of 6 months. File Form 4868 and check the box on line 8. No further extension. An extension of more than 6 months will generally not be granted. However, if you are outside the United States and meet certain tests, you may be granted a longer extension. For more information, see Filing and Payment Due Dates in Pub. 54. Individuals Serving in Combat Zone The deadline for filing your tax return, paying any tax you may owe, and filing a claim for refund is automatically extended if you serve in a combat zone. This applies to members of the Armed Forces, as well as merchant marines serving aboard vessels under the operational control of the Department of Defense, Red Cross personnel, accredited correspondents, and civilians under the direction of the Armed Forces in support of the Armed Forces. Combat zone. A combat zone is any area the President of the United States designates by executive order as an area in which the U.S. Armed Forces are engaging or have engaged in combat. An area usually becomes a combat zone and ceases to be a combat zone on the dates the President designates by executive order. For purposes of the automatic extension, the term “combat zone” includes the following areas. The Arabian peninsula area, effective January 17, 1991. The Kosovo area, effective March 24, 1999. The Afghanistan area, effective September 19, 2001. See Pub. 3 for more detailed information on the locations comprising each combat zone. Pub. 3 also has information about other tax benefits available to military personnel serving in a combat zone. Extension period. The deadline for filing your return, paying any tax due, filing a claim for refund, and taking other actions with the IRS is extended in two steps. First, your deadline is extended for 180 days after the later of: The last day you are in a combat zone or the last day the area qualifies as a combat zone, or The last day of any continuous qualified hospitalization (defined later) for injury from service in the combat zone. Second, in addition to the 180 days, your deadline is also extended by the number of days you had left to take action with the IRS when you entered the combat zone. For example, you have 3½ months (January 1–April 15) to file your tax return. Any days left in this period when you entered the combat zone (or the entire 3½ months if you entered it before the beginning of the year) are added to the 180 days. See How Much Extra Time Do These Extensions Give Me? in Pub. 3 for more information. The rules on the extension for filing your return also apply when you are deployed outside the United States (away from your permanent duty station) while participating in a designated contingency operation. Qualified hospitalization. The hospitalization must be the result of an injury received while serving in a combat zone or a contingency operation. Qualified hospitalization means: Any hospitalization outside the United States, and Up to 5 years of hospitalization in the United States. See Pub. 3 for more information on qualified hospitalizations. How Do I Prepare My Return? This section explains how to get ready to complete your tax return and when to report your income and expenses. It also explains how to complete certain sections of the form. Electronic returns. For information you may find useful in preparing an electronic return, see File Electronically , earlier. Substitute tax forms. You can’t use your own version of a tax form unless it meets the requirements explained in Pub. 1167. Form W-2. If you were an employee, you should receive Form W-2 from your employer. You will need the information from this form to prepare your return. See Form W-2 under Credit for Withholding and Estimated Tax for 2025 in chapter 4. Your employer is required to provide or send Form W-2 to you no later than February 2, 2026. If it is mailed, you should allow adequate time to receive it before contacting your employer. If you still don’t get the form by early February, the IRS can help you by requesting the form from your employer. When you request IRS help, be prepared to provide the following information. Your name, address (including ZIP code), and phone number. Your SSN. Your dates of employment. Your employer’s name, address (including ZIP code), and phone number. Form 1099. If you received certain types of income, you may receive a Form 1099. For example, if you received taxable interest of $10 or more, the payer is required to provide or send Form 1099 to you no later than February 2, 2026 (or by February 17, 2026, if furnished by a broker). If it is mailed, you should allow adequate time to receive it before contacting the payer. If you still don’t get the form by February 17 (or by March 2, 2026, if furnished by a broker), call the IRS for help. When Do I Report My Income and Expenses? You must figure your taxable income on the basis of a tax year. A “tax year” is an annual accounting period used for keeping records and reporting income and expenses. You must account for your income and expenses in a way that clearly shows your taxable income. The way you do this is called an accounting method. This section explains which accounting periods and methods you can use. Accounting Periods Most individual tax returns cover a calendar year—the 12 months from January 1 through December 31. If you don’t use a calendar year, your accounting period is a fiscal year. A regular fiscal year is a 12-month period that ends on the last day of any month except December. A 52-53-week fiscal year varies from 52 to 53 weeks and always ends on the same day of the week. You choose your accounting period (tax year) when you file your first income tax return. It can’t be longer than 12 months. More information. For more information on accounting periods, including how to change your accounting period, see Pub. 538. Accounting Methods Your accounting method is the way you account for your income and expenses. Most taxpayers use either the cash method or an accrual method. You choose a method when you file your first income tax return. If you want to change your accounting method after that, you must generally get IRS approval. Use Form 3115 to request an accounting method change. Cash method. If you use this method, report all items of income in the year in which you actually or constructively receive them. Generally, you deduct all expenses in the year you actually pay them. This is the method most individual taxpayers use. Constructive receipt. Generally, you constructively receive income when it is credited to your account or set apart in any way that makes it available to you. You don’t need to have physical possession of it. For example, interest credited to your bank