Client Responsibilities

When the firm prepares your return, it often includes estimated tax payment vouchers for the coming year. Those vouchers are not a bill, not a notice from the IRS, and not a sign that something went wrong. The US tax system requires income that is not subject to withholding to be paid in during the year as it is earned, and the vouchers are a safe-harbor tool sized off your prior-year figures to keep you out of underpayment penalties and to prevent a large balance at filing. You are not required to mail those exact vouchers, but the underlying tax is owed regardless, and skipping payments without a plan reintroduces both the penalty and the lump-sum balance the vouchers were designed to avoid. If your income has changed materially since last year, or if you are also managing an IRS installment agreement, contact the firm before adjusting or skipping a payment.