Filing your taxes with the Internal Revenue Service every year can be both complicated and time consuming. It's understandable to want to procrastinate.
Personal Finance Company Upgraded Points recently surveyed 2,500 people across the U.S. to determine when Americans file their taxes every year.
WATCH ANYTIME FOR FREE
 |
Stream NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are. |
The survey looked into which states file their taxes on time — and which have the most procrastinators.
Texas and California tied for the states with the largest number of procrastinators. Just under a third of respondents from each of these two states said they file their taxes on or after tax day.
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter.
Maryland came in second place with 27.5% of respondents from the state saying they wait to file their taxes on or after tax day.
Still, most Americans don't put things off. Half of all respondents said they file their tax paperwork as soon as they have all the forms they need.
Money Report
Wyoming residents are most liekly to file their taxes early, with 58% of respondents from the state saying they file their taxes as soon as they have their forms.
Why it could be good to file your taxes early
The deadline to file your 2020 taxes has been pushed to May 17, 2021, but there are a number of reasons to consider filing early.
One reason is that filing early can actually help protect you against tax scams by making sure fraudsters aren't able to use your information to file for a tax refund in your name before you file yourself.
Last year, the IRS identified $2.3 billion in tax fraud, and experts worry that the number may be even higher this year because of the large number of Americans looking to file their taxes online for the first time.
Filing early also gives you time to send in any additional information the IRS may need and therefore get your tax refund sooner.
And if you get your tax return in early, you'll avoid getting charged any late fees.
Check out: Use this calculator to see exactly how much your third coronavirus stimulus check could be worth
Don't miss: Best tax software of 2021: File fast and accurately, plus get your maximum refund
