Filed taxes before receiving 1099-DIV - amend?

[mustacheindc]

So I filed my taxes and then received a 1099-DIV after having filed. The dividends I received were only $25 and from what I can tell by plugging the numbers into H&R block, it doesn't affect the outcome (I still get the same amount of refund).

Is it necessary to amend?

[Cathy]

As a general rule, the civil penalties found in the Internal Revenue Code are only equal to a ratio of the tax underpaid. So if you paid the tax in full there are generally no civil penalties. However, the general rule is subject to many exceptions where you can pay a penalty without owing tax (e.g. if you failed to comply with the foreign trust disclosure rules). I don't want to review every possible case where you can suffer a civil penalty without underpaying tax, but they do exist. I realise this isn't one of my most detailed posts, but it would be a lot of work to describe all of the potential penalties.

[Drifterrider]

So I filed my taxes and then received a 1099-DIV after having filed. The dividends I received were only $25 and from what I can tell by plugging the numbers into H&R block, it doesn't affect the outcome (I still get the same amount of refund).

Is it necessary to amend?

I would write a letter of intent to the IRS (explaining what happened and that you intend to file an amendment), have your signature notarized and NOT mail it.

After receipt of your refund, file an amendment.  The amendment is to prevent future audits for that item and the letter is to show you are aware of the error (just in case).

[mustacheindc]

I would write a letter of intent to the IRS (explaining what happened and that you intend to file an amendment), have your signature notarized and NOT mail it.

After receipt of your refund, file an amendment.  The amendment is to prevent future audits for that item and the letter is to show you are aware of the error (just in case).

I already received my refund. Does that make your comment about the letter of intent moot? And elsewhere on the internet, people have recommended just waiting to get a bill from the IRS, as it would at most be a couple dollars. If they realized I didn't report a 1099-DIV for $25, would it be more likely that they audit me or bill me? I'm fine with doing an amendment, but when I tried to do it through H&R Block, which I used to file, it seemed a little confusing.

[forummm]

If it doesn't affect your tax owed, I wouldn't bother. The penalties are all about how much you should have paid but didn't. The IRS ran your return through their system, checked it against the data they had for you, and agreed that you were owed that amount of refund. The fact that they sent it to you already confirms this. You might eventually get a letter from them saying that they made changes to your return that did not affect the amount of tax due. I had this happen one time when I copied a number wrong.

[Drifterrider]

I already received my refund. Does that make your comment about the letter of intent moot? And elsewhere on the internet, people have recommended just waiting to get a bill from the IRS, as it would at most be a couple dollars. If they realized I didn't report a 1099-DIV for $25, would it be more likely that they audit me or bill me? I'm fine with doing an amendment, but when I tried to do it through H&R Block, which I used to file, it seemed a little confusing.

The letter would be moot however, I would still file an amendment.  If the IRS detects an error or omission, it can go back three years from that point.  As I do my forms by hand, I can't answer the questions about H&R Block.  I have not gotten 1099s every year as I've actually gotten less than $10 in interest from a bank account however, I reported everything.  Remember, the IRS might find your error three years from now and charge you.  They might not.

I would not suggest you ever be afraid of the IRS however, when you find an error; correct it.  AND KEEP COPIES OF THE FORMS forever!!