Amazon is offering a special deal to some customers through June 30. Myriam B / Shutterstock.com
Some Amazon shoppers might be eligible for a $10 credit on their next purchase. Those who are eligible for the credit must purchase $25 or more in goods and agree to use Amazon’s pickup service to get their package. This means that your order will be delivered to a store or self-service locker that is part of the pickup service. You will then need to pick up the item yourself. To take advantage of…
Three things are necessary to avoid the money blues today. PeopleImages.com – Yuri A / Shutterstock.com
Virtually all Americans prize financial wellness, but millions are suffering from a bad case of the money blues, according to a recent survey conducted by data intelligence company Morning Consult on behalf of financial services firm Edward Jones. Nearly half of Americans — 43% — do not feel financially stable, even though 93% believe financial wellness is important, the survey of 2,200…
When the work is done, it’s time for fun — maybe in another state. FS Stock / Shutterstock.com
The baby boomers have become the retirement boomers, and the numbers keep rising. Nearly 10,000 people turn 65 every day in the United States, and the U.S. Census Bureau estimates there will be 78 million people at or older than retirement age by 2035. After ending their careers, many thousands of these folks are ready to pack it up and move elsewhere, often to a different state.
You can pay taxes with a credit card, but there’s an extra fee.
Image source: Getty Images
When tax time rolls around, a common question is whether you can pay what you owe with a credit card. It could be more convenient to pay this way, and you’d be able to earn credit card rewards in the process. Here’s everything you need to know about using credit cards for tax payments, straight from the IRS.
Yes, you can pay taxes with a credit card. The IRS uses third-party payment processors for card payments, and each processor charges a transaction fee. Here are the payment processors and their credit card fees for the 2023 tax season:
Save: This credit card has one of the longest intro 0% interest periods around
More: Save while you pay off debt with one of these top-rated balance transfer credit cards
payUSAtax: 1.85% ($2.69 minimum)Pay1040: 1.87% ($2.50 minimum)ACI Payments, Inc.: 1.98% ($2.50 minimum)
Fees are much lower if you pay by debit card. Two of those processors accept debit card payments for a flat fee of $2.20. You could also pay with a bank account transfer, either through the tax filing software you use or the IRS website. Bank account transfers are fee-free.
Here’s how to pay your taxes with a credit card:
Go to Pay Your Taxes by Debit Card or Credit Card or Digital Wallet on the IRS website.Decide which payment processor you want to use. Since payUSAtax has the lowest percentage fee, it’s the best choice, unless you only need to pay a small amount.Click “Make a Payment.”Follow the instructions on the payment processor’s website.
There are ways you can benefit from using a credit card to pay your taxes, but there are also some big potential drawbacks. Here are the pros of paying taxes with a credit card:
Earning credit card rewards: With some of the top rewards credit cards, it’s possible to get a return of 2% or more on purchases. That means you could come out ahead on the credit card processing fee.Completing sign-up bonus requirements: The most valuable credit card sign-up bonuses often have big spending requirements, such as spending $5,000 in the first three months. A tax payment is a great way to complete spending requirements that would otherwise be out of reach for you.Getting extra time to pay your tax bill: Normally, credit cards aren’t good for paying off purchases over time because of their high interest rates. The exception is 0% APR credit cards. These offer a 0% APR for an intro period, so you could pay your taxes off in monthly installments with no interest charges.
Now, let’s go over the cons:
Fees: It costs at least 1.85% to pay taxes with a credit card, which would add $185 to a $10,000 tax bill. If you’re not earning more than that with credit card rewards, then paying this way will cost you extra.Risk of credit card debt: Putting large purchases on your card makes it more likely you end up in credit card debt. Only pay for taxes with a credit card if you know you’ll be able to pay the balance in full by the next due date — or if you’re using a 0% APR credit card.Damaging your credit score: An important factor in your credit score is your credit utilization ratio. This is your card balances in relation to your credit limits. If your card’s balance gets too high from an expensive tax bill, it can negatively affect your credit score.
If you can earn more in rewards than you pay in fees, paying taxes with a credit card could be a good idea. You could pay using a card that earns 2% back on purchases or a card with a high-value sign-up bonus. I pay my taxes with a credit card every year because I know I’ll come out ahead from the rewards earned.
Another situation when using a credit card for your taxes could make sense is when you can’t pay it in full right away. In that case, a credit card with a 0% intro APR will give you time to pay off your taxes and avoid interest charges.
As explained above, putting your taxes on your credit card carries some risks. If you think it could cause any issues for you, like unnecessarily carrying a balance forward on your card, then you’re better off paying with a bank account transfer.
If you have credit card debt, transferring it to this top balance transfer card secures you a 0% intro APR for up to 21 months! Plus, you’ll pay no annual fee. Those are just a few reasons why our experts rate this card as a top pick to help get control of your debt. Read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.
We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Not sure how to get started with your taxes? This will help.
Image source: Getty Images
I haven’t done a poll on this, but I think it’s fair to say there are few things people universally dislike as much as filing their taxes. Yes, you might have a refund check to look forward to at the end, but by the time you’re done slogging through hundreds of obscure questions about your financial activities, even that doesn’t always feel like an adequate reward.
Unfortunately, there’s no way to avoid doing your taxes unless you like the idea of playing a high-stakes game of hide-and-seek with the IRS. But there are things you can do to make tax season a little easier on yourself. Consider taking these three steps right now, even if you’re not up to filing your return yet.
Discover: Find the best tax software for your situation here
Save: We researched free tax software and put together a list of the best here
Employers are legally required to mail your W-2s and 1099s to you by Jan. 31, so you should have already gotten yours by now. If you haven’t, something probably went wrong. It could be that your employer had an old address for you on file and the form never made it to your new home. Or maybe you just misplaced it. Either way, you’re not going to get very far on your taxes without this key piece of information.
Check with your company’s HR department if you haven’t received a copy of any necessary tax forms or if you believe you may have lost yours. Now’s also a great time to verify the information it has on file for you if anything’s different from last year, like a name change or a new address.
You don’t have to submit documentation to prove the tax deductions and credits you’re claiming for the year, but you are expected to have them on hand. The IRS can demand to see your proof whenever it wants and if you don’t have it, it can disallow the deductions. So a paper trail is a must.
The deductions and credits you qualify for will depend on what’s happened in your life in 2022. But some common things to keep track of are:
Contributions to retirement accounts, including the type of retirement account and amount contributedReceipts for large medical billsContributions to education savings accounts that might qualify you for a state tax breakReceipts for items you purchased for an owned business or side hustleReceipts for higher education expensesReceipts proving any charitable donations you madeHealth savings account (HSA) contributions
Put all these documents in a folder where you’ll have them readily accessible when you file your tax return. Once you’re done with your taxes, keep this information somewhere safe. The IRS recommends holding onto your tax documents for at least three years and up to seven years if you file a claim for a loss from worthless securities or a bad debt deduction.
Business owners and those with side hustles are responsible for paying estimated taxes quarterly. These are usually due April 15, June 15, Sept. 15, and Jan. 15 of the following year. If one of these dates falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline is the following business day.
You need to indicate how much you’ve paid in estimated taxes on your return or else the government may try to charge you penalties for unpaid or underpaid estimated taxes. If you haven’t kept track of this already, go back and look it up. If you write a check or have the money taken right out of your bank account, you should be able to comb through your bank statements to find this information. Be sure to note how much you’ve paid to both your state and the federal government.
If completing these three tasks is all the tax work you can handle for now, pat yourself on the back and call it a day. But try not to put your taxes off for too long. Not only will this delay your refund check’s arrival in your bank account, but it can also put you at risk of tax identity theft. And that could create even bigger headaches for you. Filing your taxes promptly is the best way to avoid this and truly put your taxes behind you for another year.
If you’re using the wrong credit or debit card, it could be costing you serious money. Our experts love this top pick, which features a 0% intro APR until 2024, an insane cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee.
In fact, this card is so good that our experts even use it personally. Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.
We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
One email is helpful; six is harassment.
Image source: Getty Images
After being a renter for my entire adult life, I’m finally at a place where I’m considering buying a home. But when I say “considering,” I mean it. I’m in the earliest possible stage of home buying, where I’m not even sure it’s what I want to do.
At this stage, getting pre-approved for a mortgage would be silly. There’s simply no reason to go through a hard credit pull and detailed dive into my finances. After all, I’m still months away from needing a mortgage loan.
But, I still wanted to know a rough estimate of how much I could potentially borrow, if I decide to go this route. Luckily, there’s a tool for this: prequalification.
Essentially, a mortgage prequalification involves a soft credit check and answering a few basic questions about your income and debt obligations. Then you get a very general idea of how much the bank would be willing to lend you.
In contrast, pre-approval typically involves submitting an application, going through a complete credit review, verifying income details, and so on.
Since there shouldn’t be any credit score impact, I decided to use my bank’s prequalification tool to plug in my numbers and see. Within a few minutes, I had a generous estimate of my potential mortgage limit, and I went on with my day.
That’s when it started.
Little did I know, what I thought was a quick, harmless online tool would lead to instant regret.
It began with an email. One innocuous little email thanking me for using their tool and offering resources for my next steps. Okay, great.
Then there was another email. This one from a mortgage officer letting me know they’d be happy to help with all my mortgage needs. Fine. I guess that could be useful, eventually.
Then came another email from the bank.
Then another, from the same mortgage officer. This one had a subject line in all caps.
Within the first 24 hours of submitting my information into the prequalification checker, I had received no fewer than four emails. (And I’d get another two after that!)
I also received a phone call — well, a voicemail, since I don’t answer unknown numbers — from that same mortgage officer, once again letting me know they’re there for me if I need anything.
That’s right. In less than a day, I’d been contacted five times by the bank about my prequalification.
It wasn’t an application. It wasn’t a preapproval. It was just supposed to be a simple online tool for the broadest information possible. Instead, it felt more like Pandora’s Box.
By this point, I was fed up. So I replied to the mortgage officer’s second email politely asking that they remove me from whatever list I had obviously been added to. They responded quickly assuring me that would be the case.
I still received one more email from the bank. But, so far, that’s the last of them.
While I’m obviously not super thrilled with the bombardment that ensued after my prequalification, I’m still a firm believer that it can be a very useful tool. Sure, I regret filling out that form right now. But if I were a little further along in my plans to buy a home, I think the information, and the introduction to a mortgage officer, could have been very useful.
All this to say: Don’t be afraid of using a prequalification tool. They can be very handy when you’re setting your initial budget and starting to explore your options. But — and this is a big BUT — be prepared for some follow-up from the bank. (All right, lots of follow-up from the bank.)
Our experts vetted the most popular offers to land on the select picks that are worthy of a spot in your wallet. These best-in-class cards pack in rich perks, such as big sign-up bonuses, long 0% intro APR offers, and robust rewards. Get started today with our recommended credit cards.
We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
© 2026 Madam Money®. All Rights Reserved. | Designed by SRJWebsites.com
