Deployed service members must submit their taxes. Fortunately, the Internal Revenue Service realizes that the service members and their families face unique circumstances and offer special tools and extensions to make filing income easier.
If you are filing taxes on behalf of a service member or you are a service member, please note the following when filing your taxes:
File the return in your living state: If you live outside your permanent home, as it is with most cases, you will still be paying tax in your home state. Note: Spouses of military personnel who work and live with the serving member in a state other than the home state due to military orders may not be required to pay income tax in the state in which they work.
Gather other important information: Other documents you might need to file your taxes include 1099 Forms, deductions and credit information, child care expense receipts, last year's income tax return, and any investment property rental or mortgage document. You will also need each family member's Social Security number and your military ID, bank account, routing numbers if filling out electronically, and charitable donation receipts. Suppose you did not receive an Economic Impact payment in 2020 or did not receive the full amount you were eligible for. In that case, you will need IRS Notification 1444 to claim the recovery rebate credit.
Get your statement online: you can log into myPay to get your military form W-2. It's usually posted on your dashboard before it is being mailed to you. You will need a common access card or personal identification number to log in.
Ensure you have a power of attorney if someone is filing on your behalf: If your spouse or someone else files your tax return, make sure you have all the information and attach a power of attorney, a legal document that gives anyone the authority to make financial decisions in your absence. The taxpayer, on your behalf, must attach IRS Form 2848 to your tax return.
Extension for combat zone and hazardous duties
Filing your tax returns after-tax deadline is more common than you might think. This is true for service members who are deployed. The IRS extends the conditions for filing and paying income tax to service members who:
Serve in a combat zone or directly support those in a combat zone, serve in an emergency operation, or having a missing status. Your tax extension generally begins when you begin your service in the combat zone plus 180 days afterward. The spouse and family of those serving in the combat zone or contingency operations can also benefit. Your command will notify the IRS of your deployment so that you can receive an automatic extension of your federal tax return. You may want to write "Combat Zone" in red at the top of your tax return when submitting your application. You can verify that you have this information by sending an email directly to the IRS at combatzone@irs.gov with your name, address, date of birth, and deployment date. For your own safety, do not include your social security number in your email to the IRS.
Admitted to a hospital outside of the United States for injuries sustained in a combat zone or service area. This applies for the period the military member is continuously hospitalized outside of the United States for injuries gotten while serving in a combat zone, including for the following 180 days. For hospitalization in the United States, the extension period cannot exceed five years.
Get help filing your taxes, get an extension.
In addition to serving in a combat zone, there are other ways the military can extend tax returns when past the deadline. To learn more about your tax obligations, obtain an extension, and find out about certain service members' tax benefits, make an appointment with a tax professional to help you find a solution to your situation.
Additional tax assistance for service members and their families can be obtained by:
The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program: Offered free of charge by the IRS, this program is intended for people living inside or outside the facility and includes sites for military personnel abroad.
The IRS has a tax information site for military personnel serving in the US military and US military.
Preparing and filing taxes is a duty of citizens and service members. However, as a military family member, you can get free access to tax and financial advisers with military expertise.
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