Using Fill-in Tax Forms

Overview

IRS fill-in forms use the features provided with Adobe Acrobat Reader, Version 4.0 or higher. These forms do NOT contain the capability to make mathematical computations nor the ability to validate or verify the numbers you enter on the form. You are still responsible for entering all required information (instructions may require some information to be handwritten on the form).

Software Requirements

To view, complete and print the IRS fill-in forms you'll need the freely available Acrobat Reader, version 4.0 or later, software installed on your computer. Acrobat Reader does not allow you to save your completed forms to your hard drive or a floppy disk. The ability to save completed forms is available commercially with the full Adobe Acrobat program.

Completing the Form

• Download the form by following the instructions on the Fill-in Forms selection page. Your web browser may be configured with an Acrobat plug-in to automatically open the file within your browsers window upon download. To download the file directly to disk, right click on the Results Page form title link then select "Save Target/Link As.." when presented with a menu.
• Use the Acrobat Reader to open the file if necessary.
• Select the hand tool from the Acrobat toolbar menu. You can use the hand tool to move the page around so that you can view all the areas on it.
• Position the hand pointer inside a form field and click. The I-beam pointer allows you to type text. The arrow pointer allows you to select a field, a check box, a radio button, or an item from a list.
• Press Tab to accept the field change and go to the next field.
• Press Shift + Tab to accept the field change and go to the previous field.
• Use your mouse to select an area of the form that is not inside a form field before printing your form. If a form field is active (contains the blinking bar) the contents will not print.
• If the fill-in form is displayed within your web browsers window be sure to use the printer button on the Acrobat toolbar menu to print the form instead of your web browsers print function.

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