| Instructions for Form 1040X |
2006 Tax Year |
This is archived information that pertains only to the 2006 Tax Year. If you
are looking for information for the current tax year, go to the Tax Prep Help Area.
Above your name, enter the calendar or fiscal year of the return you are amending.
If you and your spouse are amending a joint return, list your names and SSNs in the same order as shown on the original return.
If you are changing
from a separate to a joint return and your spouse did not file an original return, enter your name and SSN first.
Foreign address.
Enter the information in the following order: City, province or state, and country. Follow the country's practice
for entering the postal code. Do
not abbreviate the country name.
Changing your mailing address.
If you check the “ Yes” box or fail to check either box, we will change your address in our system to that shown on this Form 1040X. Any refund
or correspondence will be sent to the new address. If you check the “ No” box, we will retain the address currently in our system and any refund
or correspondence will be sent to that address.
Changing from separate to a joint return.
If you and your spouse are changing from separate returns to a joint return, follow these steps.
-
Enter in column A the amounts from your return as originally filed or as previously adjusted (either by you or the IRS).
-
Combine the amounts from your spouse's return as originally filed or as previously adjusted with any other changes you or
your spouse are
making to determine the amounts to enter in column B. If your spouse did not file an original return, include your spouse's
income, deductions,
credits, other taxes, etc., to determine the amounts to enter in column B.
-
Read the instructions for column C on this page to figure the amounts to enter in that column.
Both of you must sign Form 1040X.
Joint and several tax liability.
If you file a joint return, both you and your spouse are generally responsible for the tax and any interest or penalties
due on the return. This
means that if one spouse does not pay the tax due, the other may have to. However, you may qualify for innocent spouse relief.
For details, see Form
8857 or Pub. 971 (both relating to innocent spouse relief).
Head of household.
If you are changing to the head of household filing status and the qualifying person is a child but not your dependent,
enter the child's name and
“ QND” in Part II of Form 1040X.
Generally, married people cannot file as head of household. But see Pub. 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information,
for an
exception.
If you are only providing additional information and not changing amounts you originally reported, skip lines 1-33 and complete
Part II and,
if applicable, Part III.
To help you complete Form 1040X, start with:
-
Line 1 if you are changing income or deductions.
-
Line 6 if you are changing only credits or other taxes.
-
Line 10 if you are changing only payments.
Column A.
Enter the amounts from your original return. However, if you previously amended that return or it was changed by the
IRS, enter the adjusted
amounts.
Column B.
Enter the net increase or decrease for each line you are changing. Show decreases in parentheses.
Explain each change in Part II. If you need more space, attach a statement. Also, attach any schedule or form relating
to the change. For example,
attach Schedule A (Form 1040) if you are amending Form 1040 to itemize deductions. Do not attach items unless required to
do so.
Column C.
To figure the amounts to enter in this column:
For any item you do not change, enter the amount from column A in column C.
Example.
Anna Arbor originally reported $21,000 as her adjusted gross income on her 2004 Form 1040A. She received another Form W-2
for $500 after she filed
her return. She completes line 1 of Form 1040X as follows.
| |
Col. A |
Col. B |
Col. C |
|
Line 1
|
$21,000
|
$500
|
$21,500
|
She would also report any additional federal income tax withheld on line 11 in column B.
Enter your adjusted gross income (AGI). To find the corresponding line on the return you are amending, use the chart on page
7 for the appropriate
year.
A change you make to your AGI can cause other amounts to increase or decrease. For example, increasing your AGI may:
-
Decrease your miscellaneous itemized deductions, the credit for child and dependent care expenses, the child tax credit, or
education
credits, or
-
Increase your allowable charitable contributions deduction or the taxable amount of social security benefits.
Changing your AGI may also affect your total itemized deductions or your deduction for exemptions (see the instructions for
line 4). Whenever you
change your AGI, refigure these items, those listed above, and any other deduction or credit you are claiming that has a limit
based on AGI.
Correcting your wages or other employee compensation?
Attach a copy of all additional or corrected Forms W-2 you received after you filed your original return.
Changing your IRA deduction?
In Part II of Form 1040X, enter “ IRA deduction” and the amount of the increase or decrease. If changing from a deductible to a nondeductible
IRA contribution, also complete and attach Form 8606, Nondeductible IRAs.
Did you originally file using TeleFile (for years 2004 and earlier) or Form 1040EZ?
| □ |
Yes. |
See TeleFile (for years 2004 and earlier) and Form 1040EZ Filers—Lines 2 and 4 on page 4 for the
amount to enter on line 2, column A.
|
| □ |
No. |
Use the chart on page 4 to find the amount to enter on line 2, column A.
|
Did you originally file using TeleFile (for years 2004 and earlier) or Form 1040EZ?
| □ |
Yes. |
See TeleFile (for years 2004 and earlier) and Form 1040EZ Filers—Lines 2 and 4 on this page for
the amount to enter on line 4, column A.
|
| □ |
No. |
Use the following chart to find the amount to enter on line 4, column A.
|
Changing the number of exemptions claimed?
If you are:
-
Changing the number of exemptions for yourself, spouse, or your dependents, complete Form 1040X, lines 25 to 30 (line 33 if
necessary).
Complete line 32.
-
2005 or 2006 only — Claiming or changing an exemption amount for housing individuals displaced by Hurricane Katrina but not
changing the number of exemptions previously claimed, do not complete Form 1040X, lines 25 to 30. Instead, complete Form 8914, lines 1 and
2 for 2005 (lines 1 through 6 for 2006), showing only the individual(s) for whom the change is being made. Enter the amount
from Form 8914, line 2 for
2005 (line 6 for 2006), on Form 1040X, line 31, column B. Complete line 32.
-
2005 or 2006 only — Changing the number of exemptions previously claimed and also claiming or changing an
exemption amount for housing individuals displaced by Hurricane Katrina, complete Form 1040X, lines 25 to 30 (line 33 if necessary).
Then complete
Form 8914, lines 1 and 2 for 2005 (lines 1 through 6 for 2006), showing only the individual(s) for whom the change is being
made. Enter the amount
from Form 8914, line 2 for 2005 (line 6 for 2006), on Form 1040X, line 31, column B. Complete line 32.
Who must use Deduction for Exemptions Worksheet.
Use the chart below to find out if you must use that worksheet in the Form 1040 (or, for 2004-2006, Form 1040A) instructions
for the year you
are amending to figure the amount to enter on line 4 and, if applicable, line 30.
TeleFile (for years 2004 and earlier) and Form 1040EZ Filers—Lines 2 and 4
TeleFile filers.
The amounts to enter on lines 2 and 4 of Form 1040X depend on whether you (or your spouse) could be claimed as a dependent
on someone else's
return. First, get Form 1040EZ for the year you are amending. Next, complete line 5 of Form 1040EZ and, if applicable, the
worksheet on the back of
the form. Then, see Form 1040EZ filers next to determine the amounts to enter on lines 2 and 4 of Form 1040X.
Form 1040EZ filers.
Did someone claim you as a dependent on their return? (On your 2005 or 2006 Form 1040EZ, one or both boxes on line
5 will be checked. On your 2004
or earlier Form 1040EZ, the “ Yes” box on line 5 will be checked.)
| □ |
Yes. |
On Form 1040X, line 2, enter the amount from line E (line D for 2005) of the worksheet on the back of Form 1040EZ.
On Form 1040X, line 4, enter -0- (or the amount from line F (line E for 2005) of the 1040EZ worksheet if married filing jointly).
|
| □ |
No. |
Use the chart on page 5 to find the amounts to enter on lines 2 and 4.
|
The amount in any column of line 5 may be negative.
Example.
Margaret Coffey showed $0 taxable income on her original return, even though she actually had a loss of $1,000. She later
discovered she had
additional income of $2,000. Her Form 1040X, line 5, would show ($1,000) in column A, $2,000 in column B, and $1,000 in column
C. If she failed to
take into account the loss she actually had on her original return, she would report $2,000 in column C and possibly overstate
her tax liability.
Enter your income tax before subtracting any credits. Figure the tax on the taxable income reported on line 5, column C. Attach
the appropriate
schedule or form(s). Include on line 6 any additional taxes from Form 4972, Tax on Lump-Sum Distributions, and any recapture
of education credits.
Also include on line 6 any alternative minimum tax.
Indicate the method you used to figure the tax shown in column C. For example:
Enter your total credits, such as:
-
Credit for child and dependent care expenses.
-
Credit for the elderly or the disabled.
-
Education credits.
-
Retirement savings contributions credit.
-
Child tax credit.
-
Adoption credit.
-
Credit for prior year minimum tax.
Do not include the federal telephone excise tax credit or credits from Form 2439, Notice to Shareholder of Undistributed Long-Term
Capital
Gains, Form 4136, Credit for Federal Tax Paid on Fuels, and Form 8885, Health Coverage Tax Credit. Instead, use line 15 for
these credits.
To find the corresponding lines on the return you are amending, use the chart on page 7 for the appropriate year.
Include other taxes such as:
-
Self-employment tax.
-
Additional tax on IRAs, other qualified retirement plans, etc.
-
Advance earned income credit payments.
-
Recapture taxes (for example, recapture of investment credit or low-income housing credit).
-
Tax from Form 4970, Tax on Accumulation Distribution of Trusts.
-
Household employment taxes. If you are changing these taxes, attach Schedule H (Form 1040) and enter in Part II of Form 1040X
the date the
error was discovered. If you are changing the wages paid to an employee for whom you filed Form W-2, you must also file Form
W-2c, Corrected Wage and
Tax Statement, and Form W-3c, Transmittal of Corrected Wage and Tax Statements.
To find the corresponding lines on the return you are amending, use the chart on page 7 for the appropriate year.
To find the corresponding lines on the return you are amending, use the chart on page 7 for the appropriate year.
Line 11.
If you are changing these amounts, attach to the front of Form 1040X a copy of all additional or corrected Forms W-2
or 1099-R you received after
you filed your original return. Enter in column B any additional amounts shown on these forms as Federal income tax withheld.
Line 12.
Enter the estimated tax payments you claimed on your original return. If you filed Form 1040-C, U.S. Departing Alien
Income Tax Return, include the
amount you paid as the balance due with that return.
Line 13.
If you are amending your return to claim the earned income credit (EIC) and you have a qualifying child, attach Schedule
EIC (Form 1040A or 1040).
If your EIC was reduced or disallowed for a tax year after 1996, see the Instructions for Form 8862, Information To Claim
Earned Income Credit
After Disallowance, to find out if you must also file that form to claim the credit.
Line 14.
If you are amending your return to claim the additional child tax credit, attach Form 8812.
Line 15.
If you are amending your return to claim a credit on this line, attach Form 2439 (Copy B), Form 4136, Form 8885, or
Form 8913, if required.
Note.
The credit for federal telephone excise tax paid applies only to 2006.
Line 16.
Enter any amount paid with Forms 4868 or 2350 (or Form 2688 for years 2004 or earlier). Also include any amount paid
with a credit card used to get
an extension of time to file. But do not include the convenience fee you were charged. Also include any amount paid by electronic
funds withdrawal.
Enter the amount of tax you paid from the “Amount you owe” line on your original return. Also, include any additional tax payments made after
it was filed. Do not include payments of interest or penalties.
Enter the overpayment from your original return. You must enter that amount because any additional refund you claim on Form
1040X will be sent
separately from any refund you have not yet received from your original return.
If your original return was changed by the IRS and the result was an additional overpayment of tax, also include that amount
on line 19. Do not
include interest you received on any refund.
To find the corresponding lines on the return you are amending, use the chart on page 7 for the appropriate year.
If line 20 is negative, treat it as a positive amount and add it to the amount on line 10, column C. Enter the result on line
21. This is the
amount you owe.
Send Form 1040X with a check or money order for the full amount payable to the “United States Treasury.” Do not send cash. On your
payment, put your name, address, daytime phone number, and SSN. Also, enter the tax year and type of return you are amending
(for example, “2003
Form 1040”). We will figure any interest due and send you a bill.
To help process your payment, enter the amount on the right side of the check like this: $ 1040X.XX. Do not use dashes or lines
(for example, do not
enter “$ 1040X—” or
“$ 1040X xx/100”).
What if you cannot pay?
If you cannot pay the full amount shown on line 21, you may ask to make monthly installment payments. You may have
up to 60 months to pay.
To ask for an installment agreement, you can apply online or use Form 9465. To apply online, go to www.irs.gov, use the pull down menu
under “ I need to...” and select “ Set Up a Payment Plan.” If you use Form 9465, see its instructions.
The refund amount on line 23 will be sent separately from any refund you claimed on your original return (see the instructions
for line 19). We
will figure the interest and include it in your refund.
Enter on line 24 the amount, if any, from line 22 you want applied to your estimated tax for next year. Also, enter that tax
year. No interest will
be paid on this amount. You cannot change the election to apply part or all of the overpayment on line 22 to next year's estimated
tax.
Generally, anyone you pay to prepare your return must sign it in the space provided. The preparer must give you a copy of
the return for your
records. Someone who prepares your return but does not charge you should not sign.
If you are claiming an exemption amount for housing individuals displaced by Hurricane Katrina and:
-
You are not otherwise changing the number of exemptions previously claimed, do not complete Form 1040X, lines 25 to 30.
Instead, complete Form 8914, lines 1 and 2 for 2005 (lines 1 through 6 for 2006), showing only the individual(s) for whom
the change is being made.
Enter the amount from Form 8914, line 2 for 2005 (line 6 for 2006), on Form 1040X, line 31, column B. Complete line 32.
-
You are also changing the number of exemptions previously claimed, complete Form 1040X, lines 25 to 30 (line 33 if necessary).
Then
complete Form 8914, lines 1 and 2 for 2005 (lines 1 through 6 for 2006), showing only the individual(s) for whom the change
is being made. Enter the
amount from Form 8914, line 2 for 2005 (line 6 for 2006), on Form 1040X, line 31, column B. Complete line 32.
You may have to use the Deduction for Exemptions Worksheet in the Form 1040 (or, for 2004 through 2006, Form 1040A) instructions
to figure the
amount to enter on line 30. To find out if you do, see the instructions for line 4. If you do not have to use that worksheet,
multiply the applicable
dollar amount on line 30 by the number of exemptions on line 29.
If you are adding more than six dependents, attach a statement with the required information.
Column (b).
You must enter each dependent's social security number (SSN). If your dependent child was born and died in the tax
year you are amending and you do
not have an SSN for the child, you may attach a copy of the child's birth certificate instead and enter “ Died” in column (b).
Be sure the name and SSN entered agree with the dependent's social security card. Otherwise, at the time we process
your return, we may disallow
the exemption claimed for the dependent and reduce or disallow any other tax benefits (such as the child tax credit) based
on that dependent.
Note.
For details on how to get an SSN or correct a name or number, see the 2006 Form 1040 or Form 1040A instructions.
Column (d).
Check the box in column (d) if your dependent is also a qualifying child for the child tax credit. See the Form 1040
or 1040A instructions for the
year you are amending to find out who is a qualifying child.
Children who did not live with you due to divorce or separation.
If you are claiming a child who did not live with you under the rules for children of divorced or separated parents,
you must attach certain forms
or statements to Form 1040X. For more information, see Pub. 501 or the instructions for Form 1040 or Form 1040A for the tax
year being amended.
Presidential Election Campaign Fund (Part III)
You may use Form 1040X to have $3 go to the fund if you (or your spouse on a joint return) did not do so on your original
return. This must be done
within 20½ months after the original due date for filing the return. For calendar year 2006, this period ends on January 2,
2009. A
previous designation of $3 to the fund cannot be changed.
Use the chart for the year you are amending to find the corresponding lines on your return.
Be sure to include write-in amounts from the return you are amending.
Paperwork Reduction Act Notice
We ask for the information on this form to carry out the Internal Revenue laws of the United States. You are required to give
us the information.
We need it to ensure that you are complying with these laws and to allow us to figure and collect the right amount of tax.
You are not required to provide the information requested on a form that is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act unless
the form displays a valid
OMB control number. Books or records relating to a form or its instructions must be retained as long as their contents may
become material in the
administration of any Internal Revenue law. Generally, tax returns and return information are confidential, as required by
section 6103.
We welcome comments on forms.
If you have comments or suggestions for making this form simpler, we would be happy to hear from you. You can email
us at
*[email protected]. (The asterisk must be included in the address.) Enter “ Forms Comment” on the subject line. Or you can write to the
Internal Revenue Service, Tax Products Coordinating Committee, SE:W:CAR:MP:T:T:SP, 1111 Constitution Ave. NW, IR-6406, Washington,
DC 20224. Do not
send the form to this address. Instead, see Where To File on page 2.
Estimates of Taxpayer Burden
The table below shows burden estimates for taxpayers filing a Form 1040X. Time spent and out-of-pocket costs are estimated
separately.
Out-of-pocket costs include any expenses incurred by taxpayers to prepare and submit their tax returns. Examples of out-of-pocket
costs include tax
return preparation and submission fees, postage, tax preparation software costs, photocopying costs, and phone calls (if not
toll-free).
Both time and cost burdens are national averages and do not necessarily reflect a “typical” case. The averages include all associated forms
and schedules, across all preparation methods and all taxpayer activities. Within each of these estimates, there is significant
variation in taxpayer
activity. Similarly, tax preparation fees vary extensively depending on the taxpayer's situation and issues, the type of professional
preparer, and
the geographic area.
The data shown are the best estimates available as of September 25, 2006, from tax returns filed for 2005. The method used
to estimate taxpayer
burden incorporates results from a taxpayer burden survey conducted in 2000 and 2001. The estimates are subject to change
as new forms and data become
available. The estimates do not include burden associated with post-filing activities. However, operational IRS data indicate
that electronically
prepared returns have fewer errors, implying a lower overall post-filing burden.
If you have comments concerning the time and cost estimates below, you can contact us at either one of the addresses shown
under “We welcome
comments on forms” above.
Estimated Average Taxpayer Burden
The average time and costs required to complete and file Form 1040X, its schedules, and accompanying forms will vary depending
on individual
circumstances. The estimated averages are:
|
Average Time Burden (Hours)
|
Average Cost (Dollars)
|
|
3.5
|
$28
|
Previous | Index
2006 Instructions Main | 2006 Tax Help Archives | Tax Help Archives Main | Home
|
|
 |
