Verizon wireless - Federal Excise Tax Refund on Phone Bill

Author

Federal Excise Tax Refund on Phone Bill - which lines?????

condor_222@yahoo.com

2007-04-12, 10:33 am

Dear Experts,

I'm doing my taxes. I know I can get "a credit or refund
of the tax paid on long distance service or bundled
service billed after February 28, 2003, and before
August 1, 2006" by filling out form Form 8913.

And, what I read, tells me everything,
except what I need to know. Mainly, it says,
Excise tax.

I have all my phone bills from this time period.
Just what lines do I tally up?????

I live in Mass. and have a bill with Verizon.

Look at all the taxes, and I'm only listed the ones
for the Feds here.

Page 3

Verizon Basic Local services page

2 surcharges
FCC line charge 6.45
...
Federal Tax .80
...
Federal USF surcharge .62
...

Verizon Optional Services
lines 6 to 11, and then there is:
Federal tax .24

Page 5

Then there is a page with calls I made with a dial around,
another company.
...
...
Federal tax .07
...

Page 6

I then have a page for Verizon Long Distance

Long distance summary
...
...
Surcharges and taxes 3.95

Long distance plans and other charges
Federal Universal service 3.91
...
...

Long Distance Surcharge and Taxes
Federal Tax 1.48
...

If you add up all these, I get: 17.52
for the month.

And this was a lean month of long distance.

So, who can tell me, precisely, which lines I
am allowed to tally up?

Thanks a lot!

Paul Thomas, CPA

2007-04-12, 10:33 am

<condor_222@yahoo.com> wrote

> Dear Experts,
>
> I'm doing my taxes. I know I can get "a credit or refund
> of the tax paid on long distance service or bundled
> service billed after February 28, 2003, and before
> August 1, 2006" by filling out form Form 8913.
>
>
> And, what I read, tells me everything,
> except what I need to know. Mainly, it says,
> Excise tax.
>
> I have all my phone bills from this time period.
> Just what lines do I tally up?????

It's going to be the Federal Excise Tax - and it should say that.

> Long Distance Surcharge and Taxes
> Federal Tax 1.48

YES !!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's it.

All the other taxes and fees are not included in the federal excise tax
refund computation.

--
Paul Thomas, CPA
paulthomascpapc@bell
south.net

Larry Bud

2007-04-12, 12:33 pm

On Apr 12, 10:26 am, condor_...@yahoo.com wrote:
> Dear Experts,
>
> I'm doing my taxes. I know I can get "a credit or refund
> of the tax paid on long distance service or bundled
> service billed after February 28, 2003, and before
> August 1, 2006" by filling out form Form 8913.
>
> And, what I read, tells me everything,
> except what I need to know. Mainly, it says,
> Excise tax.
>
> I have all my phone bills from this time period.
> Just what lines do I tally up?????

Everything you ever wanted to know:

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article...=161506,00.html

About half way down it talks about which lines to add up.

Cubit

2007-04-12, 10:33 pm

The IRS has a standard claim of $30, which means you can avoid all the extra
paperwork.

<condor_222@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1176387974.283928.273190@w1g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
> Dear Experts,
>
> I'm doing my taxes. I know I can get "a credit or refund
> of the tax paid on long distance service or bundled
> service billed after February 28, 2003, and before
> August 1, 2006" by filling out form Form 8913.
>
>
> And, what I read, tells me everything,
> except what I need to know. Mainly, it says,
> Excise tax.
>
> I have all my phone bills from this time period.
> Just what lines do I tally up?????
>
>
> I live in Mass. and have a bill with Verizon.
>
> Look at all the taxes, and I'm only listed the ones
> for the Feds here.
>
>
> Page 3
>
> Verizon Basic Local services page
>
> 2 surcharges
> FCC line charge 6.45
> ...
> Federal Tax .80
> ...
> Federal USF surcharge .62
> ...
>
> Verizon Optional Services
> lines 6 to 11, and then there is:
> Federal tax .24
>
>
> Page 5
>
> Then there is a page with calls I made with a dial around,
> another company.
> ...
> ...
> Federal tax .07
> ...
>
>
> Page 6
>
> I then have a page for Verizon Long Distance
>
> Long distance summary
> ...
> ...
> Surcharges and taxes 3.95
>
> Long distance plans and other charges
> Federal Universal service 3.91
> ...
> ...
>
> Long Distance Surcharge and Taxes
> Federal Tax 1.48
> ...
>
>
>
> If you add up all these, I get: 17.52
> for the month.
>
>
> And this was a lean month of long distance.
>
>
> So, who can tell me, precisely, which lines I
> am allowed to tally up?
>
>
> Thanks a lot!
>

George Grapman

2007-04-12, 10:33 pm

Cubit wrote:
> The IRS has a standard claim of $30, which means you can avoid all the extra
> paperwork.

Correct , but you get another $10 for each additional dependent up to
a total of $60.
>
> <condor_222@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:1176387974.283928.273190@w1g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
>
>

--
To reply via e-mail please delete 1 c from paccbell

clifto

2007-04-12, 10:33 pm

Cubit wrote:
> The IRS has a standard claim of $30, which means you can avoid all the extra
> paperwork.

Back when sales taxes were deductible, we started keeping and tallying
receipts and were able to document (and thus deduct) about eight times
what the government allowed as a standard claim, every year. If the
gov't allows $30 for the excise taxes, I wouldn't doubt that 25% of
people could deduct $200 or more with proper documentation.

--
Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast.
That's why stereo has two channels.

Paul Thomas, CPA

2007-04-12, 10:33 pm

"clifto" <clifto@gmail.com> wrote

> Back when sales taxes were deductible, we started keeping and tallying
> receipts and were able to document (and thus deduct) about eight times
> what the government allowed as a standard claim, every year. If the
> gov't allows $30 for the excise taxes, I wouldn't doubt that 25% of
> people could deduct $200 or more with proper documentation.

I would doubt it.

I've only had one individual client (a pack rat) who added up the federal
excise tax on all 33 months of phone bills and got about $100 for his
(secretary's) effort. He's single, so would have received a standard rebate
of $30. He did make a large number of calls to Arizona and Europe during
that time frame, so he knew in his head it would be higher than the standard
gimmie.

I don't know how many people make a lot of long distance phone calls on a
regular enough basis to make that much difference, but I doubt it's 25% of
the population.

Most of my small business returns are claiming in the $200 range from either
actual numbers or the short-cut method.

--
Paul Thomas, CPA
paulthomascpapc@bell
south.net

Tom_G

2007-04-14, 10:33 pm

I'm wondering about 10-10 "dial around" long distance services. I've
used a couple for almost ten years for my occasional long-distance
calls. I'm assuming they would qualify if they charge the tax,
correct?

sashaUsenet@gmail.com

2007-04-14, 10:33 pm

On Apr 12, 2:59 pm, "Paul Thomas, CPA" <paulthomascp...@bellsouth.net>
wrote:
> "clifto" <cli...@gmail.com> wrote
>
>
> I would doubt it.
>
> I've only had one individual client (a pack rat) who added up the federal
> excise tax on all 33 months of phone bills and got about $100 for his
> (secretary's) effort. He's single, so would have received a standard rebate
> of $30. He did make a large number of calls to Arizona and Europe during
> that time frame, so he knew in his head it would be higher than the standard
> gimmie.
>
> I don't know how many people make a lot of long distance phone calls on a
> regular enough basis to make that much difference, but I doubt it's 25% of
> the population.

....so while this is true, there seems to be a big loophole: according
to IRS, federal tax for "bundled services", where long distance and
local charges are not separated, is all eligible for refund. Doesn't
this apply to most people with wireless plans which include long
distance (i.e., long distance is "free") - like Verizon's National or
American Choice plans, for example? Then the 3% tax listed just as
"Federal Tax" on the amount of the entire bill (there's only one such
line) can be deducted, no?

from the IRS FAQ:
"Be sure that you are looking at the portion of your telephone bill
that relates to long-distance or bundled service. Only the federal
excise tax on long-distance or bundled service is eligible for refund.
For this purpose, bundled service is local and long-distance service
provided under a plan that does not separately list the charge for
local service. Bundled service includes, for example, phone plans that
provide both local and long-distance service for either a flat monthly
fee or a charge that varies with the time for which the service is
used."

from http://www.myrateplan.com/ 2006_tel...r /> efund.php:
"Eligibility
If you made any long distance calls or had a bundled telephone plan
during the above-referenced period and received a monthly bill, you
were automatically charged excise tax by your phone company, and you
are eligible to claim the refund. Bundled services include flat-rate
local plus long distance packages on your home phone, as well as just
about any cellular or VoIP phone plan."

Gordon Burditt

2007-04-14, 10:33 pm

>I'm wondering about 10-10 "dial around" long distance services. I've
>used a couple for almost ten years for my occasional long-distance
>calls. I'm assuming they would qualify if they charge the tax,
>correct?

As I understand it, what qualifies is Federal Excise Tax levied on
long distance service, or bundled combined long distance/local
packages. The bills, I believe, have to itemize this. The "dial
around" services should qualify.

It's even conceivable that long-distance coin pay phone calls (even
if you had no home phone service) would qualify, but I doubt you
have an itemized receipt for that. Long-distance pay phone calls
made via a telephone credit card or prepaid card should also qualify,
and you might have an adequate receipt.

Paul Thomas

2007-04-14, 10:33 pm

<sashaUsenet@gmail.com> wrote

> ...so while this is true, there seems to be a big loophole: according
> to IRS, federal tax for "bundled services", where long distance and
> local charges are not separated, is all eligible for refund. Doesn't
> this apply to most people with wireless plans which include long
> distance (i.e., long distance is "free") - like Verizon's National or
> American Choice plans, for example? Then the 3% tax listed just as
> "Federal Tax" on the amount of the entire bill (there's only one such
> line) can be deducted, no?

Read the instructions. There's not a *deduction*, but a tax credit, based
on the dollar amount (or a guestimate) of the amount paid.

> from the IRS FAQ:
> "Be sure that you are looking at the portion of your telephone bill
> that relates to long-distance or bundled service. Only the federal
> excise tax on long-distance or bundled service is eligible for refund.
> For this purpose, bundled service is local and long-distance service
> provided under a plan that does not separately list the charge for
> local service. Bundled service includes, for example, phone plans that
> provide both local and long-distance service for either a flat monthly
> fee or a charge that varies with the time for which the service is
> used."
>
> from http://www.myrateplan.com/ 2006_tel...r /> efund.php:
> "Eligibility
> If you made any long distance calls or had a bundled telephone plan
> during the above-referenced period and received a monthly bill, you
> were automatically charged excise tax by your phone company, and you
> are eligible to claim the refund. Bundled services include flat-rate
> local plus long distance packages on your home phone, as well as just
> about any cellular or VoIP phone plan."

Yup. If you do not have proof of the tax amount, you can only claim the
standard "gimmie" amount based on the number of exemptions you claim this
year.

--
Paul A. Thomas, CPA
Athens, Georgia

sashaUsenet@gmail.com

2007-04-15, 4:33 am

On Apr 14, 4:38 pm, "Paul Thomas" <paulthomas...@bellsouth.net> wrote:
> <sashaUse...@gmail.com> wrote
>
>
> Read the instructions. There's not a *deduction*, but a tax credit, based
> on the dollar amount (or a guestimate) of the amount paid.

Thank you for your prompt answer. You didn't address my concern,
however. The word "deduction" was just an irrelevant to the issue
mistake on my part (of course I meant "refund", and used "refund"
earlier in the paragraph.)
I was replying to your saying that you doubt most people have an
amount larger than the standard refund to claim. What I was saying/
asking, if I read the instructions correctly, is that most people in
fact have a "bundled" wireless plan, which costs on average $50 a
month, and there is only one 3% federal tax line on those bills, in
total amounting to, roughly, 40(months) * $50 * 0.03 = $60 - and
that's before counting any separate long distance fees with 3% tax on
people's landline phones. So for a single with no exemptions this is
already twice the standard amount of refund.

Moreover, from IRS:
"I only have records covering part of the 41-month period. Can I still
request a telephone tax refund, based on the records I have?
Yes. You need not have bills and records covering the entire period,
but you must have records adequate to support the refund amount you
are requesting."
- which implies having any (e.g. Verizon) statements at all and
knowing this is how they all looked for the past three years should
qualify as "adequate", shouldn't it?

Does this strike you as a correct interpretation of the instructions?
Thanks!

>
>
> Yup. If you do not have proof of the tax amount, you can only claim the
> standard "gimmie" amount based on the number of exemptions you claim this
> year.
>
> --
> Paul A. Thomas, CPA
> Athens, Georgia

putt@webtv.net

2007-04-15, 10:33 am

>most people have a "bundled" wireless
> plan, which costs on average $50 a
> month, and there is only one 3% federal
> tax line on those bills, in total amounting
> to, roughly, 40(months) * $50 * 0.03 =
> $60 - and that's before counting any
> separate long distance fees with 3% tax
> on people's landline phones. So for a
> single with no exemptions this is already
> twice the standard amount of refund.

I have had VZW since it started in business plus I've always had a SBC
landline, so I've been paying the tax on both. The credit assumes
having only one long distance provider and is based on the number of
dependents. I have no dependents and have two long distance providers.
I'm getting screwed being eligible for only the $30 credit ain't I?

Dave S(Texas)

Paul Thomas, CPA

2007-04-15, 10:33 am

<sashaUsenet@gmail.com> wrote

> Moreover, from IRS:
> "I only have records covering part of the 41-month period. Can I still
> request a telephone tax refund, based on the records I have?
> Yes. You need not have bills and records covering the entire period,
> but you must have records adequate to support the refund amount you
> are requesting."
> - which implies having any (e.g. Verizon) statements at all and
> knowing this is how they all looked for the past three years should
> qualify as "adequate", shouldn't it?
>
> Does this strike you as a correct interpretation of the instructions?

Indeed it does not mean you get to guess on the months you do not have
records for.

Individual:
"Can I still request a telephone tax refund, based on the records I have?"

IRS:
"you must have records adequate to support the refund amount you are
requesting."

I see no basis to "fill in" the undocumented months.

Meaning: No records = no refund.

If you don't have the records, you can't prove the amounts, let alone that
you even ~had~ phone service.

--
Paul Thomas, CPA
paulthomascpapc@bell
south.net

Don Klipstein

2007-04-17, 10:33 pm

In article < 1322o66ai4vmu39@corp
.supernews.com>, Gordon Burditt wrote:
>
>As I understand it, what qualifies is Federal Excise Tax levied on
>long distance service, or bundled combined long distance/local
>packages. The bills, I believe, have to itemize this. The "dial
>around" services should qualify.
>
>It's even conceivable that long-distance coin pay phone calls (even
>if you had no home phone service) would qualify, but I doubt you
>have an itemized receipt for that. Long-distance pay phone calls
>made via a telephone credit card or prepaid card should also qualify,
>and you might have an adequate receipt.

The way I remember (I believe) from the IRS website is that prepaid
cards and prepaid cellphones mostly do not qualify because the tax in most
of those cases was refunded to the phonecard/cellphone companies.

- Don Klipstein (don@misty.com)

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