Can I get a second extension? (Fed and NYS...)

You're the same Kevin with the questions about the installment sale from a month or two ago, right?

I'm still trying to figure out if what you mean by "escrow" is the same thing as what I mean... ;-)

No.

Probably no more so than filing late... but I'm not sure "what you heard" is true or relevant. There are always some audits that are conducted purely at random, so your best bet is to have good record-keeping.

-Mark Bole

On the one hand, every amended return is looked at by a real, live tax-knowldgeable IRS employee, so in that regard, the return will be scrutinized more.

But an audit is merely a verificaion that what has been reported is correct. Yes, it can cause work to be done, but I don't believe fear of audit should stop taxpayers from claiming their correct income, deductions and credits.

I'm taken by your use of the term: "real, live tax-knowldgeable (sic) IRS employee". It evokes an image of having one's tax return reviewed by someone other than the person you describe: Such as a dead person, who is impersonating an IRS employee who knows nothing about taxes.

OK.

I was trying to distinguish between computer-processed returns, not seen by any tax employee, and also to distinguish a tax person from a data entry clerk.

A 1040X is seen by someone with tax knowledge, and is not merely fed through a computer.

I'll take your word for it; I thought 1040X might be keypunched by a data clerk just like an original paper-filed 1040.

One difference, though, is that with a 1040X, normally only the *change* from the original, and the explanation of the change, is submitted. Anything else on the original return not being changed would not normally call for extra scrutiny, right? Or does the person reviewing the amendment automatically take time to call up the original, even if the column A numbers match correctly?

I wonder if an amendment with an additional balance due is treated any differently from one claiming a refund?

-Mark Bole

The computer isn't an employee???

...

My experience w/ having filed an amended this year that generated a totally worthless (from the viewpoint of figuring out what the IRS thinks the problem is) letter would make me think it's simply keypunched (and not necessarily very accurately... :) ).

...

I don't know; my amended return was for a larger refund than I had initially calculated owing to having inadvertently left of one quarter's estimated payments; the letter reference above ended up claiming nearly $1K in additional tax owed despite no changes in income/deductions/anything other than the amount paid in was more than initially stated which amount resulted in a small refund.

Dead people impersonating an IRS employees who know nothing about taxes. What a GREAT IDEA for a zombie movie.

Yup, and that is the issue. I have gotten past the question of it being an installment sale, and am now stumbling over imputed interest.