Palonek reminds Mississippians and others they have 3 years to file their tax returns to make sure they collect refund money owed to them by the IRS.

Online, February 2, 2010 (Newswire.com) - It's that time of year again when everyone is thinking about filing their tax returns and the ones that do not, can be missing out on a fair amount of refunds from the federal government.

In cases where a return was not filed, the law provides most taxpayers with a three-year window of opportunity for claiming a refund. If no return is filed to claim the refund within three years, the money becomes unclaimed property of the U.S. Treasury. For 2006 returns, the window closes on April 15, 2010. The law requires that the return be properly addressed, postmarked and mailed by that date. There is no penalty assessed by the IRS for filing a late return qualifying for a refund.

According to U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., in 2008 the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is holding more than $10 million in unclaimed refunds for over 12,000 Mississippians who did not file a federal tax return in 2005. For 2009 those numbers can be even higher. "I strongly encourage every Mississippian to check their records and make sure that they received their 2005 federal tax refund," said Sen. Wicker.

The April 15th deadline is approaching, so those who did not file in 2006 should act. You can do so with no penalty from the IRS and still claim your refund.

The IRS estimates that the average Mississippian who is eligible for a refund would receive about $500. Some individuals may not have filed because they had too little income to require filing a tax return even though they had taxes withheld from their wages or made quarterly estimated payments.

The IRS reminds taxpayers seeking a 2006 refund that their unclaimed checks will be held if they have not filed tax returns for 2007 or 2008. In addition, the unclaimed refund will be applied to any amounts still owed to the IRS and may be used to satisfy unpaid child support or past due federal debts such as student loans.

By failing to file a return, individuals stand to lose more than refunds of taxes withheld or paid during 2006. Many low-income workers may not have claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and which gives them even more unclaimed cash.

"During these very difficult economic times, taking action now could put much needed money in the pockets of thousands of Mississippians and others" says Palonek, founder of a unclaimed money and asset search service called foundmoney.com, where people can search their names and the names of friends and relatives to see if they have any unclaimed cash that can be claimed.

According to Palonek, some of the unclaimed assets come from Banks, insurance companies, energy and telephone utilities and companies paying oil royalties. Money, stock or other financial instruments that have been dormant at institutions, or checks and refunds that could not be delivered to the right party, eventually must be turned over to the state. Don't delay in starting your search at www.foundmoney.com for unclaimed money, you may be richer than you think.

Contact
Foundmoney at www.foundmoney.com
Edward Palonek at www.edwardpalonek.org