Federal Telephone Tax Refund Information

Florida’s Public Counsel, Harold McLean, today issued a consumer alert to Florida telecommunications customers to be aware that this year’s federal income tax forms include a specific line item to claim a refund for long distance taxes paid between February 28, 2003 and August 1, 2006.

The telephone tax refund is a one-time payment available in 2006 to refund previously paid federal excise taxes on long-distance or bundled services. It is available to anyone who paid federal excise taxes on wireline, wireless or Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) service and does not apply to taxes paid for local telephone service.

The IRS is making it easier for individual taxpayers by offering a standard refund amount between $30 and $60, so that these taxpayers do not need to locate old telephone bills. Taxpayers with only one exemption may claim a standard refund of $30. Taxpayers with four or more exemptions may claim a standard refund of $60.

Taxpayers who wish to calculate their actual excise taxes paid may do so by filing IRS Form 8913, which itemizes the actual payments for each month starting March 2003 and ending July 2006.

The telephone tax refund will be available only for tax returns filed in 2007 for the 2006 tax year. Because of the IRS rulings, telecommunications companies no longer are billing the tax for long-distance or bundled services. The Department of the Treasury estimates that the total refunds will amount to $10 billion this year. More information regarding the refunds is available on the Internet at http://www.irs.gov/.

Editor's Note: I have been informed that the refund is available even to those that do not have to file an income tax return.