Few chores are as unpleasant as doing taxes. But filers can avoid some of the drudgery by turning it over to their mobile phones, reports Nytimes.
Intuit, the company that makes TurboTax software, introduced an application on Friday that lets users automatically fill out the 1040EZ, the most basic of the I.R.S. personal tax forms. Filers simply photograph their W-2 and the app does much of the rest.
Intuit, the company that makes TurboTax software, introduced an application on Friday that lets users automatically fill out the 1040EZ, the most basic of the I.R.S. personal tax forms. Filers simply photograph their W-2 and the app does much of the rest.
Intuit charges $15 for each filing through the app, and it says that completing a return can take as little as 15 minutes.
The app is intended for consumers who are increasingly using their mobile phones for everything, including shopping and banking. Taxes are just the next step, although it may take some getting used to for people who are accustomed to preparing their returns with a pencil and calculator or on a desktop computer.
Image-recognition technology, which for years was considered unreliable, is increasingly being put to use in online services. Technical advancements and the spread of smartphones have provided new opportunities for it. The technology is also being used to translate signs from Spanish into English, scan bar codes in stores and help solve Sudoku puzzles.
SnapTax is among a number of mobile phone apps related to taxes. H&R Block’s app lets users ask questions of the company’s tax professionals, Shoeboxed helps users organize their spending by photographing receipts, and Intuit’s TurboTax app estimates what users owe in taxes.
