Author: Santamarina Joseph

HVUT Regulations for Tax Form 2290

Posted on August 23, 2011 by - express2290.com, Expresstrucktax.com, form 2290 IRS, form2290.net, Internal Revenue Form 2290, IRS Regulations for form 2290

The IRS announced earlier in the year that the Form 2290 for Heavy Vehicle Use Taxes will not be available for the 2011- 2012 tax year and that the heavy vehicle use tax will expire by end of September 2011. A later announcement stated that the due date of the Form 2290 had been extended by 90 days. This further changed the due date even further to Nov 30th 2011. This was meant to be a relief to tax payers, and hopefully cut down on multiple filings.

There is now a bill that has been drafted (H.R. 763) that has also been sponsored by Michael Michaud, a Democratic from Maine’s 2nd District. This bill contains new rules and regulations for the Trucking Industry. With this new law, there is a great possibility that the heavy vehicle use tax fees may be increased, depending on the size of your vehicle. For more information on the bill, you can go to http://www.opencongress.org/bill/112-h763/show

Here are some of the proposed rules according to the new bill in Congress: H.R. 763: Safe and Efficient Transportation Act of 2011.  In Section 4 of the bill, it explains the newly proposed regulations.

Section 4 – safe and efficient vehicle charges
(a) In General- Subsection (a) of section 4481 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘In the case of the use of any highway motor vehicle described in section 127(i) of title 23, United States Code, in lieu of the rate in the table, the rate shall be equal to the lesser of-
(1) $100 per year, plus $22 for each 1,000 pounds (or function thereof) in excess of 55,000 pounds,
(2) $800 per year.


According to the previous years’ HVUT calculations, any vehicle weighing 55,000 pounds owed $100 per year and anything in excess of 55,000 would yield, $100 + $22 for each 1,000 pounds in excess of 55,000 pounds. A vehicle weighing above 75,000 pounds would have to pay $550 annually.

Based on the proposed rules for HVUT Form 2290 for the current year 2011-2012, the calculation for the fee structure would be: $100 + $22 for each additional 1,000 pounds over 55,000. But for a 75,000 pound vehicle that would previously owe $550, the current calculation would be: $100 for the first 55,000 pounds, $550 for the 25,000 extra pounds $650 total due for 75,000 lbs and above vehicle.

It is important to keep in mind that much of this new bill proposes that the maximum weight of a heavy vehicle be increased. So this new pricing structure is meant to reflect that. As you can see, the pricing change mainly affects larger trucks. This is because there will likely be new trucks on the roads that will be larger than anything out there now.

Section 4 also mentions that:
The amendment made by this section shall apply to taxable periods beginning after the date of this act’s enactment.

While no one can predict the status of this bill, it is safe to bet that the good folks at Express Truck Tax will be ready to help anyone file whatever forms are necessary. It is certain that their Truck Tax experts will be able to help. If you have any questions or would like to learn some more about the transformations in heavy vehicle use taxes, please contact IRS authorized EFile provider ExpressTruckTax.com at 704.234.6006 or by email at support@ExpressTruckTax.com

Pay HVUT (IRS form 2290) On Time with Express Truck Tax

Posted on August 22, 2011 by - 2290 e-file, e-file 2290, express2290.com, Expresstrucktax.com, Form 2290 2011, Form 2290 HVUT, form 2290 Schedule 1, form2290.net, HVUT Instructions, HVUT Payment, irs 2290, Tax 2290

As anyone who is a veteran of the Trucking Industry will tell you, there are many more business and economic responsibilities other than simply getting something delivered at the right time and place. Heavy Vehicle Use Tax, or HVUT, is one of the most common taxes on heavy highway vehicles in the United States. Paying this tax properly involves filing the IRS Form 2290. This Form is so easy to E-File online, and thanks to Express Truck Tax, there is no reason to be late, as evidenced by these points:

  • IRS Fines

    • Unless you enjoy IRS Audits and spending time in courtrooms, it is a terrible to not pay your taxes. The IRS can add all kinds of interest and late fees, but if you end up in court over the matter it will lead to the court costs as well as heavy fines.
  • Not filing or not paying is a felony
    • Fines are bad enough, but it could be worse. Going to court can lead to criminal charges. The IRS & state governments could prosecute anyone who purposely cheats to avoid paying the truck tax. It can also lead to time in prison.
  • Stay focused on your business
    • If these are not paid in a timely manner, the previously mentioned fines, court appearances, and possible jail time could seriously put a halt on your business. The time and energy spent worrying about IRS Audits, Fines, and Court Dates is not worth it. Especially when the taxes are not typically very high.
  • Taxes help improve public roads
    • Paying taxes is never a joyful experience, but you should get some gratification in the fact that much of the taxes paid for HVUT go back into the cost of roads and highway expenses. It just makes sense; if you enjoy using something, you shouldn’t mind paying for it.
  • It’s So Easy

E-file IRS form 2290 with expresstrucktax.com on time. It’s made as easy as 1-2-3 to e-file truck tax 2290 and get IRS stamped Schedule 1 in few minutes. Avoid IRS penalties and Audits by keeping your 2290 records with express truck tax. E-file IRS 2290 VIN Corrections for free of cost.

Truck Tax Regulations for 2011 (HVUT)

Posted on August 20, 2011 by - 2290 form, e-file 2290, Expresstrucktax.com, Fleet Owners, Form 2290, form 2290 2011 delay, form 2290 download, HVUT, Tax 2290, truck drivers, Truck Operator tax, Truck Tax, Truck tax regulations

You don’t have to be a transportation expert to understand that Washington DC is known for its gridlock. The very worst of it is actually off the roads and on Capital Hill. While both parties in Congress continue to argue, there is a significant piece of legislation that has yet to be voted on. The delay of this legislation being enacted has thrown many people in the trucking & transportation industry for a loop.

The law previously referred to is a transportation law known as SAFETEA-LU – the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users – which expired in 2009, but it allowed the taxes associated with the Highway Trust Fund to be collected for an additional two years. When SAFETEA-LU became law in 2005, lawmakers added what they believed to be enough time to get the next multi-year transportation authorization bill in place.

Those two years have passed faster than expected and we are left without a new Highway Bill to replace it. The House and Senate committees are now drafting preliminary versions of the legislation and will continue to debate its details. Let’s hope that both sides come to an agreement soon to avoid massive confusion in the trucking industry. Trucking Regulations alone are complicated enough.

Under normal circumstances, tax provisions related to the Highway Trust Fund would be extended as part of the authorization. Unfortunately, no one can accurately predict what will happen in the future, especially with the extreme volatility between political parties of late. One thing that is predictable, however, is that ExpressTruckTax.com will keep updating their website and blog with the latest news affecting the Trucking Industry. Once there is more information available about the HVUT filing process, we will let you know. Express Truck Tax is the premier provider of Tax Services for the Trucking Industry; as soon as the IRS releases the new Form 2290, it will be available for EFiling at www.ExpressTruckTax.com.

IRS Tax Implications for those in the Trucking Industry

Posted on August 19, 2011 by - 2290 e-file, 2290 tax, e-file 2290, Expresstrucktax.com, Fleet Owners, Form 2290, Form 2290 E-file, Form 2290 filing delay, IRS Tax Implications, Tax 2290, truck drivers, Truck Operator tax, truck taxes

For many Owner-Operators of Heavy Highway Vehicles, the benefits of self employment make being on the open road a very exciting experience. However, due to the heavy regulation of the Trucking and Transportation Industry, there are various taxes you must pay for self-employment income earned as an independent truck driver. Since self-employed individuals are not subject to tax withholding, there is more control over periodic tax payments throughout the year, which can be cut down by claiming deductions for business expenses.

Self-Employment Tax

The Self-Employment tax applies to truck drivers who operate their own business. These taxes are imposed in order to fund the Social Security and Medicare programs. The disadvantage of paying these taxes as a self-employed individual is that you owe twice as much as taxpayers who earn their income from employment. This is because employers are responsible for paying the other half of these taxes for their employees. There is somewhat of a silver lining to this though, the IRS does allow you to claim a deduction for 50 percent of the self-employment tax payments you make as an adjustment to income.

Truck Driver Deductions

You are not required to pay income tax or self-employment tax on your gross earnings from self employed truck driving. Instead, it calculates your tax due on net earnings, which is equal to your gross earnings minus all deductions you can claim. In order to claim a deduction, the expense must be ordinary and necessary to operate your business. This may cover any number of expenses you incur, but typically, truck drivers may deduct the cost of gasoline, oil, truck repairs, insurance and parking charges. You may also deduct the cost of the truck itself by including the lease payments or depreciation of the purchase price in your deductions. And, if you ever stay in a hotel during those long road trips, you may deduct your lodging expenses also.

Other Truck Taxes

IRS Form 2290 is meant to send information about the usage of a commercial truck and to pay taxes on that use to the IRS. You can use this form for a single truck filing, or up to twenty-five vehicles can be reported on one form. The major reasons for filing the form include:

The typical Tax year for Form 2290 is from July 1st to June 30th of the next year. The form and any payment are typically due by the end of August of the corresponding year. The IRS requires that forms with 25 or more vehicles to be electronically filed.

As mentioned Earlier, the typical tax year is from July 1 to June 30, but this year it has changed. Due to legislation being held up in Congress, there has yet to be a legislation enacted to collect these Heavy Vehicle Use Taxes. The IRS has announced that it will not be accepting these 2290 forms until November 1 of this year.

Stay Alert for Internal Revenue Service Phishing Scams

Posted on August 18, 2011 by - 2290 e-file, 2290 tax, e-file 2290, express truck tax, Form 2290, Form 2290 E-file, Form 2290 filing delay, IRS, IRS phishing scams, IRS scammers, stay alert, Tax 2290

Scammers are like cockroaches; they are unwanted, yet they never seem to go away. Recently, there has been a set of IRS phishing emails that have been infesting the web. There have been at least two versions. One claims to be from “info manager@irs.gov” and another from “support manager@irs.gov.” These emails can look convincing with headers that read: “IRS notification.” Although it may seem authoritative, neither of these are legitimate and should be ignored, deleted, or forwarded along to phishing@irs.gov. Do Not reply and Do Not open the attachments.

Here is the plain text version of one of the emails:

Important Information about your tax return
We are unable to process your tax return
We received your tax return. However, we are unable to process the return as field.
Our records indicate that the person identified as the primary taxpayer or spouse on the tax return did not provided all the required documents shown on the tax form. Our records are based on information received from the Social Security Administration.
Based on this information, the tax account for the individual has been locked
What you need to do
Print out the attached notification and list of missing documents, fill it in, add the documents and send the following information to the address shown in the attached notification.
List of required documents:
    • A copy of this letter
    • Notification letter
    • A photocopy of valid U.S. Federal or State Government issued identification.

Keep this notice for your records.

As you can see, this email is littered with typos and grammatical errors. That is always a Huge Red Flag if you are receiving an email that is supposedly from a professional organization. In addition to that, it is commonly known that the IRS does not send unsolicited e-mails to taxpayers. Therefore, most emails claiming to be from the IRS are most likely a scam.  

Be very careful with these emails. Most of them try to get you to reveal your personal or financial information. Do not reveal any of this information via e-mail. Better yet, Do Not reply to the email at all.  Don’t follow any links from these e-mails to any web sites where you might be asked for the same information.

Other e-mails may have attachments or links which download viruses or other malware onto your computer. Some of this malware, has the capabilities to retrieve financial and other personal information from your computer. Even if you don’t manually input personal information into these sites, the malware allows the scammers to track your personally identifiable information.

Key Point to Remember: the IRS will never initiate contact with you via email. They will not ask you to click links to fix your tax information or verify your tax account. Neither will you be advised of a mistake in your refund via email. If you are concerned that you need to contact the IRS, then you should call them (1.800.829.1040). Don’t click on an attachment or reply to an email claiming to be from the IRS.

So to recap: delete, delete, delete. Do Not open links. Do Not open any attachments. Do Not investigate on your own. The IRS can handle any investigation if necessary. If you would like to make the IRS aware of it, you can forward the e-mail to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov then DELETE the email.


This Information has been provided by the Truck Tax Team at www.ExpressTruckTax.com

Keeping Records for Internal Revenue Service Form 2290

Posted on August 17, 2011 by - Federal Heavy Vehicle Use Tax, form 2290 delay, form 2290 download, form 2290 due on Nov 30, form 2290 electronic filing, Heavy Vehicle Use Tax Forms, IRS Form 2290 Stamped Schedule 1 copy

When it comes time to file Heavy Vehicle Use Tax  with the IRS using Form 2290, it is very important that you keep accurate records, the same way that you would when filing any other type of tax return. It is crucial for anyone filing form 2290 to maintain their records for at least the prior 3 years for any taxable highway vehicles registered in their name. For fleet owners, owner operators, and small trucking companies who have filed form 2290 in the past, it is wise to always keep the 2290 records on hand, as one never knows when the IRS inspection may take place. It is even important to save these returns if they are only for a part of a year. In the case of a suspended vehicle (public highway use was less than 5,000 miles/year) it is still necessary to keep records of Form 2290’s filed for them as well.

You will need to gather the following information before filing form 2290 to accelerate the filing process:  

Keeping proper records of your 2290 information will be a great help to you in the unfortunate event of an audit. It will also make the task of filing this form much easier.   

ExpressTruckTax.com is an IRS authorized E-File provider who can help you file form 2290 as well as keep secure online records of previously filed form 2290’s. For more information on the 2290 filing process, heavy vehicle use tax, IRS payment methods, etc visit the Express Truck Tax website or call our Truck Tax experts at 704-234-6005. You can also email any questions to support@ExpressTruckTax.com.

Form 2290 Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax(HVUT) Now Due On November 30

Posted on August 16, 2011 by - download irs form 2290, express form 2290, express truck tax, form 2290 due date, Form 2290 Federal Excise Tax, form 2290 penalty, irs form 2290 e-file

The IRS recently advised truckers, owner operators, and trucking companies that their next federal highway use tax return for filing HVUT (which is usually due on August 31) will instead be due on November 30, 2011. The primary reason for the extension of the due date is to reduce confusion and multiple filings of Form 2290 that could result if Congress reinstates or modifies the highway use tax after September 30, 2011.

The Heavy Vehicle Use Tax applies to trucks, truck tractors and buses with a gross taxable weight of 55,000 pounds or more. There are many more specific rules for vehicles with minimal road use, logging or agricultural vehicles, vehicles transferred during the year and those first used on the road after July. In normal circumstances, vans, pick-ups and panel trucks are not taxable because they fall below the 55,000-pound requirement.

The newly determined November 30 filing deadline for Form 2290 (Heavy Highway Vehicle Use Tax Return) applies to the tax period beginning on July 1, 2011. This includes the vehicles used during July, as well as those whose first use month was during August or September. According to the recent IRS statements, returns should not be filed and payments should not be made until November 1, 2011.

For new vehicles that need to be registered during Jul-Oct of 2011, the state DMV’s are required to accept a Stamped Schedule 1 from the previous year since it is not possible to receive a stamped Schedule 1 until November 2011. If a vehicle was acquired within the current year, and there is not a stamped Schedule 1 for the previous year, the owner only needs to provide some form of proof of purchase to prove that the vehicle was recently placed in his/her possession.

Luckily, once the Form 2290 is available, the electronic filing service: ExpressTruckTax.com will be able to E-File the form and send it to the IRS in minutes. The E-Filing Process is very simple; the form can be completed in minutes, and it can be sent to the IRS as soon as it is finished. It is such a time saver when you compare it to waiting in the IRS office for hours or sending it via postal mail and waiting weeks for the IRS to process it.

What is the purpose of IRS Form 2290(HVUT) and how it can be e-filed?

Posted on August 11, 2011 by - e-file 2290, express 2290, express truck tax, Federal Heavy Vehicle Use Tax, form 2290 delay, form 2290 download, form 2290 due on Nov 30, Form 2290 filing delay, Heavy Vehicle Use Tax Forms

The purpose of Form 2290:

IRS Form 2290 is meant to send information about the usage of a commercial truck and to pay taxes on that use to the IRS. You can use this form for a single truck filing, or up to twenty-five vehicles can be reported on one form. The major reasons for filing the form include:

This IRS form only applies to a specific time period, which does not coincide with the calendar year. The typical Tax year for Form 2290 is from July 1st to June 30th of the next year. The form and any payment are typically due by the end of August of the corresponding year. The IRS requires that forms with 25 or more vehicles to be electronically filed.

As mentioned Earlier, the typical tax year is from July 1 to June 30, but this year it has changed.  Due to legislation being held up in Congress, there has yet to be a legislation enacted to collect these Heavy Vehicle Use Taxes. The IRS has announced that it will not be accepting these forms until November 1 this year.

Parts of the Form:

While this form is broken down into two parts, those who file electronically with ExpressTruckTax.com only need to enter information one time. The Form 2290 consists of the Form and the Schedule 1 that needs to be stamped by the IRS in order to register a vehicle with the state DMV. Much of the information for these forms are duplicate information. Filing online with the Express Truck Tax service will save you time by only entering information once.  

When E-Filing this form, instead of physically stamping the Schedule 1, the IRS will send a Schedule 1 with an official IRS watermark to verify that it was processed. State DMVs are required to accept this as proof of the Schedule 1.

Heavy Highway Vehicles:

The IRS also provides a way for owners and operators of multiple vehicles to include them in the same form. The Schedule attached to Form 2290 allows the taxpayer to list the VINs of all included vehicles. When filing electronically, you can even upload an excel document of all your vehicles. Another beneficial feature of ExpressTruckTax.com is the option to perform Free VIN Corrections. Instead of having the form rejected and sent back to you, you can correct the mistake and submit it to the IRS again at no extra charge.

Questions About the Form 2290:

If you have any questions about Filing Form 2290 or if you qualify, feel free to call the Truck Tax Experts at Express Truck Tax at (704)234-6005. You can also email them at support@expresstrucktax.com. You can also checkout their Website and Blog to stay up to date on the latest Truck Tax information: www.ExpressTruckTax.com.

Current Truck Tax Regulations scheduled to expire on September 30, 2011

Posted on August 10, 2011 by - 2290 plus, efile form 2290, efile your truck tax, express tax zone, express truck zone, express2290.com, file your truck tax, form 2290 electronic filing, form2290.net, my tax 2290

Although passing bills in a timely fashion is not what this current congress is known for, there is another significant piece of legislation that has yet to be voted on. The delay of this legislation being enacted has thrown many people in the trucking industry for a loop.  

The transportation law known as SAFETEA-LU – the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users – expired in 2009, but it allowed the taxes associated with the Highway Trust Fund to be collected for an additional two years. When SAFETEA-LU became law in 2005, lawmakers built in what they believed to be enough time to get the next multi-year transportation authorization bill in place.

Those two years have gone by too rapidly and without a new Highway Bill to replace it. House and Senate committees are now drafting preliminary versions of the legislation and continue to debate its details.

Under normal circumstances, tax provisions related to the Highway Trust Fund would be extended as part of the authorization. Unfortunately, no one can accurately predict what will happen in the future, especially with the extreme volatility between parties these days. One thing that is predictable, however, is that ExpressTruckTax.com will keep updating their website and blog with the latest news affecting the Trucking Industry.  Once there is more information available about the HVUT filing process, we will let you know.