The IRS filing campaign is underway and taxpayers can submit their tax return through the Portal das Finanças until the end of June. If you haven't filed yet or are already thinking about next year, this article is for you.

Paulo Jorge Seabra dos Anjos, an adjunct professor at the Instituto Superior de Contabilidade e Administração do Porto (ISCAP) and Certified Public Accountant, gave Notícias ao Minuto two recommendations on filing your IRS return:

1. File your return by the deadline, that is, by June 30;
2. Seek a certified accountant when dealing with complex IRS returns, particularly when there is real estate income (rents) or capital income (dividends) and real estate or other capital gains.

And what can you do to avoid losing money?

"First, [taxpayers] should check if it is a simple return, which can be filed by themselves, or if it is complex, in which case they should seek the assistance of a certified accountant", he explains.

In addition, "before filing your IRS return, there are a number of procedures to be followed" and Paulo Jorge Seabra dos Anjos highlights the following:

• Request invoices with taxpayer identification number;
• By February 15, report changes to the household or dependents in joint custody, indicating the percentage of expense sharing;
• By February 28, validate the invoices on the 'e-fatura' portal.
• When filling out the return, we should take the following precautions:
  - Fill out all required annexes;
  - Confirm that the amounts are correct;
  - Pay attention to the option to 'yes' or 'no' to include certain income (e.g., rents). A 'badly made' option may imply the payment of a significant tax difference;
  - Before submitting, check the simulation.

Leia Também: Por norma, é mais vantajoso entregar o IRS em conjunto ou em separado? (Portuguese version)