Federal tax forms aren’t due until April 17th this year, next Tuesday, which means some Nebraskans will have an extra two days to put off the taxing task.

IRS spokeswoman Diane Fox has some advice for those who usually procrastinate.

“Don’t wait until the last minute as you’re more prone to make mistakes,” Fox says. “Use IRS.gov. There’s a lot of good information that can answer your questions. Use Free File at IRS.gov to prepare and file your taxes for free.”

There is a free option for everyone. People who make $57,000 or less can use the Free File software. People who make more can use Free File Fillable Forms, an electronic version of the IRS paper forms.

“If you owe and you can’t pay, don’t panic,” Fox says. “You can go online and request a payment agreement. If you can’t make the deadline, go to IRS.gov/freefile and request an extension. That gives you an extension to file, not an extension to pay.”

The federal filing deadline is on April 17th this year due to a holiday in Washington D.C.

More than 300 Nebraskans didn’t get their tax refund checks from the IRS last year. The agency says the checks have been returned by the post office as undeliverable.

Christopher Miller, a spokesman for the IRS, says the checks to Nebraskans average $824 and are worth a total of $247,000. Think you might be due one?

“Anyone who has an undelivered refund check can take care of it easily just by going online to www.IRS.gov,” Miller says. “On the right-hand side, you see an icon that says ‘Where’s My Refund?’ Click on that and you can update your address information with us and find out the status of your check.”

You’ll need to plug in some key data first, including your Social Security number, your filing status — like married or single, and how much the check should be worth.

Your refund information will remain available until you file a tax return for a more current tax year.

Miller says there are several reasons your check may not have reached you earlier this year.

“Typically, it’s just because they move or they get married or divorced or there’s some other life event that gets in the way and they simply forget to update their information,” Miller says. “It’s easy to do online or they can give us a call and we can update that information and re-issue the check.”

He says there’s an easy way to avoid this complication in the future.

Miller says, “You might want to consider electronically filing because when you e-file and choose direct deposit, which means that check goes right from us into your bank account, you can easily avoid lost, stolen or misdirected or undelivered refund checks.”

For help over the phone, you can reach the IRS at 800-829-1040.

The IRS is sitting on one-billion dollars they want to get back into the hands of taxpayers nationwide. IRS spokesman for the states of Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin, Christopher Miller says several million belongs to taxpayers in the Cornhusker state. He says there is about $4-million waiting for 5,200 Nebraskans who didn’t file a 2008 federal income tax return. The IRS estimates that half of the refunds are over $600.

Miller says those who haven’t filed have until April 17, 2012 to do so. There is a three-year window that closes on that day. If the money is not refunded to taxpayers it becomes property of the U-S Treasury.

The IRS states if a taxpayer is due a refund that check may be held if they have not filed tax returns for 2009 and 2010. The refund will be applied to any amounts still owed to the IRS or to pay past due child support or other federal debts such as student loans.

The Internal Revenue Service is urging Nebraskans to check and see if they’re eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Verlinda Paul, a spokeswoman for the IRS, says many people don’t get the tax credit because they just don’t know about it.

“Anyone with earnings of less than $49,000 really should see if they qualify,” Paul says. “We’ve found that four-out-of-five eligible workers claims the credit, so we’re really trying to reach that one-out-of-five that may not even realize that they qualify for the credit.”

Paul says the amount of credit depends on income, but also your marital status and family size. She notes, you have to file a return to qualify for the tax credit.

“We encourage everyone to go to www.irs.gov and especially if they make $49,000 or less, to use the EITC assistant and check out whether or not they qualify,” Paul says.

You can still take advantage of the tax credit if you go to a volunteer income tax preparation site and get free tax preparation.

Paul says, “There are about 12,000 (sites) across the country and the best way to find the one nearest to them is to call 1-800-906-9887.”

You can also file your taxes free using the “Free File” software on the IRS website at irs.gov.

The agency says around 207,000 families received around $414-million last year from the federal Earned Income Tax Credit with the average refund being $2,000.