- 1). Gather all necessary materials such as W-2's, a calculator, receipts and income tax form with instruction booklet. The most common type of form that is required is Form 1040--U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.
- 2). Fill out the personal tax information section at the top of page. Read the instruction booklet that came with your income tax form. Take time to go over each section in the instructions to help you understand what is required on the 1040 form.
- 3). Use the employee W-2 form to fill in any sections pertaining to wages, tips, salary or any other income listed on the individual W-2. Employers generally send out W-2 forms in January or February for the previous years' employment time.
- 4). Determine how many dependents you can claim on your income tax form and fill in this section with that information. There are various circumstances that must be met in order to claim any dependents on the income tax form.
- 5). Calculate any self-employment or retirement income you may have received in the last tax year. Fill in any extra income information and include relevant receipts needed. Receipts may also be used to determine any deductions on your taxes that may return a higher income tax refund. To determine this information, use your Form 1040 instruction booklet.
- 6). Use any standard calculator to determine the income tax refund allotted. Depending on how much tax individuals have taken out of their weekly, bi-weekly or monthly employments checks, you may owe the IRS tax. Use the Form 1040 instruction booklet to help calculate these figures.