Post Office Locations Open Late on April 15th
U.S. Postal Service Extended Hours for Tax Returns, IRS Deadline
Apr 9, 2009
On April 15th every year, many Americans are caught wondering if the post office is still open as they churn out last-minute individual income tax returns. For those not e-filing, a local post office with extended hours can mean up to nearly seven extra hours of tax preparation time on the day taxes are due.
Is the Post Office Open Late? Extended Hours for April 15th Tax Return Deadline
The good news is that some U.S. post offices will be open late on April 15th. The bad news is that this information is buried within the post office locator tool on the United States Postal Service (USPS) website.
Language in the tax information section of the USPS website makes it seem as though there will be a handy list of all post office locations with extended hours on April 15th; however, the Post Office Locator tool that purports to “find out which post offices have extended hours” takes browsers to a search function that can’t filter based on the criteria “extended hours.”
The best the tool can do is bring back a list of post office locations near a certain zip code. Then, users must browse through the listings to see if a particular postal service location offers extended hours or late daily collection times.
How to Find Out Which Post Office Locations Are Open Late on April 15th – USPS Website
Here are the steps to follow to find out which U.S. post office locations will be open late on April 15th:
- Navigate to the Post Office Locator.
- Input a zip code or entire address, and choose to search “post office locations.” Click on “Search.”
- Optional: On the resulting landing page, filter search results to locations within 1 mile or up to 100 miles.
- A list of post office locations will appear in order of closest to farthest away from the address entered in step two above. Each USPS location’s street address and standard operating hours will be shown. To see if a location offers extended April 15th hours, click on the bolded post office location name. If the location offers extended hours, below the standard business hours there should be a heading that reads “Extended Business Hours 04/15/09-04/15/09” and/or “Extended Last Daily Collection 04/15/09-04/15/09,” as in this example for 2009.
As in the example above, it’s possible to find postal locations that are open later than usual; it’s also possible to find a collection time almost as late as midnight on April 15th.
Last-Minute Filings – Where to Mail Tax Returns & Extensions, Proof of Mailing, How to Extend Form 1040
Before dropping of the return, make sure appropriate postage is affixed and double-check the IRS mailing address. To ensure peace of mind (and for actual proof of mailing) when mailing a last-minute individual income tax return, consider getting delivery confirmation, requesting return receipt, or using certified mail services. These services are profiled on the USPS website.
Anyone who needs to extend a federal income tax return, but isn’t sure how to do it, can find more information on this in these two articles:
Form 4868, Individual Income Tax Return Extension – learn where to download Form 4868 on the IRS website and how long of an extension may be granted.
How to Extend Federal Income Tax Returns – learn how to extend Form 1040 by mail or with a credit card online or over the phone.
Resource:
United States Postal Service (USPS) website, usps.com
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