4. Forfeit your refund
It shouldn’t surprise you that the taxman wants his money first before giving you anything. You can easily lose your refund by not filing. In fact, according to the IRS, many taxpayers miss their refunds because they ‘forget’ to file their federal income tax returns.
See also: 11 Mistakes You Could Make When Filing Your Return
You can’t get any money if you don’t file. In general, your tax return that claims a refund should be filed within no more than three years of its due date in order to get your money from the IRS. After this period of time, the taxman can do whatever he wants to with your probably-needed refund.
