Why do government employees need to file a tax return?

In the U.S.?

I belive standardization. for record keeping putting anyone in a special class might delay reports to the I.R.S. . I belive even the president needs to file.

They don’t have all your information, such as what deductions you are claiming.

To nail you for any personal profits you have from personal property sales, capital gains tax on investment gains, inheritance taxes, etc. There is a whole litany of ways you can earn income besides having a second job and your boss wants it’s fair share of your profits.

I don’t know why you say you are not allowed to have a second source of income. I work for the government and that would be news to about half of my coworkers who have a second source of income! One owns an air conditioning company, one works at a department store, the list goes on and on!

The reason government employees need to file taxes like everyone else is that we all have varying amounts of interest income resulting from investments, bank accounts, etc. We all have various deductions, such as owning a home, repairs on said home, owning a second home, etc. Those are just two examples of things that vary for each of us.

@jca, yeah… strange… maybe he is a secret agent or something lol

Who on earth told you Government employees aren’t allowed to have more than one source of income?? That is a complete falsehood.

They don’t have “all your info”, either. Off the top of my head – they don’t know your dependents, what credits you might qualify for, lottery winnings, sale-of-stock gains or losses, mortgage or rent payments, medical expenses, and much much more.

Do you pay taxes?
You should file a return.

Do you have: medical expenses, home mortgage, property taxes, child support, donations, etc.? They all may reduce your taxes. If you just want to take the standard deduction and forget about all the other things, you can. But, some people “save” quite a bit by claiming these expenses

Wow, really? You can’t have any other income? You can’t buy and sell property? You can’t have a yard sale? You can’t invest in stocks, bonds or other financial vehicles? You can’t collect and then re-sell art and other valuables? You can’t inherit money or win a lottery? You can’t deduct extraordinary expenses or claim exemptions that aren’t accounted for in your W4? You can’t be laid off and have a loss of income? You can’t own rental property? Your kids can’t even earn any income? Bummer.

Seriously now. Your income can vary for lots and lots of reasons. And tax rates may change, too. You file a return so that all of your taxable income from whatever source – and there are likely very many that are permitted by your government contract – can be accounted for and properly assessed.