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Some Struggling To Meet Income Tax Deadline Advised to File For Extension

By Lynne Adkins

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The income tax filing date is less than two weeks away, and for some it's time to make a choice.

You could pull a few all-nighters to get your taxes in by midnight on April 15th, or you could file for a six-month extension.

Ralph Diodata, a CPA in Blue Bell (Montgomery County), Pa., says you can find the extension form online or with your accountant.

Just remember, he notes, it's just an extension to file the paperwork -- if you owe taxes, that money is still due now.

And for some, that will be a guess.

"If you understate what your tax should be, the IRS will come back and say you do owe a little bit of interest on the money they wanted by April 15th," Diodata explains.  "If you guess the opposite way around, you're gonna get a refund.  The IRS is OK with that."

He suggests filing the extension paperwork and sending in a check for more than you think you owe.

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