By YOUNG MONEY Staff
25 January 2011

Filing your taxes can be quite the hassle. Unless you want the Internal Revenue Service after you, though, you should make sure they’re filed by April 15. A newly released smart phone app from the I.R.S. won’t help you file your taxes, but it will let you keep track of your tax refund status – the best part of the process.

The IRS2Go app gives out daily tax tips to smart phone users who download it; moreover, it lets users see the status of their tax refund. The app is free and offered on both iPhones and phones that run Google’s Android software.

I.R.S. Commissioner Doug Shulman said that the app "reflects our commitment to modernizing the agency and engaging taxpayers where they want when they want it." Shulman also declared that the app will help the I.R.S. to "keep innovating to make it easy for all taxpayers to access helpful information."

The app is simple to use: To access your tax refund status, you first have to wait 72 hours after you receive an email from the I.R.S. that confirms they received your tax return. You must then enter your social security number – which is encrypted for security purposes – and select the filing status you used and the amount you expect to receive in your refund.

Though it only dispenses tax tips and status updates currently, the app could get upgrades in the future, according to Shulman. The I.R.S. is always looking "for additional ways to expand and refine our use of smart phones and other new technologies to help meet the needs of the taxpayers," he affirmed.