Wanna check the status of your refund? A member of the Tax Talk discussion forum, C.G., recommends checking the IRS's Refund Status page.

Thanks, C.G. A lot of folks probably didn't know this existed.

Call me reformed procrastinator. Time was, every April 15th I reached for Form 4868, the IRS's application to file for an extension.

Then, miraculously, I got organized. I credit the dual responsibilities of motherhood and homeownership; I realized I needed to get my ducks in a row or risk drowning in feathers. So for many years I proudly filed on time, secretly feeling superior to other family members (you know who you are) still stuck in Extensionville.

Well, this year I'm off the wagon. It's been an unusual season in my household, and in spite of lots of preparation I don't feel confident I've calculated the right tax result. So, for the first time in a while, we're filing for an extension. Only this time, I don't feel at all bad about it.

And neither should you.

There's no shame in filing for an extension. In spite of what you might think, the IRS doesn't scrutinize the tax forms of extenders more than it does other folks'  forms. This year for the first time the agency is actually making it easier for taxpayers who need more time by providing just one six-month extension period, ending October 16. In the past, extenders would have 'til mid-August and, if needed, could file for a final extension 'til mid-October.

But just because you've got an extension doesn't mean you're off the hook from paying now. You still need to estimate what you owe, prepare your extension form and arrange for payment by midnight on Monday, April 17 (or Tuesday, April 18 if you live in Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont or the District of Columbia). If you don't file, you'll be penalized. If your state charges income tax, you'll need to file a state extension and arrange payment with the state as well.

If you can't pay any portion of what you owe, you still should file, simultaneously taking advantage of one of the options the IRS offers. (Check our article, What If you can't pay your Income taxes? .)

And just think, once you extend, you'll have as long as six more months of glorious tax preparation fun. It's a procrastinator's dream.

Imagine you're a part-time school aide, health-care worker, or store sales clerk. You're pulling in about $13,000 a year after taxes and other adjustments. The tax preparer tells you you're eligible for a federal credit worth $3,500--money you sorely can use toward car payments, credit-card debt, utility bills, and food. Before you even leave the preparer's office, you've spent that money in your mind. Halleluyah, you think, bring on that check. 

Now, imagine that check doesn't come.

That's a scenario that's happening way too often, says the U.S. Taxpayer Advocate, who represents taxpayer interests at the IRS. In 2005, some 28,000 people asked the Advocate for help after discovering the IRS was freezing their refunds due to suspected fraud. The IRS didn't tell them they were suspects or give them a chance to defend themselves; ostensibly they found it out on their own. Worse, when the Taxpayer Advocate Service studied a random sample of taxpayer complaints, it  found that 80 percent actually warranted a full or partial refund. The typical refund was $3,519, more than a quarter of the average adjusted gross income in the sample. The typical wait for the money was more than 8 1/2 months.

It's an outrage that the IRS can't get this right. Here are working folks doing their civic duty--filing taxes while most likely barely making ends meet--only to get abused. Sure, some people take advantage of the system, but the cost of overzealous IRS investigations at this income level is far greater than anything that could be gained. What is more, I suspect that those 28,000 dogged taxpayers are just the tip of the iceberg. There are no doubt thousands of others who, due to lack of understanding, time, patience, literacy or English skills don't pursue what is rightfully theirs. At the very least, the IRS should inform taxpayers that they're under the microscope so they can defend themselves. Better yet, it should lay off the small folk and focus on fraud that really adds up, like the millions of small businesses that don't adequately report their cash income.

The Children's Defense Fund recommends a number of other changes that could significantly help poor taxpayers. They include making it far easier to apply for the Earned Income Tax Credit, a program that returns tax money to the working poor; expanding free tax assistance for that population; simplying and coordinating federal and state income tax forms so more people can avoid expensive preparers; and placing limitations on the use of refund anticipation loans, high-interest loans often used by the poor to get to their refund money right away. All make good sense to me, and some would ultimately help all taxpayers, not just the poor.