The deadline for filing your federal taxes this year is Monday, April 18th, 2011. This is because Friday, April 15th is a holiday in the District of Columbia (Emancipation Day). If you file for an extension, you will automatically be extended to Monday, October 17, 2011.

You can fill out the official Form 4868 using pen and paper and mail it in for the cost of a stamp. But hey, who doesn’t like convenience! Websites like FileLater.com will charge you $17.95 or more to file the form for you. However, I found two ways that anybody can e-File a federal extension online for free.

Please note that filing an extension only extends the time to file your return and does not extend the time to pay any tax due. To avoid late payment penalties and interest you must estimate what tax will be due and pay that when you file the extension. I tend to overestimate my tax liability a bit to avoid penalties, and get a slight refund when I eventually file my full return.

Option #1: TaxAct

(That’s cheaper than or , although if you’re already familiar with those programs it may be worth the extra bucks to stick with them, since you can save time by importing your previous year’s data.)

Directions To register with , you just need an e-mail and to set your passwords. To go directly to the extension form, click on the “Filing” tab on the top, and then the “File Extension” link right below it (see below). You will then be walked through the Form 4868 in a question-and-answer format. If you fill out the first few steps of your tax return with TaxAct (still free), they will even use that data to estimate your tax liability for you. You will then be able to have the form filed electronically for free (or print).

If you wish to make a tax payment, you will be able to choose to pay with direct withdrawal from a bank account (account and routing numbers required) or pay with a credit card (IRS fees apply). Afterward, you can confirm the status of your extension e-file by going to efstatus.taxact.com.

Options #2: Free File Fillable Forms

This one’s a little harder to find, but here are some step-by-step instructions. Go to the (go alliteration!) and click on “Start Free File Fillable Forms”. Click “Sign-in” on the top left, and create a new account with your e-mail and password information. After you’re signed in, click on “Continue” and pick your form. Go with the full form 1040. On the top right, you should see an icon with the label “File an Extension”.

This will bring up Form 4868. Click around the form to fill the boxes out. You’ll need to estimate your total tax liability, but since this is just an online version of the form so there is no guidance included. As above, you can request your estimated tax payment to be withdrawn electronically by supplying your bank’s routing and account numbers. For identification purposes, you’ll need your adjusted gross income (AGI) from your 2009 tax return.

Got state income taxes as well? Here is a helpful page on .

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Tags: 2011, Instructions 2011