Track tax return’s status with smartphone app

February 27, 2011 at 12:00a.m.

The cool factor for smartphone applications has been getting geekier — and cheekier.

Chase kicked off a Super Bowl ad in most markets to highlight how easy it is to use a Chase app to deposit a check. The guy gets up from his easy chair, puts on a hat and coat, gets his phone and stops to take a picture of a check to deposit it. He never leaves the house.

This year, the Internal Revenue Service decided to go for its own gizmo gimmick by rolling out an IRS tax app.

Sure, there are apps to check the weather, calculate your carbon footprint and play Angry Birds. But now it’s cool to say there’s an app for dull financial services, too.

“I go on at least a couple times a day,” said Shane Brion, Chase bank branch manager in Ypsilanti, Mich.

He has used the IRS app to check when his tax refund would arrive. He uses his bank’s app to track spending.

Everybody has some sort of application, including the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS allows smartphone app users to get updates on their income tax refunds — and enter their e-mail address so that they can receive daily advice.

Apple users can download the free IRS2Go application at the Apple App Store; Android users can go to the Android Marketplace.

Brion, who is studying for an MBA in finance at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, does his own taxes. And he likes using that IRS app for free daily tips, including advice on education credits and other assorted tax tips.

His wife, Mirya, has a child-care business. The picture-taking feature with his Chase app comes in handy to deposit checks from her customers.

Chase came out with its QuickDeposit feature for checks in 2010. USAA — which serves the military community — launched the industry’s first mobile check deposit app in August 2009.

Other big-name banks likely will offer picture-taking deposits for checks this year, said James McGovern, vice president of consulting services for Corporate Insight, which tracks Web usage for banks, brokers and other financial service companies.

Everybody isn’t going to be taking pictures of their checks. Many of us — including me — do not even own smartphones.

But banking customers who travel or aren’t able to get to a bank branch can take advantage of the convenience.

In 2011, McGovern expects more financial firms to offer Android applications for the Google Droid and other phones. Some brokerages may offer more apps for the iPad, too.

Offering financial services via a mobile device isn’t new.

Back in 2000 and 2001, some brokerages offered access via the old Palm Pilots and PDAs.

But old hardware had green screens, not full color, and the older mobile devices were clunkers to use.

The popularity of the iPhone sparked interest in mobile applications in the financial services industry in 2010, according to Corporate Insight.

Morningstar.com, which tracks mutual fund performance, has free mobile apps for the iPhone, BlackBerry and Android platforms.

H&R Block brags that its free Tax Central App was the top finance app for more than a week last tax season on iTunes.

Now, the IRS has an app for that, too. Taxpayers who file electronically can use that app within 72 hours after the IRS acknowledges receipt of their tax return. If you file a paper return, you’d have to wait three to four weeks.

The same time frame applies if you go online to www.irs.gov and click on “Where’s My Refund?”

You’re going to need to enter a Social Security number. The IRS says the Social Security number is masked and encrypted. You’re not filing tax returns using that IRS app.

But the TurboTax SnapTax app does allow you to file taxes by smartphone.

Security, of course, is a worry. Chase stresses that it has robust encryption technology and that check images would not remain on the mobile phone.

“It’ll be posted to the account, but the app itself will automatically log you out, typically after five minutes of inactivity,” Brion said.

Will you be able to send clear photos of checks or W-2 forms (as would be needed with TurboTax SnapTax)? The quality could depend on the model of your phone or how you take the picture.

Ben Woolsey, director of marketing and consumer research for CreditCards.com, said that, in general, financial apps are “very safe and secure.”

Consumers, though, should be cautious, particularly if they receive e-mails. Do not click on attachments promoting free, potentially bogus apps.

Susan Tompor is the personal finance columnist for the Detroit Free Press. She can be reached at stompor@freepress.com.

2011, Detroit Free Press

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