Welcome to 2012. I hope you had a great Christmas, Hanukkah, Festivus or whatever you celebrated. The New Year brings talk of resolutions, hope, and unfortunately, taxes. January has several deadlines. Here are some of the more important ones.

January 17: The fourth and final 2011 individual tax estimates are due on this day. This is also the first day that the IRS will begin accepting e-filed tax returns. Chances are you won’t have all of your tax documents (W-2s, 1099s, 1098s, etc.) available yet, but if you do and are due monies back from the government, get your tax returns filed ASAP.

January 31: All W-2s, 1099s and 1098s are supposed to be filed. If you have employees, be sure to mail or email them to your employees by this date. The same applies to independent contractors - they are due 1099s by this date. And, if you collected interest from someone, 1098s are due.

January is also a great time to start gathering your tax records (aside from the ones being sent on or before January 31). This includes any bank statements, receipts for deductions or credits, and any other pertinent tax documents.

Lastly, once again in 2012, the tax deadline has been extended a few days due to Emancipation Day. Your 2011 tax returns (or extensions for all of the procrastinators out there) are due on April 17, 2012 due to the 15 falling on a Sunday and Emancipation Day falling on April 16.

“Happy” Tax Season everyone!