<p>For the MIT IDOC, the coversheet says to send 2013 Tax Returns. However, my parents have only the 2012 Tax Returns and they are supposed to fill out the 2013 edition in a couple of weeks. Should I just send them the 2012 Returns?</p>
<p>No you need to provide the 2013 details - you likely already provided the particulars from the 2012 tax year in the CSS. We are from Canada and will be sending in our 2013 Tax Return once complete by next weekend. Our T4 - statement of earnings, called the W-2 in the US should be available from our employer next week.</p>
<p>^^ This is incorrect. </p>
<p>@ddeisdz You should send your 2012 returns. Read the dashboard of your MIT portal.</p>
<p>Here is what the MIT portal tells students:</p>
<p>“U.S./Canadian citizens and U.S. Permanent Residents should file their 2013 tax through IDOC. If your 2013 income tax documents are not yet complete, send 2012 returns to Student Financial Services.”</p>
<p>Different countries have different tax years, and different periods. In the US, the tax year runs from January 1st to December 31st, and taxpayers have three and a half months (to April 15) to gather the relevant paperwork and pay the government. By contrast, in the UK, the tax year runs from April 6 one year to April 5 the next year, and taxpayers have roughly 10 months to file the relevant paperwork and pay the government (to January 31). In the US or the UK, an employed taxpayer’s will have most of their annual taxes withdrawn by their employer as part of the payroll process and paid directly to the government. Such a system does not operate in France, where taxpayers are completely responsible for their own taxes, and although taxpayers have to file by 27 May, they probably will have been making tax payments to the government regularly throughout the year.</p>
<p>MIT gets applicants from all over the world. They are looking for the most recent official statement of your financial position (on the theory that people are more likely to lie to a university financial aid office than to their government). That will vary depending on the tax rules for the country that you are in.</p>