Multiple years 1040s

[JimTaxes]

cannot efile as of today.. i prepared four years 1040s for a client.

are these ok to mail in one big envelope or should they be mailed separate? thank you

[Max W]

Each return should go into a separate envelope, each marked with the year and form (ex. 1040-2015).  Then the separate envelopes can be sent together in a larger mailer envelope.  Always, mail Certified with return receipt.  

If all the returns are sent together without separating them, the mail clerks pull everything out and staple it together, so only the return that is on top gets processed.

If you wait until the 29th, 2015 and 2016 can be Efiled. 

[Catherine]

The one and ONLY time I had to mail multiple years in one envelope (long story), it worked.  But I used a special procedure: 

• I used heavy duty binder clips for each year, to hold that return together.
• Each year's return had a piece of paper in front AND back, facing out, saying in LARGE type "2007 tax year" (or whatever year it was)
• Humongous binder clip holding all four, piece of paper front and back, facing out, saying in ginormous type, "FOUR YEARS TAX RETURNS ENCLOSED"
• They actually processed all four years separately.  
• I never got my binder clips back, lol.  (I knew they were lost before I sent the package.)