From the March 2012 issue of Entrepreneur  The Tax Man
ComethTaxes are a necessary evil--the price we pay for roads,
bridges, schools and law enforcement. Audits, on the other hand,
feel just plain evil.  In an effort to thwart fraud, the
Internal Revenue Service audits about 1 percent of U.S.
taxpayers every year. IRS computers are programmed to catch
outliers and oddities on returns; any item that falls outside
the norm may be flagged so that an IRS employee can review it to
see if there's actually a need for an audit. Common red flags
include:  Incomplete or sloppy returns. Math errors and missing
information make the IRS cranky. If the agency's computers can't
make sense of what you filed, your return will be rejected.
Eyebrows will be raised if the numbers on your state return
don't match those on your federal return.  Web help • If you
have simple questions about taxes, explore the surprisingly
useful website at If you've already filed, you can check on the
status of your refund quickly with the site's