Tax filing deadlines are quickly approaching. Put another way, it is time to start getting your act together so you can get through the filing process with a minimum of fuss. One way to help limit the misery is to consider filing electronically this year.

The IRS has made major efforts to improve its computer network. The fits and starts have been legendary in that the peaks were nominal and the valleys were the depth of the Grand Canyon. To be honest, the effort was a complete disaster in the 1990s. Since then, however, the agency has made huge advances in its digital effort. Hey, the IRS even has a YouTube channel now. How many government agencies can say they've joined the twenty first century?

Filing tax returns electronically is one way you can get through the tax return process with a bit less stress. The process is simple. You can use tax software to do it and simple returns can even be done free. All you do is finish the return online and hit the send button. The tax return is submitted and your receive a receipt that can be saved to your email or printed out in case there is ever an issue.

Filing electronically has some great benefits. The first is the return gets into the system quicker. If you are expecting a refund, this means the money will be coming back to you quicker as well. If you pick direct deposit to your bank account, the turn around time can be two weeks. In this economy, that is a distinct positive.

A second big positive is the digital process itself. The software you use will automatically check the return for basic errors like math problems. This may sound like a small thing, but it can be the difference between you getting audited or not. Since an audit is just about the last thing any of us ever wants to run into, this is a major benefit.

Roughly 100 million people file their tax return electronically these days. If they can do it, so you can you.