Every year on the night of April 14th, post offices across the U.S. are swamped by a tsunami of last-minute tax filers. The complexity of our tax system, the amount of money some people must come up with to pay off their tax debts, and good old human procrastination are all to blame.

All is not lost, however. In this series, WalletPop comes to the rescue of those looking down the barrel of a 1040, with a eleven suggestions from our tax expert Tracy Coenen and one from me on how to deal with last-minute preparation and establish the framework to avoid a repeat in 2009.

• File for an extension
• Pay what you think you owe
• Get copies of missing documents
• Set aside time to do it right
• Take baby steps
• Use a checklist
• Get professional help
• Go high-tech
• Ask a friend
• File electronically
• Plan to do better next year
• Strategies to avoid