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nine methods to reduce tax review time

scale with coins on one side, alarm clock on the otherit’s not too late to start.

by ed mendlowitz
how to review tax returns: the field-tested update

to have a successful tax season, care and effort must be spent to reduce the review time while maintaining quality.

more: the last thing a tax reviewer does | judge reviewers by how tax preparers improve | ‘quick and dirty’ tax review | three ways to improve tax returns | don’t use eyes, use brain | three types of tax return reviews | tax review procedures are your quality control
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the reviewer’s time is the main element that needs to be managed and reduced.

some ways this can be accomplished follow:

9 best practices

  1. better training of the preparers
  2. better training of the reviewers
  3. have specialists review certain returns or items
  4. digitization as much as possible, such as
    • reviewing the returns on screen and reducing printing and paper handling
    • reviewing the backup on an indexed digital file
    • electronically transferring k-1s when the corporate, partnership or trust returns are prepared by the firm
    • carrying forward carryover and pro forma data kept track of by the tax preparation software
    • filling out client organizers online and transferring them into the current year’s program
  1. modularization or compartmentalization of the work so it can be done and reviewed more easily
  2. better scheduling of the work so the more complicated returns are not bunched together and can be reviewed calmly and separately
  3. specific scheduling of complicated returns with the reviewer
  4. creating a less harried, less hurried office atmosphere
  5. keeping everything in order and in its place; for example, make sure accountants clean their desks or work areas every night

one response to “nine methods to reduce tax review time”

  1. frank stitely

    i love these article on reviews. i don’t think they is a more neglected area of workflow management, and it’s the area that causes the biggest headaches especially in a world with few labor resources. reviewers are the last line of defense to prevent disasters.