tax season

try this clean slate exercise

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clean slate with three pieces of colored chalk

spend a few minutes today to check your course.

by ed mendlowitz
tax season opportunity guide

we all get caught up with what we do. sometimes so much that we lose sight of what we are doing and the purpose.

more on tax season: offer your tax clients other services | can your tax reviewers answer these 10 questions? | the top 12 mistakes in tax return preparation | six types of person: which are you? | answer these two questions first | help your tax clients, help yourself | what’s your value to your tax clients? | are you excited about tax season?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

also, work happens. many of us start out with lofty plans that go astray as the practice develops. many things cause it – clients we get, availability or lack of availability of the right staff, how we choose to learn or not learn new things, and even where we locate.
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refunds up as tax pros tackle 41.5% of e-filings

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* total refunds issued represent returns received and processed in 2024 – the current year only. the number of direct deposit refunds represents returns received in the current and prior year but processed in 2024.

also: the irs realizes a footnote is in order and we are shocked.

by beth bellor

average tax refunds are on the rise, so the weekly filing data has one uptick besides the amount of traffic to the irs website – an increase that perhaps isn’t a positive.

more: tax pros handle 37.7% of e-filings | tax pros file 33% of early returns
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

the internal revenue service had received 34.7 million returns, down 5.7 percent from the same period one year ago, as of the week ending feb. 16, the latest data available. lower numbers are no surprise, of course, because there had been only 19 days in the 2024 filing season, which opened jan. 29, compared to the 26 days there had been in the 2023 season, which opened jan. 23.
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ftc nails turbotax for ‘free filing’ scam

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shocked couple looking at laptop while sitting on couch

what does ‘free’ mean? it shouldn’t be up for debate.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

american taxpayers are all victims of a tax scam.

yes, all of them.

more: if only the irs’s tax pro were useful | tax pros file 33% of early returns | the nightmare of non-credentialed tax preparers | must the irs be a dark hole? | irs plays whac-a-mole with the phones | vcs plunk $60 million into ai-powered ‘autonomous’ tax prep
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

and the new york times points an accusatory finger straight at turbotax.

a tax season villain

in a 15-minute video article by john harris and binyamin appelbaum, the times says there’s a tax villain, and it’s neither the tax rate nor the internal revenue service.
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offer your tax clients other services

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woman and man shaking hands across a desk

here are 40 they should know about, plus a checklist for considering additional client services.

by ed mendlowitz
tax season opportunity guide

the following listing can give you ideas of additional services clients might need.

more on tax season: can your tax reviewers answer these 10 questions? | the top 12 mistakes in tax return preparation | six types of person: which are you? | answer these two questions first | help your tax clients, help yourself | what’s your value to your tax clients? | are you excited about tax season?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

this list is not complete, but it is a good start for you to start thinking about what types of additional services you can offer to your clients!

  1. estate planning
  2. inheritance advice and guidance
  3. succession planning
  4. personal financial planning

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higher fees to start: ten ways to make your tax season better

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woman smiling as she uses calculators and views charts on computer screens

does your firm look “closed for business”?

by ed mendlowitz
202 questions and answers: managing an accounting practice

  1. increase your fees 3-5 percent at a minimum – to offset your increased costs.

more: nine tips for a healthier tax season | every accounting firm needs quality control | no one listens to you? change how you talk | 47 types of business valuation to provide | thirteen things to consider before you sell your practice
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

  1. deliver your bill with the return.
  2. call clients before return is sent to explain and give a heads up for unexpected results.

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tax pros handle 37.7% of e-filings

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data table

paper still used by 2.2 percent of filers.

by beth bellor
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

tax season moves slowly forward, and tax professionals slowly gain ground

more: tax pros file 33% of early returns | if only the irs’s tax pro were useful | the nightmare of non-credentialed tax preparers | must the irs be a dark hole? | irs plays whac-a-mole with the phones | tax pros are expanding and earning more
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

as of the week ending feb. 9 – the latest for which data are available – the irs had received 25.6 million individual income tax returns, down 11.4 percent from the same period a year ago. it had processed 25.4 million returns, down 4.4 percent.

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leverage your strengths to beat stress

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woman tossing exclamation points into air

24 ways you may be better than you think.

by sandi leyva
the complete guide to marketing for tax & accounting firms

how many times a day do we tell ourselves with the little voice in our head that we’re falling short of the ideal we have for ourselves? “i forgot to add the salt, so i ruined the recipe.” “i’m not good enough.” “i was mistaken.” “i’m not smart enough.” “i didn’t get picked for the finals.” “nobody likes me.” and so on.

more: you don’t have a time problem | ten ways to have more energy this tax season | seven steps to keeping your clients forever | give to receive, and eight more ways to boost sales | five things that clients don’t know about accountants | five ways to wow your clients | how to fight feeling overwhelmed | you’re missing 60% of your revenue | make the most of cpe conferences | beyond compliance: six tips for adding value | track six figures to test your marketing | when you don’t know what you don’t know
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

instead, why don’t we focus on our strengths? a university of michigan psychology professor undertook an extensive research project to discover 24 positive character strengths that each person has to varying degrees.
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if only the irs’s tax pro were useful

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businessman sitting on cloud

the national taxpayer advocate has a long wish list.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

if you are a cpa, tax preparer or registered agent – a tax pro, in other words – there is a slim possibility that you are registered with the internal revenue service’s tax pro  program.

more: can’t irs online accounts be more useful? | id theft a problem for irs even when it doesn’t exist | the nightmare of non-credentialed tax preparers | taxpayer assistance centers: a good idea that should be better | irs still falling short on service | must the irs be a dark hole? | 10 tips to the irs for beefing up staff | eight ways the irs can speed up processing tax returns | irs plays whac-a-mole with the phones | ten irs problems that need solutions | treasury ig sees progress at irs
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

but even if you are registered, the odds are vanishingly small that you actually use it.

why? because it’s really of limited use.
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can your tax reviewers answer these 10 questions?

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businessman looking up answers in a book

bonus checklist: the answers!

by ed mendlowitz
tax season opportunity guide

the primary people who should review tax returns are trained tax department reviewers. however, often the bunching and compression of work shifts some of the review to higher level, non-tax personnel such as audit managers and partners who might not necessarily have the comprehensive training, background and experience to handle everything that might come up during the tax preparation process.

more on tax season: the top 12 mistakes in tax return preparation | six types of person: which are you? | answer these two questions first | help your tax clients, help yourself | what’s your value to your tax clients? | are you excited about tax season?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

additionally, in many firms, almost everyone on the staff prepares some returns. that lack of dedicated preparers with the trained skills places an added burden on the tax reviewers, making it important for them to have the range of experience needed to perform the review.

following are 10 questions reviewers should be able to answer to qualify for their role.

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tax pros file 33% of early returns

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table of irs filing data for week ending feb. 2, 2024

a shorter season to date makes comparisons difficult.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the internal revenue service has fired up the machinery and begun cranking out tax returns. and so begins our annual ritual of tracking how well they do that.

all of the initial figures are double-digit down, largely because of seven days’ fewer collections. the 2023 filing season began on jan. 23 vs. 2024’s jan. 29, so 2023 totals cover 12 days as opposed to this season’s five days.

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can’t irs online accounts be more useful?

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angry man wearing tie and glasses, punching fist through laptop screen

taxpayers and pros alike are frustrated, exasperated, disappointed and angry.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

ever-improving internet commerce is one of the great developments of this first quarter of a century. the process and potential of dealing with products and services, including government services, has come a long way from the toddling brouhaha of the world wide web of the 1990s.

more: id theft a problem for irs even when it doesn’t exist | the nightmare of non-credentialed tax preparers | taxpayer assistance centers: a good idea that should be better | irs still falling short on service | must the irs be a dark hole? | 10 tips to the irs for beefing up staff | eight ways the irs can speed up processing tax returns | irs plays whac-a-mole with the phones | ten irs problems that need solutions | treasury ig sees progress at irs
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

the internal revenue service still dreams of joining these early years of the 21st century. to get started, the service has gone so far as to launch an individual online account program. iolas allow taxpayers to

  • view basic information,
  • make payments,
  • enter into payment plans and
  • view and download certain notices.

all of which is very nice but soooo 1998.
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nine tips for a healthier tax season

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woman and man walking and talking outside office building

how to be at your best through april 15th.

by ed mendlowitz
202 questions and answers: managing an accounting practice

tax season can be a marathon. everyone has their own tips and tricks, habits and techniques for staying sane and healthy. here are 10 of mine:

more: every accounting firm needs quality control | three ways to start an accounting practice | free consultation? not always | referral fee? forget it | how much is your tax practice worth? | merge in lower-priced work without losing out
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

  1. eat lunch out of your office.
  2. go for a 15-minute walk in middle of afternoon instead of eating a snack.

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id theft a problem for irs even when it doesn’t exist

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faceless hooded male person, low lighting and words "identity theft" repeated throughout

either way it consumes scarce resources.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

tax return identity theft’s a bummer.

how big a bummer?

so big that even when there’s no theft, it’s a bummer.

more: the nightmare of non-credentialed tax preparers | taxpayer assistance centers: a good idea that should be better | irs still falling short on service | must the irs be a dark hole? | 10 tips to the irs for beefing up staff | eight ways the irs can speed up processing tax returns | irs plays whac-a-mole with the phones | ten irs problems that need solutions | treasury ig sees progress at irs | vcs plunk $60 million into ai-powered ‘autonomous’ tax prep
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

it’s a bummer when it happens, not only because it happened but because the internal revenue service can take up to 19 months to recognize the problem, do something about it and send the hapless taxpayer a refund not for this year’s return, not for last year’s return, but for the year before last.

and it’s a bummer when there’s no theft involved because when the irs’s rickety technology flags a return as a possible id theft, the return gets delayed for months and months of manual processing.
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