tax practice

16 traits of the best tax clients

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green cast iron sign with white 16 painted on it

subscriber frank kistner adds no. 17: clients who remove staples from source documents (because they can damage your scanner/copier).

by ed mendlowitz
tax season opportunity guide

clients are our customers who pay our salaries and present us with stimulating opportunities allowing us to grow.

more: eight ways to charm a client | plug small leaks before they become big floods | you’re only as good as your last screw-up | four issues with ‘quick’ tax questions | when to pick up the phone this tax season | these five procedures will simplify your tax season | 11 steps to better client tax instructions
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

there is no such thing as a bad or nuisance client – although there are clients who sometimes do bad or nuisance things.
read more →

six fixable problems at the irs

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and the irs already knows what they are.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

tax practitioners beware: the irs has become a mess of misinformation and missing information.

more tax: two big (and obvious) ways irs could work with practitioners  | imagine a fully online irs | the real cost of interstate sales tax | irs at death’s door? | beyond tax prep: the big cha-ching! | crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

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it’s isn’t a complete mess, but there are problems… and solutions. we can think of six no-brainer easy fixes. read more →

irs under covid: heroes or goats?

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agents resort to filing by forklift.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

let us pause for a moment of kudos.

last year, the irs accepted a mission impossible. it wasn’t just underfunded, understaffed, and underequipped but overloaded, overworked, and overdue.

more tax: two big (and obvious) ways irs could work with practitioners  | imagine a fully online irs | the real cost of interstate sales tax | irs at death’s door? | beyond tax prep: the big cha-ching! | crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

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and then covid came back with a vengeance. read more →

irs loves e-filing. so why the barriers?

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irs buried in paper: even with 91 percent of returns e-filed, that leaves more than 33 million paper returns pouring into the irs annually.

what to do with clients who insist on paper?

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

e-filing may be the best thing to happen to the irs—and tax preparers—since the invention of paper and red tape.

  • it beats paper on cost—just 36 cents to process, vs. $15.21.
  • it beats paper on speed—a couple of hours from sending to acceptance, vs. days to mail, more days to open, more days in storage, more days to transcribe, and maybe months more to process.
  • it beats paper on accuracy—no need for transcription.
  • it beats paper on convenience—taxpayers can e-file in minutes from a desktop; irs can store and move e-files easily and instantly.
  • it beats paper on inconvenience—e-filing allows continuous processing regardless of weather, pandemics, etc.

more tax: two big (and obvious) ways irs could work with practitioners  | imagine a fully online irs | the real cost of interstate sales tax | irs at death’s door? | beyond tax prep: the big cha-ching! | crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

goprocpa.compro members: log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

so why does the irs still have barriers limiting e-filing? read more →

two big (and obvious) ways irs could work with practitioners

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both could be simple and cheap. if only.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

the irs has been making some progress in improving the functionality of individual taxpayer online accounts. progress has been slow but in the right direction.

more tax: imagine a fully online irs | the real cost of interstate sales tax | irs at death’s door? | beyond tax prep: the big cha-ching! | crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

goprocpa.compro members: log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

now it’s time for the irs to aim for two huge new improvements: online accounts for businesses, and expansion of the functionality of tax pro accounts for tax practitioners.

read more →

imagine a fully online irs

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keep imagining. here are a dozen things an irs portal could do for taxpayers and tax pros.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

as taxpayers and tax practitioners enter yet another tax season of uncertainty and turmoil,  the issue of needed improvements at the irs lingers like a hangover with a viral infection.

more tax: the real cost of interstate sales tax | irs at death’s door? | beyond tax prep: the big cha-ching! | crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

goprocpa.compro members: log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

are we facing another year of delays, doubts, and unanswered questions? will paying taxes ever become a smooth and efficient process?

imagine a world in the distant future where a common, ordinary taxpayer can pull a computer from a pocket, link into everybody’s favorite revenue service and… read more →

the hidden cost of interstate sales tax

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most small businesses are probably paying too much. or, too little. who knows?

s.a.l.t. for the wounds: the total estimated hours per month spent on tax management activities, by industry, with retail the highest at 209 hours. (avalara/potentiate)

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

the true cost of interstate sales tax compliance borne by small businesses is fast mushrooming into a problem of national proportions, according to new research. and while it may be a big opportunity for accounting firms, most small business owners are probably spending too much, or just as worrisome, too little.

more on salt: when tax collectors go digital | tax regs for the metaverse | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | accountants to small biz: ‘be nimble, be quick, be careful’ | turn client wants into needs | the 15 absolutely necessary services for cas clients | a job description for client accounting services | salt: the small business disaster waiting to happen | survey: rough seas ahead for small business |

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according to a 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 survey, 39 percent of accountants believe their small business clients were “mostly not in full compliance” with cross-border collection and remittance requirements. each of those non-compliant clients is a potential problem and an opportunity for their accounting firm.

now a new avalara-sponsored survey looks more closely at “emerging small businesses” (esbs) with under 20 employees, and small and medium-sized businesses (smbs) with 20-50 employees. read more →

what’s the irs hiding?

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a lot. it’s bad and getting worse.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

taxpayers and their tax preparers have a right to be informed about what’s happening at the internal revenue service. it’s the law, duly legislated and mandated by the u.s. congress in the taxpayer bill of rights.

but that doesn’t mean it actually happens.

more: irs at death’s door? | beyond tax prep: the big cha-ching! | crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

goprocpa.compro members: log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

the irs has never been especially good at providing information. taxpayers have a hard time finding out:

read more →

claiming the r&d tax credit (the right way)

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crabtree

how to save clients money while staying off the irs ‘dirty dozen’ list.

a conversation with randy crabtree, cpa

randy crabtree is co-founder and partner of tri-merit specialty tax professionals, a widely followed author, lecturer, and the host of “the unique cpa” podcast.

under new rules, taxpayers filing a valid r&d tax credit claim for refund under irc 41 must provide, at minimum, five essential pieces of “contemporaneous documentation.”

here crabtree addresses a few of the biggest questions.

the new rules include:

  1. all business components that form the factual basis of the r&d tax credit claim for the claim year.
  2. all research activities performed by business component (i.e., this must include a description of what the taxpayer did, and how they did it, by business component).
  3. all individuals who performed each research activity by business component. (i.e., this can be a list, table, or narrative but must include the first and last name, and the title/position of the person or persons engaged in the r&d by business component).
  4. all the information each individual sought to discover by business component. (i.e., this can be a list, table, or narrative providing the information each individual sought to discover).
  5. the total qualified expenses of employee wage expenses, supply expenses, and contract research expenses.

question: randy, why is the irs suddenly clamping down on those claiming the r&d tax credit? has there been a spike in fraud?

read more →

when tax collectors go digital

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…where will you hide?

collecting taxes upfront: in mexico, tax returns, accounting records, and other tax disclosures must be filed in standard electronic format, driving down the cost of tax collection by 57 percent between 2006 and 2018. meanwhile, revenue generated by audits rose an astonishing 117 percent between 2015 and 2020. (source: better than cash alliance, the u.n., via avalara)

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

accounting professionals may be focused for now on tax season 2022. but right around the corner, a revolution in tax is coming, if the united states can get out of its own way.

ready or not, here it comes: digitized sales tax compliance. the compliance might happen immediately after a transaction or right in the middle of it with a tax agency in between the buyer and the seller.

more: brain drain hobbles irs | crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

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it isn’t happening in the u.s. yet, but at least three states are thinking about it, and in 83 other countries, it’s already a thing. in california, florida, and massachusetts, it may soon be a thing. the federal reserve and the business payments coalition have already launched a pilot program to standardize electronic invoicing systems.

digitized tax compliance is far more than the mere e-filing of invoices and tax returns. it’s the movement of paper compliance activities to the cloud, where tax authorities can not only see transactions but, in some countries, actually, get involved in them.

the potential opportunities for accountants, auditors, and tax practitioners are as yet unknown, but where there is change, there is opportunity.

also, danger. read more →

is this how the irs dies?

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irs, losing staff it can’t replace, slides further into chaos and oblivion.

sound-off: how would you fix the irs?
join the survey. get the results.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

internal revenue service employees are resigning and retiring in droves, leaving the agency increasingly powerless to fulfill its mandate as the nation’s tax collector.

more: crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

goprocpa.compro members: log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

like every other problem the irs has, inadequate staffing is fundamentally caused by inadequate funding. as the irs budget declined by 20 percent between 2010 and 2021, staffing declined by about the same percentage, dropping from 94,711 full-time positions to just 75,773. meanwhile, of course, the number of taxpayers increased.

read more →

beyond tax prep: the big cha-ching!

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five reasons business clients are ready for tax advisory services.

credit for data: intuit

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

question: if half your tax clients were buying planning or advisory services for five times what they’re paying for tax prep, what would that add up to?

answer: a big cha-ching!

more on tax season: crisis at the irs | the irs’s 10 biggest problems. here are just the first five. | fear and loathing for tax season ’22 |  padar joins vc-backed tax fintech for banks |  covid chokes an already crippled irs | tax regs for the metaverse | 10 steps to a superior tax department | accountants critical of competitor price-cutting |  automate busy season with apps you already use | sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | busy season forecast: more chaos  | a woman named wanda leaves an ira nightmare  | are you under-pricing your client accounting services?  | your best advice: get smart, get tech, get moving | worries for small business clients |

goprocpa.compro members: log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

this may be the season for tax filing, but accountants failing to leverage prep into planning and advisory are missing out on a lot of potential revenue.

the average annual fee for tax planning and advisory services is $2,351—five times the average annual tax prep fee of $459, according to a new study. read more →