Tips to choose a good tax preparer

One terrifying and the most unpleasant phrase all Americans just can’t hear from January to April is ‘tax return’. Have I scared you? Oh, I didn’t mean to. I’m just here to remind you, that tax season was opened in January and it’s going to be over end of April. Seems like a lot of time to figure everything out, collect necessary information, fill in the required forms and get those taxes done. Yeah, that’s what most of us are thinking every single year and that’s exactly why we run around in panic when the big day is coming up closer and closer. ‘No one does his taxes this early’ –you’d say. ‘But maybe they should’ – I’d answer. And, here’re several reasons why it’s definitely better to embark on this task earlier.

First of all, your personal finances are not something you may contemn and slack on carelessly. That’s not what a responsible individual and citizen does, especially when it comes to being a law-abiding person who keeps track on his incomes and expenses. Also, if you don’t procrastinate and save a pleasure of rummaging in your financial data in desperate attempts to collect it all together and fill the tax forms without significant mistakes on time, you’ll be able to approach the task without any excess stress. You’ll have a chance to do everything gradually. You’ll have time to figure out every detail and collect your financial information throughout a decent time period, but not in one day.

Moreover, you’ll be able to find an experienced professional tax preparer or accountant, who has great references, to consult with him about the cause or hire him to do all that boring and complicated paperwork for you. Cause believe me, once the final countdown begins, finding a tax preparer who is not booked completely will be a real struggle.

Let’s decide if you really need to hire a tax professional or you may cope with this task on your own

You can probably complete your tax return without any additional help on your own using an e-form on the IRS’s website if:

1. your financial situation hasn’t changed significantly since the last year
2. you don’t have more than one source of income
3. you don’t have any dependents and you’re not involved in any investment activities
4. there’s no property or retirement bank accounts that you own
5. you’re good at finances, numbers and figuring out provisions of the tax law without asking professional’s advice.

It’s better to entrust filing tax documentation and gathering essential financial information to a professional tax returner/accountant/lawyer if:

1. you have multiple income sources
2. you have recently obtained property
3. you have started/ continued running your own business
4. you got married or had a baby
5. you’ve acquired a retirement account
6. you got divorced or lost a husband/wife
7. your children have grown up to the extent when this fact influences your expenses notably (for instance, if they started school or college)
8. you’re unable to understand the tax law and cope with your own money without someone’s assistance
9. it’s your first time managing tax returns
10. you just didn’t manage to file all necessary documents on time

If you decided to let professional do his job to get everything done precisely, whiteout any mistakes and with minimum time and effort required from your part, your task is to find a proper tax preparer, whom you’ll be able to trust working with your personal financial data without hesitation and being confident about the accuracy of final results.

How to find a good tax preparer

1. What kind of assistance to look for

a) Online and free services

Also, you may find different free guidelines and instructions online on how to fill in this or that type of form, what to mention and what this or that term means. Although it’s not the way to get it done by someone else, but getting some free advice and saving money on professional services if you can’t afford them is better than figuring out everything on your own.

b) National specialized chains (‘quick fix’)

Everyone has seen them. Those are small tax preparation shops located inside large stores and shopping centers. Their employees aren’t usually people with accountant’s/lawyers bachelor’s degree or at least licensed tax preparers. But, they should have gone through some professional training or they may be college graduates who’re gaining their first working experience. You may also come across highly-experienced preparers there, but it’s a rare occasion.

However, those people are able to handle not too complicated cases, and they do it really fast I must admit. So, if your taxes aren’t too complex or if you’re barely fitting the last deadline, you may totally check them out. Just spend some extra time to pick a good specialist before entrusting him with your financial data and personal information.

Another benefit of those chains is that they provide relatively cheap services without any extra or hidden fees and charges. But, don’t forget to look through the prepared material thoroughly to check for mistakes

c) Professional certified preparers and accountants

In order to receive professional services and be sure that tax return papers are prepared according to the rules and regulations, without any calculation mistakes, lost data and expired terms, it’s better to hire a certified preparer to handle your situation.

Those professionals are more advanced considering their education and experience; they’re able to conduct numerous activities, which involve audit, collection of financial information including all documentation, carrying out calculations, filling in forms, etc.

They’re more familiar with complex situations and problems that may arise from tax payments and returns.

Bear in mind that such tax preparers might have quite narrow specialization. That’s why it’s better to recount all conditions and peculiarities of your financial operation when talking to  a potential candidate, so that he could tell whether he’d be able to help you or not.

There’s a common misconception that all certified public accountants may handle taxes. But, as I’ve already said, it’s just a misconception. So, when you’re looking for a preparer among accountants, check the list of services they provide beforehand not to disturb a person for no reason.

Ask your friends or family members for references, as they’ve most likely used accountant’s services before. Or, you may find an enrolled agent, who’s only specialization is taxes online on HireRush.com. These agents are probably the most trust-worthy tax preparers. The fact is that most of them are connected to IRS. They’ve either worked there for couple years or/and passed an exam on tax legislation and preparing methods.

Enrolled tax agents may work for a company or as independent professionals.

d) Tax lawyers

They’re the people to ask for assistance in the worst-case scenario, as lawyers usually won’t deal with ordinary tax preparation. They’ll come in handy in tax dispute occasions rather than in collecting and filling in the forms. However, some of them may undertake serious and problematic tax return situation. Another option is to hire a permanent tax lawyer or an agent for your business.

2. Questions to ask a tax preparer before hiring

1. Have you gone through any tax preparing courses or do you have and according education?
2. Could you tell me about your tax preparing experience, please?
3. Who do you work with right now?
4. What kinds of cases have you worked with the most?
5. What’s the hardest tax return situation you had to deal with?
6. How long will it take you to prepare everything for me?
7. What documents should I bring to you?
8. How much do you charge for your services? Could you explain this issue to me in more detail?
9. What personal data safety guarantees do you give?
10. Can I rely on you considering the accuracy of your job? Do you provide any guaranties related to this matter?

I would also recommend you check the prepared documents thoroughly no matter what services you’ve chosen, as neither of them bears the responsibility for the information stated in your tax return forms. It’s the individual who’s responsible for that information to the state authorities. And, file your tax return documents in time not to experience an additional April Fools’ Day)))