There is still quite a need for batch actions in TaxCycle. For example, right now I finally managed to carry forward all my CCH Taxprep files from 2013. Now I find out that about half of the files have missing information in the Preparer section in the Engagement tab. This is because I added that information halfway through carrying files forward. I understand that. But, why couldn’t we have an option to force the Preparer section to pull the defaults from the options? I can’t even see which files are correct and which aren’t without manually opening each one.
A second issue here is that I would like to batch email my preseason letters to all those clients with emails, and print the ones that don’t have email.
So, in brief, my suggestions are as follows:
-Allow the tax returns to pull from the default options so that changes to the preparer in the options automatically updates to all files. Maybe this can be done by recalculating files from Client Manager, similar to how CCH Taxprep works.
Batching is a nice idea; however, I am not sure how often I would use it.
I never understood the purpose of rolling all the tax files a head of time in a batch. I am not sure it saves any time. Actually, it likely increases time since you roll with an older version and then future updates may have enhancements in the roll forward requiring a new roll or in the Case of Taxcycle reroll to the current file. Not to mention the fact you have files for clients that may not come back sitting there empty.
In your case you have increased your work since you did not have all your options in place causing you to have “bad” carry forwards. if you were doing them as needed you would fix the error immediately so all future files would be better.
this was the first process I stopped in my firm since it makes no intuitive sense to me. Maybe I just do not understand all the benefits. What do you see as the benefits of rolling all the files?
In the past we have never started the season by rolling forward all of our prior year files. We are planning to do that this year though. And for one reason only – we like the pre-season letter.
Until now we have always sent out a general bulletin to all of our clients early in the season, but we have found most of them come back unopened or not completed (filed with their tax information, because they know it relates to taxes). We are hoping that a pre-season letter specifically addressed to them, listing prior year slips, etc., may help.
The one thing we plan to add to the standard letter, though, is a line about electronic delivery of slips. A lot of our client’s forget that for some accounts, they have to go and get the slips themselves. Their forgetting is turning into a money maker for CRA.
So we believe that the letter with the taxpayer’s specific information and a listing of prior year slips will outweigh the downside of rolling all the files forward at the beginning of the season.
I agree that the preseason letter would be nice; however, I would prefer to use the prior year file to produce the letter rather than carry forward and produce the letter
I agree. Since this is our first year using TaxCycle, that would not work for us. The other issue I can see is that the letter should be as up to date as possible and that likely means, if we use the template from TaxCycles at least as a starting point, it will be included in the current year tax return or as a downloadable template to include in the prior year return.