I would like to put together a document to send to my clients which outline specific expectations I have of them.
I work with many sole proprietors and would like them to send their business #s (sales and expenses) well in advance of the tax filing deadline so I can begin working on the return and asking any necessary questions.
I have told all of them to submit #'s by Feb/March but the majority end up getting me their #s later which results in me having to do many tax returns in a short period of time. I understand this is pretty normal, however, if I can communicate to them in a more formal document maybe they will take it more seriously.
Does anyone have one of these they can share? Please feel free to direct message me if you prefer to send it there.
For myself, I solved this or at least improved it greatly by having one price if the information is received by March 15th, another price if the information is received by April 15th, and another price if received after April 16th. Most taxpayers don’t want to pay anymore than they have to. Send out a checklist well before February to each client and you should get the information in a more timely manner.
I have started creating individual checklists for each of my clients (only have about 100 personal tax clients and 20 corporate returns) and posting that list in my initial tax season correspondence to them in early February. These checklists don’t change much from year to year so I review it after finishing the current year to see if any thing needs to be added or deleted for the following year. I think I am up to lists for about half my clients so far. My goal for this fall is to get the rest of the checklists made as it goes much smoother for the clients that already have checklists. I have a virtual assistant who monitors the responses and asks for clarification if they send a bunch of information but miss something on the list. She also checks in on a weekly basis for missing info if they have indicated that something is coming still to make sure they send it as soon as possible. I don’t generally start the return until my virtual assistant confirms that all the info on the list has arrived. I also have a tendency to increase prices for people that send me stuff late. I have started increasing prices across the board as I have too many clients to complete by April 30th.
Or, estimate their tax payable for April 30 and take your time to file the return for June 15?
Any overpayment just carries as an instalment to the next year anyway. I’ve been doing this since they changed the filing date for s/e returns and have never had to worry…or rush.