Friday, January 21, 2011

Business Tax-Time Problems Grow From Past Mistakes - ABC News

Business Tax-Time Problems Grow From Past Mistakes - ABC News

This article is a good review for businesses to get ready for tax season. Simple topics to think about as you prepare your businesses records for tax return preparation. Some items mentioned in this article are worth repeating.

Use your software to help, not hurt. Many client will provide us with a back up of their accounting system such as Quickbooks. They believe with the back up they have provided us with "everything we need" to properly prepare a tax return. Often we find that people do not know how to properly use applications like Quickbooks. Further they may not spend enough time making sure entries made in Quickbooks are posted to the proper accounts.

Pay attention to what you are paying. If expenses are not properly tracked in your accounting system, we may not find the missing items or properly reclassify items posted in error. It is important that all business related income and expenses are entered into your accounting sytem.

Pay now or pay more later. Often fixing the mess is more time consuming and expensive than doing it right the first time. Asking questions during the year as transactions are being posted is generally a better path to properly completing your books and records for your tax return.

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