When to Know You Need Professional Tax Help
Tax season can be a hectic time for small business owners. On top of everything you already have to do to keep daily operations running smoothly, you also have to worry about filing the correct tax forms and ensuring all your financial documents are in order.
You may be thinking that getting professional tax help will cost you too much money or time. But before you decide to prepare your taxes on your own, consider some of the reasons a tax professional may be the better choice.
In this post, we’ll share the five signs it’s time to seek professional tax help.
You Don’t Have Time
Operating a small business is a 24/7 job. And adding even more tasks on top of that, like cleaning up your books, means even less free time away from work.
The IRS estimates business owners take over 20 hours to prepare their taxes. Talk about a time-suck!
If adding 20 hours to your workweek sounds unappealing, it’s time to get professional tax help.
At Cindy’s Mobile Bookkeeping, we make accounting simple for small business owners. We work with you to update your books and ensure your financial documents are in order before tax season.
Book a free consult today to learn more about how we can help you this tax season.
Tax Terms Confuse You
The Internal Revenue Code (IRC) is over 4,000 pages long and full of complex terms and rules. If you’re not familiar with all the tax terms filing taxes can be a headache.
Familiarizing yourself with tax terms and acronyms like W-2, 1040-EZ, HSA, AGI takes time and can be confusing. That’s why it’s imperative to hire a tax professional. These terms come easy to tax professionals, like us, with over 30 years of experience.
If you don’t understand the tax terminology that applies to your small business, and you’re not feeling confident your books are in the best shape for tax season, it’s time to pass the responsibility to a tax professional.
You Want to Get the Most Out of Deductions
As a small business owner, there are countless tax deductions you can take advantage of on your tax returns. Some of these tax deductions may even come as a surprise if you don’t have a tax professional on your side.
Deductions like business meals, use of a business vehicle, rent expenses, and travel expenses may seem like no-brainers. But what about the discounts or gifts you offer to your customers, guard dogs, newspapers and magazine subscriptions, safes, storage rentals, and website design? These are all tax deductions you can apply on your business tax return this year.
If you’re interested in reducing your tax bill this year, reach out to a tax professional today. We can help you document the correct deductions and save you money to invest back into your business.
You Are Buying or Selling Major Assets
If you engaged in any merger or acquisition-type of activity for your business, talk to a tax professional. This type of activity can trigger several tax implications that can complicate your tax filing.
Calculating capital gains, commissions, even pay and benefits for employees in this type of situation can get confusing quickly.
Whether you are buying or selling hard assets or intangible assets (like a book of business), you need professional tax experts on your side. We walk you through the financial information you need to prepare and where we can find tax savings to reduce your overall payment.
The IRS Is Auditing Your Business
If the IRS is auditing your business, it’s time to hire a tax professional.
Although IRS audits are rare, they can happen to small businesses like yours. A tax professional can help you prepare the appropriate documents for your audit appointment. Additionally, a tax professional can help answer any questions the auditor may have concerning your return and bookkeeping information.
Of course, the best way to avoid being audited by the IRS is to ensure you stay on top of your bookkeeping. Working with a professional when you become too overwhelmed can make your audit journey smoother.
As professionals with over 30 years of bookkeeping experience, we can help you clean up your books, set up a process that works for you, and ensure your filing this tax season goes smoothly.