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Have you Filed your Taxes Yet?

Posted on April 4, 2015 at 5:17 PM

It's the month of April and We're counting down to the final days of Tax Time. Have you filed your Taxes yet? Do you know that you have a few days left, to file your Taxes? Here are some quick ideas, to help you organize and get your documents ready for Tax Filing:

Organize All your Income Statements - Get all your W-2s, 1099s , 1098s and 1095- A's( I spoke about this document in my earlier blog). Make a Checklist to ensure that none of these document is missing.

Organize your Auto Log - You have to ensure that, you have all the necessary logs to support your Business miles, moving miles, medical miles and charitable miles driven by you in the Year 2014.Gather all the logs and ensure that they are all added up together and totaled.

Coordinate your Deductions - If you and someone else share a dependent, you will need to confirm, that you are both on the same page, as to who will claim the dependent. This is true for Single Tax Payers, Divorced Taxpayers, Taxpayers with elderly parents/Grandparents, and Parents with Older Children.

Review all other Financial Information - Review other parts of your financial life for possible organization and updates. This includes Insurance, Investments, Legal Documents, Safety Plans, Identity Theft Protection , Credit Scores, Retirement Planning, Retuirement Account Contributions and your Home's Annual Budget.

Collect all your Receipts and Sort them - You can make use of your previous year's Tax Return, and begin to gather and sort your necessary Tax Records. Sort your Tax Records to match the items on your Tax Return.

Review and Update your Withholdings - Make a Quick Review of your W-2 and decide if now is the time to have your Employer update your withholding amounts. A second check might be needed, after you file your Taxes.

Here is a list of the common Tax Records, that we all need to have, for an effective Tax Filing:

1. Informational Tax Forms( W-2, 1099, 1098, 1095-A, Plus Others) that disclose Wages, Interest Income, Dividends and Capital Gain/Loss Activity.

2. Other Forms, that disclose Possible Income ( Jury Duty, Unemployment, IRA Distributions and Similar Items).

3. Business K-1 Forms

4. Bank and Investment Statements

5. Mortgage Interest Statements.

6. Business Expenses.

7. Property Tax Statements.

8. Mileage Logs for Business, Moving, Medical and Charitable Giving.

9. Medical, Dental and Vision Expenses.

10. Tuition Paid Statements.

11. Records of Any Asset Purchases and Sales.

12. Health Insurance Records( Including Medicare and Medicaid).

13. Charitable Receipts and Documentation.

14. Social Security Records.

15. Credit Card Statements.

16. Records of Any Out of State Purchases, that may require Sales Tax.

17. Records of Any Estimated Tax Payments.

18. Contribution Records

19. Educational Expenses( Including Student Loan Interest Expenses).

20. Casualty and Theft Loss Documentation.

21. Moving Expenses.

22. Home Sales Records.

If you are not sure whether any of your Documents are important for Tax Purposes, Retain the Documentation. It is better to save unnecessary documentation , than regret that you did not present the document to support your Tax Deductions.

If you need assistance in organizing your Documents and getting them ready for Tax Purposes, as well as setting up your record keeping system, so that you don't miss any Tax Deductions, Feel Free to call us on 202.422.4586 to help you out.

You will be glad you did.

Categories: 2014 Tax Returns, 2015 Tax Filing Season, bookkeeping, bookkeeping,Tax Returns,QuickBooks,Bank Reconciliations,bookkeeping services,small business, Tax Returns