It is a requirement by law that each year all taxpayers in the United States must file their income tax forms before the stipulated deadline. If you are like many people, you are probably too busy with the hustle and bustle of life that you don’t have the time to sit and file your tax returns. For others, though, they lack the knowledge especially because the tax laws are ever-changing. And then there is the third category of people that would rather concentrate on their businesses as they get professionals to do the tax preparation services. If not for anything else, to be guaranteed accuracy in filing your income tax. It needs no mentioning misrepresentation of information while filing your tax returns can land you in serious trouble.
Getting a reliable and trustworthy tax preparer is a guaranteed way of being assured of doing the right thing at the right time. How do you find this competent, qualified, trustworthy and effective tax preparer that you can trust with your sensitive personal information and finances? The first tip to getting the right tax preparer is to review their credentials. Different tax preparers have different qualifications. Tax attorneys, CPAs, and EAs are all qualified to represent you on all matters to do with IRS. Note that there are some service providers that can help you in basic matters such as filling the forms, etc. but may not be very effective in handling complex matters such as to do with the audit. It is thus important to understand the level of qualifications a service provider has before hiring them.
While at it, you should be watchful of spectacular promises. Be wary of a tax preparer that promises you outrageous refunds. This is because most of these tax preparers are unscrupulous and will always base their fees on the return amount. As such, most of the times they are forced to use shady tactics to manipulate the figures. Additionally, you might want to avoid any service provider that offers you anticipatory loans as this may land you in more trouble since you may end up losing a larger percentage of your tax returns to commission fees and whatnot.
Think about the availability of the service provider before hiring them. Assuming there was an error on your tax forms and the IRS needs to have an audit performed. Will the tax preparer be available to help with the necessary details? Is the tax preparer available all throughout the year or they can only be accessed during the tax season? While at it, inquire about the service provider’s fees ahead of time. Before you append your signature for whatever services, always ensure you go through the contracts and understand all nitty-gritty especially on how much they charge for their services. Ask as many questions as deem feet when it comes to e-filing local, federal and state returns and any additional and unexpected fees that may arise. If things don’t seem to add up with a particular service provider, never hesitate to look elsewhere.