Tips for Getting Your Tax Documents Together

It’s that time of year again: Tax Time! Here are a few tips and tricks on getting your documents ready for taxes.

1. Using a highlighter is a great way to bring attention to specific items on a page. However, keep in mind that any highlighter color except yellow will show as black line when the document is copied or scanned. This is important for not only tax time, but  any time that you are using a highlighter on important documents.

2. If you are the type that groups your documents together, try to use paperclips verses staples. This will make it easier when you (or us) are copying/scanning your documents at year end.

3. If you like to use summary sheets or organizers, be sure you are not duplicating information. For instance, if you have written the number in two different places within the organizer and also provided receipts, there is now three different places where the number is listed.

4. Along those same lines, if you are providing totals and receipts, make sure you have added the receipts correctly. We recommend using excel verses a calculator. This way, you can see what you have included to check for accuracy and you will have that itemized summary sheet for your records.

5. It is easier if you keep up with income/expenses throughout the year verses sitting down at year end to pull this together. There is more of a chance you would forget legitimate expenses if you are trying to remember the entire year at one time.

We hope that you find this list helpful. If you have any questions, please let us know.