Tax Preparation Home Business
November 10th, 2009
Question: i want to start my own tax preparation business at home?
i always do me and my husband’s taxes. i worked at a place that did taxes (which i did taxes there to). i want to start doing people’s taxes in my home. how do i go about doing it. i know i should take a course first, but then what. what software do i use? can i just go to turbo tax or get another software that i can just go to from my desktop? how can i be able to try to get people’s refunds the next day or same day? that is the thing i am most confused on. please help.
Answer: To submit electronic returns to the IRS you must be an authorized ERO. Go here for information on that: http://www.irs.gov/taxpros/providers/article/0,,id=97657,00.html
You’ll need Professional Tax Software. There are any number of good packages out there, though while building your practice it would be a good idea to start with one of the ones that you rent on a per-return basis. Intuit, the folks who publish TurboTax offer several packages of varying prices and can also handle electronic submission for you as well. Google “Professional Tax Software” for plenty of hits.
You’ll need to go high-end on your computer hardware for reliability reasons. You’ll need a professional backup system and should have some means of archiving your clinets’ records off-site to protect against catastrophic loss. Don’t even think of using the family PC for this. It needs to be dedicated hardware. I like Dell Optiplex business grade hardware, with the business versions of Windows. Home versions of Windows are not secure enough for my tastes.
A business-grade firewall for your Internet connection is essentially mandatory. I personally would go with nothing less than a Cisco ASA appliance or a Cisco 2800 series router with the Advanced IP Services IOS load. Figure $1,500 to $2,500 plus several hundred for setup and installation and $300 per year for a maintenance contract.
It’s probably too late to get started on the coming tax season, especially if you need training. The ERO authorization from the IRS can take a few months with the background checks and fingerprint requirements.
To do next day refunds you MUST partner with an independent financial institution. SBBT does this for some of the national chains and small “mom & pop” tax prep operations as well. Some local banks in your area may offer similar services. Be prepared for a tough computer security audit regardless of whom you use. If that’s Greek to you, bring in a computer security consultant up front.
| | NeatReceipts Mobile Scanner and Digital Filing System $168.97 NeatReceipts works where you work – weighing in at less than a pound and powered by USB, NeatReceipts is the perfect tool at work, at home or on the go. NeatReceipts helps you free the information that’s trapped in your documents, so you can organize, store, secure and activate it. Scan receipts for expense reports, digitize business cards, prep for taxes (IRS accepts NR scans in lieu of actual re… |
| | NeatReceipts Mobile Scanner and Digital Filing System for Mac $162.00 The NeatReceipts 322 for Mac Advance Release is a mobile scanner and digital filing system that enables you to scan receipts and documents so you can organize, store and secure all your important information. The patented technology identifies and extracts the important information and automatically organizes it for you. You can create expense reports, searchable PDF files of any printed document … |
| | NeatDesk Desktop Scanner and Digital Filing System- Macintosh $375.00 You’ve got information trapped on paper. We’ve got the key. Because when your information is free, so are you free to store it, organize it, even edit and reuse it. Whatever works for you. NeatDesk for Mac is a desktop scanner and digital filing system that lets you scan and organize receipts, business cards and documents. Neat’s patented technology identifies and extracts the important informatio… |
Wealth check: ‘I want to turn my music into a business’
Jay Marsh is a musician from Manchester. Six months ago, he gave up his job of four years as an administration assistant to concentrate on his indie rock band, the Skinny Machines.
Tax Law, Real Estate & Credit Tips : How to Start a Tax Preparation Service
Posted in 
Tags: