The IRS reports that about 85 million individuals have paid someone else to prepare and file their tax returns (IRS). If you fall into this category, you should gather your tax paperwork (such as forms and receipts) as early as possible.

Your preparer may interview you or have you fill out a questionnaire to gather information. In any case, being well-prepared is the key to sailing through the procedure with minimal fuss. The following instructions are helpful for anyone who does their taxes.

Select a Tax Professional

An excellent strategy to discover a tax preparer if you don't already have one is to get recommendations from people you trust, such as friends and financial advisers. Check their preparer tax identification number to verify that they are licensed to do federal income tax returns.

Find out how much money you'll need to pay in fees by asking ahead of time. The answer to this question, of course, depends on your tax return's intricacy. If the company you're considering takes a cut of your return, go elsewhere.

Arrange a Meeting

If you do decide to request an extension, the sooner you meet with your preparer, the sooner you should be able to finish your return. Any refunds you were expecting will also arrive sooner. Putting off making an appointment with a tax preparer might mean missing the deadline to submit your return.

Round Up Your Expenses

Whether you itemize your deductions or take the standard deduction will determine whether you need to furnish receipts. To determine which yields a more significant write-off, you must first sum up your itemized deductions and compare the total to your standard deduction.

The standard deduction for an individual taxpayer in the tax year 2021 is $12,550, while that of a married couple filing is $25,100. In 2022, the single filing threshold will be $12,950, and the joint filing threshold will be $25,900.

You should check for documentation of payments made out of pocket for medical care, property taxes, and investment charges that aren't reimbursed by insurance or another health plan.

List Your Personal Information

You undoubtedly already know your own Social Security number, but do you also know the Social Security numbers of any dependents you want to claim? It would help if you wrote them down, along with anything else your tax preparer might want.

Put in the addresses of any properties you own, whether for personal use or rent. Keep track of when you acquired and sold any property you've sold in the past year and the initial purchase price, final sales price, and total proceeds.

When Must Taxes Be Submitted?

The deadline for filing federal income tax returns is always April 15. Since April 15 is a holiday in Washington, D.C., the deadline for most taxpayers to submit their 2021 tax return has been extended to April 18, 2022.

The Internal Revenue Service has the authority to provide extensions of time to file returns. For instance, because of the "exceptional circumstances relating to the pandemic," the deadline for filing tax returns for 2020 was pushed from April 15 to May 17, 2021. Thanks to the extension, the new tax payment deadline is May 17, 2021.

Collect a Duplicate of Last Year's Tax Form

Using the same preparer as the prior year ensures they will have all your historical data. If you are switching tax preparers, having a copy of your previous year's return handy might serve as a helpful reminder of any details you may have forgotten. Two instances are as follows:

Dividends And Interest:

Last year's tax return should include a list of all the financial organizations (banks, mutual funds, etc.) who issued 1099 forms to you. Verify that you received 1099s from all the companies on that list again this year.

Charity Deductions:

Even if the charity you donated to did not send you a receipt or thank you letter for your little gifts, you could still claim a tax deduction for the whole amount. To determine if your charitable contributions this year were comparable to those you made last year, see the list of groups that received your money in 2017.

In Conclusiveness

Whether you do your taxes or hire a professional, getting your paperwork in order ahead of time will save you time and, if you end up hiring a preparer, money. The earlier you begin, the less stressful the process will be, and the sooner you can put it to rest for another year.