Catherine

I just got this email (no links). And no, I don't think I'll be contacting them. And just as a reminder to y'all, I am not a "sir". Sir, We are a construction machinery manufacturing company, with several design patents. Shenzhen Machinery Limited sales service network covers all around the world and our products are mainly sold to such regions as Japan, Mainland China, Thailand, Taiwan, USA, and Canada. We have many customers spread all over in the USA, and we think it will be more beneficial for us to establish our corporate presence there. This is why we are reaching out to you. We require your help with establishing our "branch" in the USA. We will like you to represent our interests, by acting as our Financial Administrator over there in the USA. We feel that as a knowledgeable professional, you have actionable professional insights that can bring our business to the next level in the USA, as we Plan to minimize investment expenses and tax. We wait to hear from you with respect to moving this subject matter forward. We thank you for your anticipated co-operation. Best Regards, Ms. Shan Kiyoko Public Affairs Director Shenzhen Machinery Limited 2-gokan 21-4, Kita Ueno 2-chome, Taito-ku, Tokyo 110-0014, Japan Tel: 81-3-45400923 Fax: 81-3-45400924

Here's one we can all probably agree on: lock all the legis-vermin (state and federal) in separate rooms, with sharp pencils, LOTS of erasers, and NO calculators. Keep 'em in there (oh, all right, we can feed them) until they prepare their OWN tax return correctly. Teach them how complicated it is and how many gyrations real people have to go through to "voluntarily comply." Plus, all the time they are locked away, they can't make anything *worse*. Looks to me like a win all 'round.

Then do that! At least, download the 2016. Play with it. They have sample returns (all start with 400 itin's) or put in your own client's information.

Well, yes, @Jack from Ohio - but there are also times we need to plan *anyway*. New baby, someone who expects their s-corp to do way better in 2017 (maybe they have a signed contract with payment schedule), maybe they inherited dad's mutual funds and know roughly how much more in dividends and interest to expect, get laid off mid-summer and severance package runs through end of September... and folks want to make sure they won't have a huge bill next April. All we can do is our best, with caveats about changes to come. But we still have to help with the planning.

The Tax Planner in Drake is an integral part of the program. From right inside the return, you can choose the Tax Planner and then an alternate current-year scenario or next-year scenario. Change things to your heart's content, and you can also *compare* the results between different scenarios. I really like it. The ONE thing to be aware of is that changes to the original return *after* you have made up a scenario do NOT transfer over: so it's worth it to make sure the base return is finished (or close as makes no never-mind) before adding scenarios. Unless the projections are for really different possibilities (say, couple is expecting and wants to figure if they can make it with wife staying home - no childcare costs and drop a bracket might make up for loss of income).

I have this printed and framed in my office. You just know what the cartoonist was doing the weekend prior. MacNelly 1040; 1977

I've seen SO many families ripped apart over the years, by bad planning, not wanting to admit lack of current ability, and greed. They far outnumber the ones where planning is done correctly, everyone knows what to expect, and those helping are content to help but not to help themselves (you know what I mean). And it doesn't take a big estate to produce the ravening wolves, either. Guess it's a lesson to all of *us* not to believe we are immortal, to address our own planning needs (*and* publicize them so there are no surprises and no possibility of someone trying to steal and hide, much as we hate to admit the possibility) - and also to warn our clients to address this decades before it becomes an issue. Sigh.

@RitaB I just LOVE your sense of humor!

Want to give us the link? Sometimes I think we're just all too nice and don't get rid of problem clients fast enough.

@Gail in Virginia - my deepest sympathies! Whether it's a surprise or long-expected - and even sometimes when it is a relief - losing someone so close is still and always a shock and sends turmoil throughout your life. We are here for you in ANY way you need us - take care of yourself, and your family. The clients can bleeping wait; compared to family they're just *not* important.

Mostly same as Judy, here. I only use CWU for 940-series now - I even do W-2's and 1099's with an online service that includes the e-filing and mailing for one low fee. Here we use QB for any bookkeeping or accounting work for clients. Used to have some folks on Sage50 (formerly BusinessWorks or Peachtree or something), but not any more.

Except that there are also real estate trusts. And while there are "beneficiaries" they don't get profit, loss, or income passed through on K-1's.

Review (them or the attorney they hire; not you) the trust docs to make sure whatever is done is in accordance with the original agreement. After that, I freely admit I am clueless.

In case anyone wants to listen to my radio show interview yesterday (on the US Constitution, not taxes), drop me a PM and I'll send you the link. WLJA radio in Ohio had me as a guest.

Oh. I thought we were bashing the specialty niche of those who pay bills for elderly clients. Hugely helpful to their clients but the liability gives me the willies. For financial advisors - I know some really good ones. Completely outnumbered by the ones who need Rita's back yard post-hugging.

I cannot find ANY exclusion from income for student loan debt. However, any inclusion of income is dependent upon insolvency. So do that worksheet (balance sheet, really).

I would never bash those people - however, I also do NOT want to BE one of them. The bonding and insurance requirements are stringent, and the liability risk high. However, we cannot call them and give clients' names. We can only recommend to a client.

Unfortunately, without a Section 7216 disclosure, you cannot tell ANYONE (her kids, her lawyer, her minister) that she is even your client. The only thing I can think of is to ask her to have one of her kids drive her over for the next appointment "so that you have some help carrying those papers in" and the tacit approval of having brought her kid along might make it possible to talk to the kid. "Let's ask Mary's opinion since she's here" sort of thing. Nasty tightrope to walk.

I have had some small success in refusing to provide information to a *new* accountant until I have been paid. And one client contacted me after several years needing some crucial document and hoping I had a copy. I did - but would not look for it (anything that old was in deep storage) until she paid up. Paypal payment within the hour, and I found her stuff that evening. We were both thrilled.

Ain't THAT the truth! And the same ones who want to write off as charity deductions for their dogs, contributions to the local legis-vermin races, and some things you just shake your head at to think *anyone* could consider them deductions.

Side note - I said nothing bad about the client; these were all presented as techniques for successful handling. And not until after we'd had the discussion about his years of late filing penalties for 1099's and tax returns. And a chat about the tax lien on his house that was the final straw to get him to bring me the two years' worth of IRS letters - all for a matter that I could have fixed in an hour had he brought the first letter over on receipt.

Ever consider taking the huge piles to a laundromat and running them all in parallel rather than in series? Might be faster and cheaper in the long run if you really have a backlog!

I had just this situation; I fired an unresponsive client and got written authorization to give "any and all" information requested to the new firm. Told them basically that he needs to be handled with a stick, not a carrot. Work on retainer only, give him hard deadlines with heavy consequences for missing them, etc. Said my error with the guy was to be too nice; let deadlines slip and accommodate him - turned into chronically horrifically late (including late paying me by months and months). Said he'd be a good client IF they gave him the real hard-nosed, unyielding treatment up front, and applied penalties as needed. Plus lots of other useful tidbits I wished *I* had been warned about a decade ago. The accountant I spoke with (who was going to handle the client) was really grateful and thanked me repeatedly.

That sounds great except that I find stuff missing as I go. Like that dividend mentioned earlier. Everything else was set - but I had no dividend, and it had to be checked. In that case it turned out fine. But then there are the people who have stock trades and a quick check shows basis info - then looking in more detail later, either there are entire pages with no basis or they are noted as ESPP's or RSU's and then I need stock option details that the client did not give. Always something. I really do not understand how the big box stores do returns while-you-wait because of the missing items! Then again, I've seen some of their product (can't call them returns...) and maybe that explains it all.