Catherine

My site, through CPA Site Solutions, comes with a secure file portal that we have found very easy to use. YMMV.

From what we've seen here, for many of our clients it is not going to be that bad (fingers crossed!). Most folks are in businesses where QBI is clearly defined to apply. Most make way under the phase-out areas for the specified businesses. Most do NOT have multiple QBI-subject businesses where aggregating and netting and passive versus active have to be teased together or apart. There will be some for whom it will be nasty, absolutely. Those will likely come in later. But most of our aggravations this year will be, as with other years, clients whose records have missing items or who play (or are) stupid when asked.

Needed a mule to lug it all over?

I can NOT see HOW they can call it stockpiling (or householding, or whatever) if THEY are the ones not accepting returns! "See the date - AFTER you shut down and BEFORE you re-opened; what else am I supposed to do? They got e-filed within a day or two of you re-accepting. Bite me." That last short sentence thought, not said. Probably. No guarantees because I cannot abide willfully stupid.

Pretty much (assuming you want to cover your bacon - and who would want to risk bacon, after all?). Our state society update spent two hours (non-IRS cont ed) talking about what MA will and will NOT comply with. Ugh. They don't take the alimony changes. They still accept moving expenses with caveats.... it's going to be nasty. One huge take-away for us ALL is that we are NOT going to be able to just trust our software this year. Yes, they will do their best. Yes, they will ALL miss things (different things per state and per s/w package). We all need to warn clients when they first come in, so they don't yell at us when things take longer. Extensions will also be our friends. Even the shutdown; it's yet another reason for the delay in getting answers and seeing state interactions.

Form 8275 is our very good friend this year. If we take positions not supported by final regs (which is a boatload of the new law), that disclosure statement showing why we are taking whatever position we are taking will at least save us from preparer penalties. "Most closely in alliance as this office could determine with tentative/proposed regulations as of the date of filing" basically means "hey, we did our best considering you dweebs had given us nothing better to go on" only said in a polite fashion.

Don't worry about them; they will be paid ALL back-pay once it ends. My brother in law works for the dept of agriculture. He has been through this before. They get paid, just later. It's far less disturbing and disruptive than suddenly getting laid off from a regular job, not knowing how many months it will be before you get another. Yeah, they don't know when, but they do know they WILL go back, and will get all back pay. That never happens in the non-gov't-job world.

As do we. We keep pdf's of the client copy and the preparer copy (more notes and worksheets, in Drake), plus efile acks once those are in. And a pdf of the scanned tax docs. Those have saved our bacon (client's bacon, too) on occasion. Audits want docs, client can't find - boom; pdf. Best one was a lady who needed a copy of her daughter's adoption papers that got lost in a move - we had 'em.

We will try emailing next year. With a new assistant, changing procedures too was just too much this year. Mainly because then one of us would have to go through everything carefully to make sure our elderly clients still got paper. We have a number of older folks without computers, or without printers, or who can't handle a portal or even downloading an attachment. Easier with a new assistant to give them a list and say "stuff the envelopes" plus she'll get to see and handle each one, familiarizing herself with the names.

I've been printing duplex for years and years. And plan to continue it.

Engineers call that stuff snot-strips.

County land records (or town) generally have last sale data. Looked it up for one elderly client at one point and sure 'nough they had a listing for the 1954-ish purchase of his house, with price paid. In his case, we did need to exclude every penny. I also totaled up his handwritten contemporaneous cost list from re-doing the kitchen back when I was still small enough to walk under the kitchen table without hitting my head. It was in much-faded but still legible pencil, and he had all the receipts, too, bless him. He was *such* a dear.

I've never heard of Team Viewer, and I've never needed Drake to take over my computer. However, I have had Drake people walk me through various tasks step by step in great detail. Instead of asking for TV, how about asking for someone to walk you through Task X step by step, because you think you're doing something wrong. I bet they will be both eager to assist a huge help.

We start to get panicked phone calls by January 10th if folks don't have them in-hand. Which phone calls then interrupt our attempts to deal with W2s and 1099s. Ugh; can't win.

What @Abby Normal said. Report on F8949; use cost basis. Any remaining "gain" is then excluded under Section 121 for primary residence. Remember that includes time spent in a nursing home etc; those are considered temporary/disregarded absences for the sake of the exclusion. If you don't file the return, your client WILL get a letter demanding $20K in tax plus penalties and interest. In her 80's she'll have forgotten any conversation when she gets the letter. Prevent the stroke and file the return!

I'd love to send mine out today, but I can't get Engagement Letters yet unless I roll all my clients over one by one. The batch rollover in Drake will be available this week... they're late, probably due to the huge tax law changes. In prior years we've had everything printed out, envelopes stuffed, ready to pop in the mailbox on the first business day of the year. Not this year, though - so we have our checklist and general letter printed and ready, and mailing labels ready. As soon as we get batch rollover out they go! Then we'll start on payroll client W2s and business client 1099s. It begins! God help us all.

Thank you both, @SaraEA and @Jack from Ohio !

Client needs two gift tax returns filed; one for 2017 and one for 2018. Of course we found out about the 2017 requirement when she came to talk about gifts made in late 2018. There were little notes on a sheet of paper about Dec 2017.... sigh. So I've done the returns and those are ready for signature and mailing. However, the 2017 instructions say to mail to Cincinnati OH, and the 2018 instructions (yes, the 709 is ready to print, sign, and send in Drake for 2018) say to mail to Kansas City MO. So whaddo I do? Sent '17 to Cinti and '18 to KC-MO? Or send 'em both to KC-MO (in separate envelopes) if that is now the center handling all 709's? ("When in danger, or in doubt, run in circles, scream, and shout." Assume that's already finished.)

Also don't PWD (pickle while driving - you'll get brine all over your car; ick)!

Some great points have been made on both sides. As I see it, it comes down to your second sentence: "This client has issues anyway." What would make it worth, to YOU, to deal with those issues again? How much is it worth, to YOU, NOT to be dealing with those issues? Simple return, grovelling before the IRS on the OIC, OK... it can all be done. How much would you have to charge him, up front and in cash, to deal? Feel free to say $10,000 if you were that glad to see the back side of him walk away. $500? $750? More? Less? If he'll pay that, up front, in cash, happily - or at least without verbal grumbling anywhere you can hear him, take him back. But he gets ONE chance to accept, and ONE opportunity to pay in full up front - or out he goes. If he doesn't kiss your boots (metaphorically) and happily hand over full cash right away, then he'll be nothing but trouble from the minute the cash hits your hand. Should you take him back, what you want is a happy compliant client who does what you tell him to do and who never fusses about your fee. You do not want the client equivalent of chronic lower back pain!

This channel has a mix of unusual, classical-style Christmas music: https://www.stream.me/content

To all my friends here, a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and Happy New Year 2019. And Happy any other holidays you celebrate (Hanukkah is complete, so in that case I hope it WAS good).

One trust a client of mine is beneficiary of did this. The trust paid tax for eight bene's. My client, and one other, were hounded for almost a YEAR by the state for that estimated tax that the state (my own incompetent MA, of course) had, had proof of, admitted it had, but could NOT match with one quarter of the bene's. Ugh! We sent them the same information monthly for WAY too long before they got it matched up. Took intervention by the state taxpayer advocate office. If they were competent, they'd be dangerous!

Facts and circumstances in everything! Sometimes getting that e-file ack is worth the delay. The client can always PAY now, and wait those extra weeks to file. Sometimes it's more important to get the return in process. We do what is best for that client and that client's overall situation

If it's a refund, you can also wait until they re-open efile, and submit then.