Lion EA

I use CCH's eSign and even my elderly clients manage. Those that do everything on their phone, can eSign on their phone or computer or tablet or... The price has gone up to $5 per a set of returns (H/W for IRS, CT, NY, & CA is $5; S with IRS & CT is $5). That's fine for me with a few complex returns and not a lot of simple returns (I have NO simple returns!). Anything to save me time. Little children don't have the financial footprint to pass the KB ID verification, but from HS through old age, my clients use it. Whatever program you choose for electronic signing will save you time collecting verified signatures.

Thanks for reminding me that my now-room-temperature tea is still sitting here!

Have one before or after your corresponding customers!

NY uses the Convenience of the Employer rule, so unless his NYC employer requires him to be in CA (schmoozing with clients, training, brick & mortar job site, etc.) NYS & NYC consider his wages to be NY-sourced. If your client's in CA because he wants to be in the CA sunshine or whatever personal reason, his wages are NY-sourced as far as NY is concerned. CA looks at his work location (and where you, Catherine, and I and others here, deliver our work product). CA and NY are two aggressive states to work in, and they don't play nice together!

I get to play with my 3 year-old grandson this weekend, so that's fun!

Current and two prior years.

Similar. Memorial service last weekend, and the family asked me to be the liturgical assistant, so I had readings and prayers to prep. "Kids" coming for Easter weekend. Clients have passed away, and their families need lots of information and help. Son going through a divorce, and that affects their partnership returns as well as their personal and makes visiting the granddaughters much more complex. Clients inheriting multiple partnerships with multiple real estate and step-up elections. Clients opening businesses and closing businesses and receiving corrected Forms K-1 and corrected Consolidated 1099s. I entered this season still behind on 2021 returns. It will be more extensions than ever. I'm trying to calculate all the extension payments I need clients to make tonight. I have one who didn't make her ES payments and now wants me to "do the ethical thing" per the CPA that lives next door to her re her balance due with P&I because she brought me her 2021 documents in November 2022; not only is she not paying me, but she wants me to pay her. I thought this would be an easier year with Congress doing a bit less about tax, but too many of my clients upped their complexity an order of magnitude. Hubby scheduled our exterminator tomorrow for a time when he's down at church with the organ tuner, so Tuesday will be a stop & start day. I need an uninterrupted block of time to prepare an S-corp on extension to get the K-1 to the personal return preparer. I've simply stopped caring as much.

I think (going through the same for a CA resident with a CO K-1) that the disaster extension covers the IRS and CA, and that you need to file a NJ extension. I think.

Looks like he relied on his software to link mom and son's returns for the 8615, but forgot to recalculate son's return after preparing mom's return. I agree with your analysis of the numbers on the prior year 8615.

But I can have texts show up on my computer &/or email instead of on my cell? So, I can easily move them to my clients' files on my computer? (I urge email, so I can store; but I have a few who really want to text.) Can I respond to texts from my computer? I hate typing a text on my phone with that tiny keyboard. I end up texting, "Check your email." and then typing out an email to them!

Amend any time. But it's safest to wait until the original is processed. You know how broken the IRS is, so you don't want the amendment to be processed before the original and confuse the computer. If they had a refund, I always wait until they receive the refund. If they paid, you could check their IRS account (or have them check) to make sure the original was processed. Don't wait until after the deadline if you don't have to. P&I, for example. You might want to mark it as a superseding return if you're making an election or other timely choice (IRA contribution) that needs to be done by 18 April.

I just did a quick search on Google. A Chat person (or bot) gave me: Here's a number you can call anytime Monday–Friday 8AM–8PM ET: +1-855-720-6978. Love the idea. I may set that up after the next tax deadline. But, I just had new biz cards printed !!

True, I was just going to go back to try Manhattan. And, my old hometown of Bellwood, IL, where my sister still lives in the house we grew up in, is dirt cheap with everything under 100% of national averages.

Did your client actually pay yet? If so, on the amendment, enter the amount originally paid. Then e-file.

True, I was just going to go back to try Manhattan.

As Sheldon would say, "It's funny, because it's true!"

Love that site, Kathy! I tell people Fairfield County, CT, because no one's heard of Weston, CT, even many people in CT, because we're very, very small. I just put in Fairfield, CT, that Kathy compared to her town in IN vs Weston, CT, and the cost of living is Fairfield, CT, 154.8 vs Weston, CT 184.2. (Housing 318.2) US average is 100. So, my town is even more expensive than any of us thought. And, I'm very glad I bought my house in 1978. Rural CT trivia: Westport, Fairfield, Easton, and Weston, CT, all meet at one point along (in?) the Aspetuck River. Oh, my gosh, we're more expensive than New York City!

Yep, I think I'll lose my CA returns before next tax season. A couple kids are grown and doing their own now. Some clients moved back to the NY/CT area. Two very nice couples remain in CA that I hate to send away; I inherited them from a CA preparer friend who retired. And one long-time client who moved to CA that I would hate to send away -- except her return jumped in complexity this year with the death of her mother and inheritance of multiple partnerships holding multi-family apartment buildings and lots of other investments. With the CA extension for filing AND paying now 15 October, I might put her on extension and then tell her to find someone local to her. I don't think I can charge her enough to make it worth the time I'll spend. Then there's MY return for NR CA !!!

Good point, Robbie. However, both those charts use gross income and then AGI from all sources on the federal return, but based on CA law -- NOT just CA-sourced income. We're working three jobs with our two RMDs and hubby's teacher's pension to stay afloat, so have gross income greater than $52,000 and AGI over $44,000.

Thank you, Tom and Tex and everyone, for the links and for help with interpreting the CA law and requirements. I know a state SMLLC is a funky designation, not recognized by the IRS or "foreign" states. On Forms W-9, I check "Individual/sole proprietor or single-member LLC," so I know where I stand with the IRS. But, CA?

Well, fooey, that's still ambiguous. I don't want to use my SSN. The federal returns have Preparer's name as Lion, my PTIN, and the box is checked for self-employed, then firm name is Dollars & Sense, LLC, followed by firm phone, address, and EIN. But the CA return signature block does NOT have the self-employed check box. It has Paid preparer as Lion, but then Firm as Dollars & Sense, LLC, followed by my PTIN, address (home office), and EIN. That looks too much like a firm doing biz in CA. Foo, again. That's expensive. My CA return fee just doubled.

My largest biz client is a radio broadcaster, so I blame electronic miscommunications on Sunspots!

OK, seeing the discussions altogether, it's bringing up more questions!! I deliver CA NR returns to CT residents who work for multi-state banks and have CT resident, NY NR, and CA NR returns. I deliver the CA NR returns to CT, to CT residents. Is that doing biz in CA? (I also have CA resident clients, so I understand that I'm delivering my product to a CA end-user in those cases.) The LLC entity is a state entity. I'm a CT SMLLC. I am taxed as a sole proprietor. So, for CA purposes, is my tax prep biz an LLC or a sole proprietor?

Do you allocate your SP expenses based on a ratio of income? Is the $800 or whatever minimum tax an expense of your SP or a state tax of you as an individual on Schedule A? I'm going on extension, but really dread preparing my own CA return (as well as IL and CT, and you know that NY will follow CA shortly) that decouples from the federal and has a high tax rate and... Thank you to all you CA preparers and preparers on its border states who have figured this out.

You posted this under ACA. Is that because they had marketplace insurance that included someone NOT on their return, and you need to do an allocation? Or, that they have a dependent on their return who also filed a tax return, so you need to include the dependent's AGI?