FeeCollect: How many use it and what are your feelings?

[gfizer]

This year more than ever before I have had clients asking if they can wait until they receive their refunds to pay my fees. I've always done this for a couple of clients who are good friends but am uncomfortable doing it for people I barely know. I'm considering signing up for FeeCollect but was wondering how many of you use it and what your feelings are about it. Those of you who use it, do you pass the $15 charge on to your client or how do you handle that? Thanks for your input.

[Lion EA]

I take all major credit cards but don't use a bank service like FeeCollect. I charge enough that I swallow the fees as one of my many costs of doing business. (I'm out in the boonies, so it's faster than driving to the bank with a check.)

[Lynn EA USTCP in Louisiana]

I have signed up for Fee Collect - rarely use it. And YES I do increase my fee by the $15 fee collect fee.

[kcjenkins]

I used it for my last several years, from time to time. Worked great, had no problems with it. I did add the fee since this was for the client's benefit, not mine.

[GeneInAlabama]

For the very few who ask, I let them pay me when they get their refund. If anyone doesn't pay, I figure it is more of a problem for them than it is for me. I'm sure there have been a few in the past that haven't paid, but I really don't remember.

[BulldogTom]

We use it alot. I have about 10-15 in process right now. Works great. Slow payment this year, but that is the IRS slowdown. I have used it for about 5 years and it gets more popular every year. Yes, I pass the bank charge on to the client.

Tom

Hollister, CA

[Lloyd Hudson]

Ditto Tom, we have been using it since inception. If the IRS takes the refund, then we are out the fee. But that has only occurred once and we got the money this year. I refuse to do refund anticipation Loans or anything else that incurs large fees. No prepaid debit cards or any other things that I might think are immoral. If you cannot pay me cash now (CC or Check) then 15.00 for the convenience is not exorbitant. before somebody challenges me, the FREE debit cards have per transaction charges. Great for some but my job is to counsel on holding on to your wealth, not feeding another bank entity.

[Jack from Ohio]

I have used it every year since it was offered. I add additional charge for the FeeCollect form and inform the taxpayer. All who request it do not care about the extra cost. They just don't want to write me a check. This is ok since I charge $20 for the form so I make an extra $5 for the 3 pages to fill out and 4 other consent forms to acknowledge.

Most of the folks that use it also receive EIC, so in their mind, it is just a bit smaller refund.

I stopped holding checks, and "Can I pay you when I get my refund?" requests and move all such people to FeeCollect.

Only had one get their refund tagged, and I called and asked "Why didn't you tell me you owed back child support?" It shamed them enough that they showed up the next day with cash for the full amount including the FeeCollect fee.

Tax time comes around every year. Every year I expect to get paid for my services. This is not new. Being prepared to pay me is not rocket science.

[schirallicpa]

Been using it for a while. Kind of a pain, because you need extra info and have to fill in extra dates, etc on the fee-collect form. I charge $25 more to use this service figuring they take $15, and my extra time is also worth something.

Be careful of people who owe money to the IRS, that they haven't quite told you about. The IRS will hold the refund, and you will be chasing the client afterall. This happened to me when a client who's corporate tax return had delinquent taxes and the IRS took their personal refund. I wasn't doing the corp return and was not aware of the problems.

Also be careful that your bill doesn't change on you - especially this year with the new ATX.

[chadlonetree]

This is my 5th year using it. Getting more popular every year. I require all my clients to pay in advance, or use fee collect (also accept credit cards). I charge $25 if they want to use fee collect. This covers the $15 and additional for the time it takes to process the fee collect paperwork. Most clients wouldn't care if I charged $50. It is almost as if they think my fees are coming out of their refund, it is like getting their taxes done for free. Silly, but that is kind of how it is.

[chadlonetree]

Forgot to mention that It is probably better for me. I serve the same 300 clients every year with almost no turnover and know them all well.