Oh...I forgot to tell you...I got married this past September

[Janitor Bob]

Returning client (single mom...or at least was) drops off all of her stuff....tells me "nothing different from last year". I do her return and the return for her college student daughter. Nice refund thanks to EIC and AOC. I print everything and call the client with what I think is good news.

"I forgot to tell you...I have not yet changed my name with Social Security, so it should be same as last year"

Huh?!

"Oh yes...I forgot to tell you I got married this past September"

"I did not think it mattered because he does not file taxes"

We need to talk

I'm getting too old for this crap.

[kcjenkins]

I feel for you, JB. There always seems to be at least one like that every year. Hopefully, you have now met your quota

[WITAXLADY]

ONE?

[frazzled]

they keep increasing exponentially!!

[RitaB]

ONE?

Yeah, more like "one today". Lol.

The one I'm working on now, the wife kept whining about having a kid in college and how expensive it is (which I don't know anything about, since I have two and 1/2 their income). I go thru all the info about what expenses are legit for the AOC, run down the 1098-T and the statement of transactions, which was like landing a plane, even though husband works for the University, and we find out the kid had 2K more in scholarships and grants than tuition and fees.

"Oh, haha, I guess it wasn't as expensive as I thought."

[taxxcpa]

One client forgot to tell me she had a baby and I had to amend the return to claim the new dependent.

[Jack from Ohio]

I just received this in an e-mail....

"I have a question for you. My son, 26, grad student, who didn't work, believes that he might get a refund. I say that he doesn't need to file, as he had no income. Does he need to file and would he get a refund? He only has a 1098-T form from college with his loans and cost of college."

I guess I expect a bit more "common sense and intelligence from a grad student??

[JohnH]

One client forgot to tell me she had a baby and I had to amend the return to claim the new dependent.

That happened to me twice - with the same client. (With one intervening year). You'd think one of us would have leaned. Now every year I ask him "are you SURE you didn't add any dependents last year?"

[RitaB]

I just received this in an e-mail....

"I have a question for you. My son, 26, grad student, who didn't work, believes that he might get a refund. I say that he doesn't need to file, as he had no income. Does he need to file and would he get a refund? He only has a 1098-T form from college with his loans and cost of college."

I guess I expect a bit more "common sense and intelligence from a grad student??

I hear ya, but sadly, there are a lot of people out there getting refundable credits, so you never know when things will change and having zero taxable income will be subsidized for grad students. If we can give refundable credits for having children, or low income, or being good at underreporting income, we can give credits for textbooks or having student loans. Nothing would surprise me now. He was just playing it safe.

[Catherine]

One client forgot to tell me she had a baby and I had to amend the return to claim the new dependent.

THIS one I can almost understand, as having a new baby will frazzle anyone's brain. And if the kidlet is more than a couple months old, everyone already knows, right?

[Elrod]

Look to the left......Do I look confused?

I've been like this for over 35 years..........Someone ♣ me, Please!

I see these people in my sleep..

[jklcpa]

What sleep?!

Corp client brought records last Friday, one h*ll of a mess, and only brought the bank statements for one of the three checking accounts the company has. He needs to borrow from the bank (like yesterday) and called yesterday to know if I'd have everything completely by tomorrow. This morning he tells me that he's been planning on working up the rest of the missing data this coming weekend. Oh ok, but he wanted his return and work completed before he gave me everything. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.

If that isn't bad enough, his records reek of cigarette smoke to the point of making my office smell from them, and my hands smell after touching his papers. The only client more smelly than this was years ago, a seafood market, and their papers smelled like bad fish. Made me want to vomit.

[Jack from Ohio]

What sleep?!

Corp client brought records last Friday, one h*ll of a mess, and only brought the bank statements for one of the three checking accounts the company has. He needs to borrow from the bank (like yesterday) and called yesterday to know if I'd have everything completely by tomorrow. This morning he tells me that he's been planning on working up the rest of the missing data this coming weekend. Oh ok, but he wanted his return and work completed before he gave me everything. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.

If that isn't bad enough, his records reek of cigarette smoke to the point of making my office smell from them, and my hands smell after touching his papers. The only client more smelly than this was years ago, a seafood market, and their papers smelled like bad fish. Made me want to vomit.

Extend and tell him he should have planned better. Put it on the back of you list.

[RitaB]

I got a kick out of the guy who just dropped off. He said, "I just want to say I really want to break even this year."

I starting writing and said, "OK, let me write that down, Tom wants to break even, got it." He got it. Laughter is good for the soul.

[Cyclone]

Is anyone as frustrated with the clients that need their taxes completed for FAFSA (financial aid for college). FAFSA forms need to be filed ASAP but the darn brokerage companies had until Feb 18th to get out the 1099s. I have some clients that wanted me to complete their returns without their investment statements and amend later.

I certainly hope at some point the brokerage houses are back to the January 31st deadline (and not need to issue corrected 1099s after the fact).

[Carolbeck]

What sleep?!

Corp client brought records last Friday, one h*ll of a mess, and only brought the bank statements for one of the three checking accounts the company has. He needs to borrow from the bank (like yesterday) and called yesterday to know if I'd have everything completely by tomorrow. This morning he tells me that he's been planning on working up the rest of the missing data this coming weekend. Oh ok, but he wanted his return and work completed before he gave me everything. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.

If that isn't bad enough, his records reek of cigarette smoke to the point of making my office smell from them, and my hands smell after touching his papers. The only client more smelly than this was years ago, a seafood market, and their papers smelled like bad fish. Made me want to vomit.

Or from a Farm Return where all the records have been sitting in the cow barn. Funny dark stains on the calf sales statements.. But I agree the worst is the cigarette smell. It becomes an instant Asthma Attack for me. I usually have to put the Bag O Receipts out on the deck to air out. I feel your pain!

[RitaB]

Is anyone as frustrated with the clients that need their taxes completed for FAFSA (financial aid for college). FAFSA forms need to be filed ASAP but the darn brokerage companies had until Feb 18th to get out the 1099s. I have some clients that wanted me to complete their returns without their investment statements and amend later.

I would try to get them to guess at FAFSA (using last year's return if appropriate, that's how I do my own) and THEY correct FAFSA later. But, if they insist on filing an incorrect return and amending it later, I guess I just made more money. Yeah, I have one client that drives me nuts with the FAFSA. Every. Year.

[jklcpa]

Jack, I wish I could extend. This is a June y/e corp, already on extension until 3/15, this year it's 3/17. Every year he starts calling in late Oct and promising me that he'll have the records completed and summarized that week. I always receive them in mid-February.

[Carolbeck]

I would try to get them to guess at FAFSA (using last year's return if appropriate, that's how I do my own) and THEY correct FAFSA later. But, if they insist on filing an incorrect return and amending it later, I guess I just made more money. Yeah, I have one client that drives me nuts with the FAFSA. Every. Year.

I do the same thing for FAFSA for my girls! You have a lot of time to update, correct or fix for financial aid.

[Catherine]

Jack, I wish I could extend. This is a June y/e corp, already on extension until 3/15, this year it's 3/17. Every year he starts calling in late Oct and promising me that he'll have the records completed and summarized that week. I always receive them in mid-February.

His lack of planing and work is not YOUR emergency.

I have let plenty of clients become "late filers" after warning them of the penalties and consequences -- in writing, by USMail, certified/return. Usually doesn't take too many iterations before they "get it" and those who don't get used to paying the penalties.

I have to re-learn, the hard way, every couple of years, that I *cannot* allow myself to care more about their tax returns than they do!

[JRS]

>>but the darn brokerage companies had until Feb 18th to get out the 1099s.<<

A couple of my clients, including my self, received this from Fidelity today: *Fidelity has received a mailing deadline extension from the IRS. Mailing some original forms by this date will mitigate sending a similar number of corrected forms. We apologize for any inconvenience that you might experience.

The NEW estimated time is Feb 28. (Hopefully they mean 2014.)

[Janitor Bob]

I have my fair share of FAFSA clients that are understandably in a rush....including myself. I always share with them, however, that filing the FAFSA with estimates and not finalizing the FAFSA until late March rarely has any negative affect on the amount of Financial aid received. I think its only if you wait much past April, that you can see reduced aid.

[Jack from Ohio]

I have my fair share of FAFSA clients that are understandably in a rush....including myself. I always share with them, however, that filing the FAFSA with estimates and not finalizing the FAFSA until late March rarely has any negative affect on the amount of Financial aid received. I think its only if you wait much past April, that you can see reduced aid.

The second year I had two kids in college, I filed there FAFSA in June. Made ZERO difference.

Colleges push students (because the financial aid people are generally 90% clueless about the real world) to get FAFSA done early using the term "Aid directly from the college that is based on FAFSA information." This is generally nonsense.

Estimates work to get the "frantic" people in Financial Aid off the student's back, and has absolutely NO effect on the Federal aid the student is entitled to. Final numbers determine the aid.

I get so frustrated with Financial Aid department workers telling clients that it MUST be completed with this year's tax information by mid February.

[jklcpa]

Catherine, I agree with you 100%. This person's work gets put into the queue with everyone else's. Believe me, he isn't getting preferential treatment. The reason for less sleep is that this is a lot of work for him, and because it came in during my busiest time of the year, I'm having to work more hours now to keep up with the other work load. He knows I have loads more free time in the fall where his work would not be an added burden like it seems to be now. That's all I meant.

[Richcpaman]

JB:

I thought it was YOU that got married, and I was going to say "congratulations!

Rich