Practice 1065

[Patrick Michael]

I have a new 1065 client and do not have have much experience with the form(s).  I have been reading up on the subject but cannot find a comprehensive practice return. Does anyone have a practice 1065 return with source documents and completed form(s) that they would be willing to share with me?

 

Thanks.

[Lee B]

I have been preparing 5 or 6 PTS returns for years. Potentially, 1065 returns are the most complicated of all of the Business Entity Tax Returns.

There is no single practice return that will prepare you for all of the variables that might pop up.

A 4 to 8 hour CPE class would at least get you headed in the right direction.

While it's somewhat expensive PPC's Tax Guide for Partnerships is very thorough and complete.

[DANRVAN]

9 hours ago, cbslee said:

There is no single practice return that will prepare you for all of the variables that might pop up.

A 4 to 8 hour CPE class would at least get you headed in the right direction.

cbslee said it politely.

 

10 hours ago, Patrick Michael said:

I have a new 1065 client and do not have have much experience with the form(s)

I will be more direct.  Please don't be offended, but you are potentially getting in over your head and not acting in the best interest of the client.  In fact, it is a violation of AICPA code of ethics to practice in an area you do not have the competence or experience in.

Filling out the forms is the easy part.  You need a thorough understanding of partnership accounting principals.  You also need an understanding of partnership tax laws from creation to liquidation and the wide realm of possible transactions in between such as partner death, admissions, sec 754 elections, inside vs outside basis, guaranteed partner payments vs draws,....................................................

[Pacun]

If we didn't go over our heads a few times, we would never be where we are.

I also think about the job of the president of the U.S.A. That job is above the head of all those people that have sat in that office for  the first term and yet, every 4 or 8 years a new person gets the job.

All professions require people to go over their head. Think about your doctor, if he didn't go over her/his head a few times, she/he would be treating only simple colds.

The original poster said that he is studying partnerships so, I don't see anything wrong with starting doing a couple of 1065 and later he will be the expert who will answer my questions and share his knowledge here.  

 

[Patrick Michael]

Been busy and haven't logged in for awhile.  I appreciate all the comments.  I have taken courses in partnership accounting and taxation and have a fairly good grasp on the concepts.  My reason for asking for practice returns is to become familiar with the software while I have some down time before busy season.  I hate wasting time looking for that illusive check box or worksheet that's needed to get the numbers to flow to the right line on the return when I have returns waiting stacked up.

[Lion EA]

Then take the partnership returns you've done in the past or had as examples, problems, or tests in your classes or The Tax Book samples or..., and prepare them in your new software. If you don't have the "answers," then prepare them on paper first and then prepare them in your software to see what you might have missed in your software and to learn how your software flows for partnership returns. Ask your software company for sample partnership returns to practice on. Ask on a message board for partnership returns for tips & tricks to use your software efficiently. Ask a local firm that uses your software to mentor you for a month (perhaps for a fee) so you can re-prepare some of their partnership returns and compare results, learn from other users where to enter, what boxes to check, etc.

[jklcpa]

@Patrick Michael I searched your posts and found that you use Drake which does offer practice returns and the solutions. I logged in to its site and scrolled to the last item in the menu at left that is "Training". This has a clickable link to all the practice returns available for 2020 tax year including #12 that is for a 2-person domestic partnership.  These come up as pdfs that you may download or print, and the solutions contain the correctly completed returns.

 

[Patrick Michael]

Thanks.  I did not know about these!