Tax Tip for January 2012

Client Tax Organizers

Client Tax Organizers (“organizers”) are mailed out during the first week of January. Your tax organizer will assist you in gathering the information necessary for us to prepare your 2011 individual income tax returns. A completed organizer will decrease the time that we incur organizing your income tax information, which minimizes the cost of preparing your income tax returns.

If we prepared your 2010 tax return and you did not receive your 2011 organizer, please call Marla at (480) 663-6012. If you are a new client, please go to our Tax Organizer page for a blank organizer.

An engagement letter, E-File permission statement, and an Auto, Travel and Entertainment Disclosure Statement are included in the same package as the organizer. The engagement letter & E-File permission statement must be signed, dated and returned along with your tax information. If you are claiming deductions for auto, travel or entertainment, the disclosure statement must be completed and signed as well. Copies of these documents can be found on our Tax Organizer page.

Please do not delay in assembling your information. If you provide us the information after March 15, 2012, it will make it difficult for us to file your tax return by April 15^th and we’ll likely need to file an extension for you.

Unless you feel it is necessary to meet to review your income tax information, please drop off or mail us the organizer and related tax information (W-2’s, 1098’s, 1099’s, etc.). If you would like to meet first to discuss your tax information, please call Marla at (480) 663-6012 to schedule an appointment. Please note that we cannot take any appointments after March 15, 2012, as the last four weeks of the filing season are very hectic.

We would prefer to receive your information as early as possible. This leaves time not only to request additional information when necessary, but also to evaluate, in greater depth, any alternative reporting possibilities that could lead to minimizing your total tax liability. If all that is missing is a brokerage statement, Schedule K-1, Form 1099, etc., please do not delay in providing us with the information that you do have. You can always provide the remaining information as it becomes available.

We are certainly pleased to serve you and look forward to hearing from you soon.

Relevant Tax Tips Archives

January 2012	Client Tax Organizers
December 2011	Year End Tax Planning - 2011
June 2011	Tax Breaks are available for travelers who mix a bit of pleasure with their business travel
May 2011	Repeal of expanded 1099 requirements signed into law
January 2011	Client Tax Organizers
December 2010	2010 Tax Relief Plan
November 2010	Year-End Tax Planning - 2010
May 2010	Timeline of Tax Changes in Healthcare Reform Legislation
April 2010	HIRE Act: Payroll Tax Exemption & Retention Credit
February 2010	New Tax Break for Contributions to Haiti Earthquake Relief
Year-end 2009	Year-end Tax Planning & New Law Summary
November2009	Homebuyer Tax Credit
Year-end 2008	Year-end Tax Planning & New Law Summary
October 2008	The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
August 2008	The Housing Assistance Act of 2008
July 2008	IRS Shortens Extension Period for Partnerships (including Limited Liability Companies filing as partnerships), and Estates/Trusts
February 2008	Economic Stimulus Act of 2008
Year-end 2007	Year-end Tax Planning & New Law Summary
Year-end 2006	Year-end Tax Planning Strategies
October 2006	Telephone Excise Tax Refund
September 2006	Highlights of the Pension Protection Act of 2006
Summer 2006	Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2006
December 2005	Year-End Tax Planning Strategies
October 2005	Tax Breaks for Homeowners in the Energy Tax Incentives Act of 2005
September 2005	Lost Estimated Tax Payments
December 2004	Year-End Tax Planning Strategies
Summer 2004	Common-Law Factors Indicating Employee Status
Spring 2004	Average Itemized Deductions & Audit Risks Stats
Summer 2003	Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003
May 2003	Tax Planning for College
October 2002	Adoption tax credit and exclusion for qualified adoption expenses
July 2002	2001 Tax law goes into effect for the first time in 2002
May/Jun 2002	Job Creation and Worker Assistance Act of 2002
October 2001	Home Office Expense for Self-employed Taxpayer
Aug/Sep 2001	Summary of 2001 Tax Relief Act
July 2001	Like-kind exchanges, General Rules
May 2001	Taxation of social security benefits
April 2001	Incentive stock options (ISOs)
March 2001	Stock options in general

Important Notice

This information is provided as a service for our clients. The information contained in Tax Tips was current law at the time the page was posted. There is a possibility that subsequent law changes may have impacted the topic discussed above. We will attempt to mark any superseded Tax Tips as such periodically. It is recommended that you contact Michael S. Patinella, P.L.L.C. before relying on any Tax Tips. The use of information accessed via Tax Tips is at the sole discretion of the user.

Contact Information

Electronic mail
	Mike Patinella, CPA mike at patinella dot com (substitute"@" for "at" and "." for "dot" and remove spaces)	The e-mail address is presented in this fashion to help prevent phishing.
Office	Michael S. Patinella, P.L.L.C. 7025 N. Scottsdale Road Suite 115 Scottsdale,AZ 85253 Phone: (480) 663-6012 Fax: (480) 361-6204	Located one block northof Indian Bend Road on the East side of Scottsdale Road. view map