10 Questions You’d Better Ask When Interviewing an Accountant By: Sandy Botkin Not having a good tax preparer can cost you thousands every year. Taxbot is dedicated to simplifying complicated tax issues for business owners. But tax reduction is a team sport when it comes to your choice of a tax preparer. You need someone on your team who you can trust. The first person you should seek to have on your team is a good tax accountant or advisor. One of the most common questions we get asked by our thousands of clients is “How do I find a good tax accountant to file my taxes?” Sadly, of the thousands of tax accountants and advisors available, only a fraction understand the complex world of the small business owner and the strategies they have at their disposal. The truth is many accountants are great at filling standard taxes and others may specialize in corporate taxes. They are probably even good at what they do. Most of them, however, do not focus on self-employed individuals like you! Another item to consider is that some accountants might just be timid! There is a big difference in a timid accountant that “files” your tax return and one who aggressively looks for legitimate deductions for you.
that you can ask to see if an accountant is the right fit for your business. Here are some suggestions: 1. What designations or credentials do you have? Look for “enrolled agents” (people who pass a special IRS examination), certified public accountants, ex-IRS agents, or attorneys, etc. We like preparers with legal backgrounds because they tend to be more aggressive but also know the law. 2. Are you in practice full time? Hopefully, the answer will be yes. If you are in business, you need someone who takes pride in what they do and stays current with all the updates to tax law. A part-time person just can’t do this. You don’t want a rookie experimenting on you! Look for someone with at least 3-5 years of experience with business returns. 3. What percentage of returns do you do for businesses vs personal filings? This is a big clue. Most of your franchise locations, like HR Block, do mostly personal returns. Business taxes are much more complicated and require someone with more experience. If they personally do less than 20 percent of their returns as business returns, you are better off finding someone else.
Accordingly, here are some questions
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If you are in business, you need someone who takes pride in what they do and stays current with all the updates to tax law.
