Easing the Burden of Filing Taxes for Your Chiropractic Practice

02/26/18 | by Victor Silva | Practice Management

Do you dread tax season? Completing personal tax forms is complicated enough, but preparing and submitting deciphering taxes your practice can be more than a little overwhelming. Luckily, there are a few things you can do to make the process a little easier.

Start a Tax Return Checklist

At the end of a long day, the last thing you probably want to do is spend a few hours sorting your receipts. Unfortunately, if you wait until the last minute to take care of this essential task, you may discover too late that you don’t have receipts or supporting documents needed to file your tax return.
Creating a checklist that includes projected completion dates for each task will help you ensure that you have everything you need to start your taxes this year. If you discover that you’ve misplaced receipts or other documents, you’ll have ample time to request duplicate copies if you start your initial tax preparation in January or February.

Separate Personal from Business Expenses

Did the whole family tag along on your trip to The National in Orlando this past August? Since the Internal Revenue Service frowns on mixing business and personal expenses, you’ll want to make sure that you only submit expenses that are 100 percent business related. Not sure if a trip expense will be considered ordinary and necessary to the operation of your business by the IRS? If you’re preparing your taxes yourself, it may be better to omit low-dollar expenses. Deducting too many expenses that may not meet the exact definition for business expenses can increase your risk of an audit. If you use the services of a professional, your accountant can advise you which expenses can be safely deducted.

Take Advantage of Automation

Automation makes everything from preparing W-2s to filing taxes quick and easy. Whether you’re a sole proprietor or belong to a partnership, you can take advantage of the Modernized e-File (MeF) offered by the IRS. Thanks to MeF, you can electronically file:

Corporate Tax Return Forms 1120, 1120-F and 1120-S
Employment Tax Forms 940, 940-PR, 941, 941-PR, 941-SS, 943, 943-PR, 944, 945
Partner Tax Forms 1065 and 1065-B

The MeF platform makes it easy to make payments and can also be used to apply for extensions. Keep in mind that although you’ll receive an automatic six-month extension to submit your return, you’ll still have to pay any tax due immediately.

Turn to the Professionals

Preparing and filing your taxes can still be a little confusing, even if you use tax preparation packages and an electronic filing platform. If you want to avoid mistakes, reduce your tax liability and make sure you don’t miss any deductions, it makes sense to work with an accountant who specializes in returns for small businesses. In addition to helping you file your return, your accountant can also offer strategies that will help make the process much easier next year.
There may be no way to avoid taxes, but you can make the tax return process much more pleasant by using the latest technology and a few organizational strategies.

Sources:
IRS: Modernized e-File (MeF) Forms
https://www.irs.gov/e-file-providers/modernized-e-file-forms
Chiropractic Economics: Filing Your Taxes Doesn’t Need to Be a Burden, 1/13/17
https://www.chiroeco.com/filing-your-taxes-burden
DC Practice Insights: Increase Your Deductions with Confidence
http://www.dcpracticeinsights.com/mpacms/dc/pi/article.php?id=55731&pagenumber=2