What should you have in your “Shoe Box”?
Use this handy checklist to help ensure your professional tax preparer will have all the documents they need to complete your tax return accurately and quickly. You should also visit our updated Online Tax Guide for more information.
Personal Data
Social Security Numbers (including spouse and children)
Child care provider Tax I.D. or Social Security Number and address
Income Data
W-2 forms
Pensions and annuities
Partnership and trust income
Alimony received
Jury duty pay
State and local income tax refund
Scholarships and fellowships
Prizes and awards
Gambling and lottery winnings
Financial Assets and Liabilities
Interest Income Statements (form 1099-INT & 1099-OID)
Dividend Income Statements (form 1099-DN)
Tax refunds and unemployment compensation (form 1099-G)
Proceeds from broker transactions (form 1099-B)
Miscellaneous income (form 1099-MISC)
Retirement plan distributions (form 1099-R)
Student loan interest paid
Early withdrawal penalties on CDs
Home and Rental Property Data
Mortgage interest (form 1098)
Home equity loan interest
Real estate taxes paid
Sale of your home or other real estate (form 1099-S)
Rental property income
Rental property expenses
Self-Employment Data
K-1’s on all partnerships
Receipts and documentation for all business related expenses
Farm income
Auto mileage log
Home office square footage
Expense Documentation
Charitable donations
Unreimbursed business of volunteer work expenses
Child care expenses
Alimony paid
Tax Return preparation fees
Investment expenses
Education expenses
Job-hunting expenses
Adoption expenses
Moving expenses
Medical expenses
Deductions
IRA, SEP, SIMPLE and other retirement plan contributions
Casualty and theft losses
Medical Savings Accounts
Energy Credit Expenditures
Year-End Items Needed for Tax Return Preparation
Business or Schedule C Filers
Accountants Review Copy of your QuickBooks File (or your manual check registers and records if not using QuickBooks)
Year-end bank statements for all open accounts, reconciled to books
Year-end credit card statements for all open accounts, reconciled to books
Year-end loan statements for all loans outstanding during year
Last four Quarterly Sales Tax Returns filed (or last one if Annual filer)
If You Have Payroll:
941’s and NYS-45’s for all Four Quarters
940
W-3
Any notices received
Invoices for any large assets purchased
All year end tax documents (1099’s etc.)
Any IRS or State notices received.
Auto mileage (if applicable):
Description of each vehicle used (model, make and year)
Total mileage for the year (all miles including personal)
Number of miles that are Business Miles for the year.
Business Use of Home (if applicable):
Total square footage of home
Square footage of space dedicated to office use only
Mortgage Interest and Taxes (or Rent) paid for the year
Utilities (not including phone)
Repairs and maintenance
Trash service
Insurance
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We’ve gone Green!
Accounting For All now stores all of our documents electronically. We encourage you to give us your tax documents in electronic format versus paper, so if you are willing to fire up that new scanner and set it to 300 dpi Black and White, go ahead and scan in all those W-2’s, 1099’s, Charitable Contribution lists and whatever else you usually give us in order to prepare your taxes. Then contact us via e-mail for a link to a secure portal that will allow you to send your documents to us safely.