Tax season is a little over 2 weeks away. EEK! If you’re biding your time and waiting to file, there’s no shame in that – taxes are a headache for everyone! However, as your preparing your final receipts and compiling loose paperwork, it’s time to get serious about filing.
We’re going to give you a few tips to keep yourself sane over the next two weeks and for years to come. If you’re not in ship-shape for this tax season, follow our suggestions and you’ll be well on your way for filing in 2020.
Did you miss Part 1 of our tax series? You can check it out here!
1. Scan any and every loose receipt or paper, then trash or destroy the hard copies.
No one likes having to keep track of receipts and loose paper. Rather than hoarding tons of paper, come join the rest of us in the 21st century. Ditch hard copies and scan everything you have into a digital form.
You don’t have to buy a fancy scanner to do it, either. Now, thanks to our revolutionary smartphones, you can do it with the snap of your camera and store your file wherever you like. If you’re an iPhone user, you can scan and save files as a PDF in your “Notes” application, then export the file to wherever you like. Here are more detailed instructions on how to do it and other functions you can use.
If you’re an Android user or just want to look for another option, check out PC Magazine’s list of best scanning apps for 2019.
2. Designate a single place in the cloud for everything.
Once you’ve digitized all your paper, choose a single place in your cloud to store it, whether that be Dropbox, Google Drive, iCloud, or some other offsite backup storage site.
Don’t rely on your hard drive on your computer and don’t leave everything on your phone. Not only are these security risks, but there’s always the possibility that something will go wrong with your device and you’ll lose your information forever. (Some things never change…) Better to go with an offsite option that you can access from anywhere.
3. Mark a date on your calendar every quarter to keep yourself in check.
Why not do as much as you can before tax time to alleviate the headaches?
If you check in with yourself every few months as opposed to just once a year, you’re more likely to have some peace of mind and know exactly what your tax situation is supposed to be like. Being prepared is the best way to be.
If you’re not already, talk to your CPA or tax consultant about filing quarterly, too. This may seem like a headache when you first think about it, but it could end up saving you a ton of grief and frustration in the long run.
Don’t let the tax man get you down! Plan ahead, plan well, and file with confidence. Setting up a few systems is a surefire way to ensure you’re ready for the next go-round.
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