39 Days and Counting...Collect Your Financial Records Now

April 15 is coming soon. If you are getting organized for tax filing, don’t get stressed out! Keep it simple.  Get an inventory of the documents and financial records that how much money came in and how much went out. Missing records make it impossible to file an accurate return. By now, you should have received all the W-2s, 1099-MISCs and 1099-INT forms that show what money you earned during the year. If not, request them from clients or employers immediately.

Next take a look at the outflows. Your money is coming out of four main places: business bank accounts, business credit cards, cash, or personal accounts.Make a list of what you need, then contact your bank to get if any statements are missing. Here’s a basic checklist of what you need.

Bank Accounts: Collect bank statements from your business checking account from last year. You will need January 2008 if your December bank statement doesn’t include through December 31, 2007.

Credit Card: Gather all credit card statements business account from last year. You will need January 2008 if your December statement doesn’t include through December 31, 2007.

Cash Receipts: First, separate the business from the personal receipts. Second,only hold on to ones that are deductible business expenses like taxi receipts. I personally try to pay for anything business-related via debit or credit card so those pesky little receipts don’t pile up.

Personal: If you made purchases or paid business expenses via a personal checking or personal credit card, then go through your statements and check off every business expense so that they can be included as deductible expenses.