Getting ready to meet with an accountant for the first time doesn’t have to be stressful. At least not according to Alex Zorab, a certified public accountant and partner at First American Tax Services in Chicago. Zorab says that he recommends new clients bring any financial documentation they can get their hands on to the first meeting, along with identification cards and the identification cards of any dependents they plan to claim on their federal income taxes that year. Here is a bit more of his advice.
Here at First American Tax Services, we recommend that new clients call our office before coming for their appointment to find out what exactly they need to bring with them. The person answering the phone at our office will tell clients to bring proof of all sources of income and proper identification. Those are the first two important things that everyone should bring with them when meeting with a tax preparer for the first time.
When someone is going to see an accountant for the first time, it is important that he has all the IDs that might be needed along with all of the IDs for any dependents that he is planning to claim. If the client’s children are his dependents, then he should make sure to have copies of their Social Security cards and their driver’s licenses, if applicable.
The next important thing for any client to bring to a meeting with a CPA is documentation of income that he has. If you have any documentation from the bank, then bring the forms that go along with that. If you sold any stocks over the past year, then I recommend bringing any documentation that goes along with that. I recommend bringing documents on all kinds of income — anything that you have gotten in the mail that shows how much you earned that year.
When it comes to working with independent business owners, I am especially knowledgeable since business taxes are among one of the most common areas of financial services that we deal with here at First American Tax Services. I help small to large corporations with their taxes, bookkeeping, payroll, sales tax, and things like that. So when I meet with my corporate clients, I always advise them to bring all their financial documents that pertain to the business.
Occasionally I will meet with an individual who wants his personal income taxes done, but he also happens to be a small business owner. In those cases, I will recommend that he brings his business documentation in at the same time, and I can make sure his business taxes have been done right, too. And then based on what I find during the process of looking through this client’s business taxes, I can then finish his personal income taxes accordingly.
