Art of Accounting: The Ides of March

In this article, Edward Mendolwitz breaks down what is important as we have just passed March 15th in regards to the busy tax season. In any year March and April are some of the busiest months for accountants, however, with the stimulus checks and unemployment benefits, this tax season will be especially hectic. As such, Mendlowitz suggests getting the S corporation and partnership returns completed as soon as possible. March 15th should be the target due date for those returns so that K-1s can be distributed to clients without the need for an extension. This will eliminate handling delays, and also prepares for the potential that a hedge fund K-1s is delayed or a 1099 is changed scrapping the validity of all the information. Mendolwitz also suggested condensing individual tax preparation processes to 4 weeks, and pushing all non urgent deadlines past April 15th. However, the 1040 preparation should be done immediately if possible. With the staff and current administrative system in place, this is the peak to achieve max efficiency as unimportant work will be de-emphasized during this busy season. Prioritizing 1040 preparations will help to “efficiently and effectively handle returns.” Preparing for the 1040 now will also stabilize relationships with clients by avoiding unnecessary delays. Mendolwitz emphasizes that this is the most important time of the year for an accountant. He urges accountants to become efficient and only handle work pertinent to April 15th at the moment.

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Source: https://www.accountingtoday.com/opinion/art-of-accounting-the-ides-of-march