Prioritized FIFO Work Completion
Your Tax Return is Important.
We do understand the anxiety not knowing when your thing will be complete can cause. We have that same anxiety.
- Deadlines and due dates coming up (including mid-year estimated tax payments of 6/15 and 9/15);
- Shifts, interruptions, or other changes in priority that could not be forseen;
- Our own daily energy capacity – take a look at Spoon Theory. We may set out to do all or many of the things, and some days that’s more than okay. Other days, doing one thing is is impossible, and there’s not always an objectively good reason for it.
Expand the headlines below to learn the details. Or, know and trust we know your tax return is important, and we’re actively keeping it in line with every other priority that exists.
First In, First Out (FIFO)
All else being equal between two different projects or tax returns, the tax return or other project with complete information provided first is completed and delivered first (and, yes, we’ll go over what that means in #4 below).
If we’re deciding between two tax returns that are more or less the same to very similar, the one with complete information provided first will be prioritzed. Yes, we do look at date and time stamps for information provided.
This part is the easy part though. Once we’ve considered FIFO, we move on to slightly more complicated considerations.
1. External Deadlines
Tax returns and other related activity operate on very specific, clearcut deadlines. So does Crayon Advisory, LLC. Though we run on deadlines, we have to prioritize here, too.
Tax Return Filing Deadlines
Generally speaking, tax returns have the following original deadlines. This means even if you provide your information early, if there is a return with an earlier deadline, that return will take priority over yours.
- Partnerships & S-Corporations – original 3/15 and extended 9/15
- Trusts original 4/15 extended 9/30
- Individuals & C-Corporations original 4/15 and extended 10/15
- Non Profits original 5/15 and extended 11/15
Estimated Tax Payment Deadlines
Estimated tax payments also have specific timelines and due dates. Between May and September, we may prioritize certain planning and projection calculations over tax returns to meet these deadlines. Estimated payments are generally due 4/15, 6/15, 9/15, and 12/15 or 1/15, depending on the type of filing.
Your specific project may have a different deadline than mentioned above. We’re taking your project’s deadline into consideration, too.
2. Internal Deadlines
External deadlines are the first deadlines we’re trying to meet. The next set of deadlines is internal. These are driven to help keep projects moving (including and especially your project). Many of these deadlines will be provided to you in your engagement letter. Please pay attention to these deadlines. We will use these to prioritze project completion.
We work with internal due dates to both give us the ability to plan our capacity and provide you with clarity on hte time you have to gather information. If your information is provided late, your project will be scheduled for progress or completion later. The closer to the deadline (or the further past the deadline) you provide information, the further out your project will be scheduled for completion.
If you know or are concerned about meeting a deadline, please communicate with us early and often about your own capacity and expectations. We will review our own capacity and work with you to get to a mutually beneficial result.
Specific internal deadlines will vary from one year to the next. Generally speaking, we’ve follow the following pattern for internal deadlines:
Initial Tax Return Information
This indcludes a signed engagement letter, your first payment, completed questionnaires, and initial information requests. For any and all businesses, your accounting should be complete (reconciled, categorized, and reviewed) no later than this date.
- S-Corporation and Partnership Initial Information – Friday following the 15th of February (or February 15th if that is a Friday);
- Individuals, Trusts, C-Corporations, and Non Profits – Friday following the 8th of March (or March 8th if that is a Friday);
If complete information is not provided by the dates stated in your engagement letter, we cannot guarantee we will be able to calculate an extension payment for you.
If you’re onboarding with us after tax season (generally ends on April 15th every year) for us to prepare your current year tax return (2023 tax return in the summer/fall of 2024), you will be provided with due dates that are as generous as possible while also allowing us to keep your tax return on track based on your specific needs.
As part of our tax return preparation process, we will briefly look over every piece of information you provide to us inside the portal, before we get started on tax return preparation. If we have questions about the information from this brief review, we will ask them at that time. These answers will be considered Initial Information, and will needed to be provided before we begin tax return preparation.
Additional Tax Return Information
During tax return preparation, we may find we have additional questions and/or need additional information. If this is the case, we will ask these questions and request additional information as soon as we are aware of the information we need. When we request this information, you will be provided with as much time as is possible and reasonable (usually between 3 and 10 days) to provide that information and retain your tax return’s place in the, “queue.”
If you miss that deadline, you will have until the summer deadline to provide additional and complete information. Those deadlines are generally as follows:
S-Corporation and Partnerships – Friday following the 15th of June (or June 15th if that is a Friday);
Individuals, Trusts, C-Corporations, and Non Profits – Friday following the 15th of July (or July 15th if that is a Friday);
If these deadlines are missed, there may be consequences for your tax return preparation. Whenever possible, we will provide additional support, reminders, and extensions.
Wait a minute! I thought I had until the deadline!?
Yes, you do have until the deadline provided in your engagement to provide information. Please keep in mind we provide you with internal deadlines so we are able to meet filing deadlines.
Please keep in mind every other client has the same final deadlines to provide information.
Final Information Due deadlines tend to be incredibly busy. In some years, we have had as much as 75% of our clients provide full initial information on the deadline. The later you provide information, the more likely you’re providing it at the same time as many other clients, and the more likely your tax return or other project will be an intense and dusty slide into home instead of an easy walk.
3. Date Complete Information is Provided
We cannot complete your tax return until we have complete information. The date you provide complete information will drive where your return, “sits,” in the queue.
We know you’re not a tax professional: that’s one of the reasons you’re working with us. We don’t expect you to provide all the things the first go around. If we need additional information, we will provide you with a new date we need to receive that information by in order for your return to retain its current position in the queue.
If additional information is not provided by the date we request, your return will re-enter the Prioritized FIFO Queue and make its way through these priorities as mentioned above.
4. Client Need and Harm Reduction
We know your tax return (and other project(s)) is(are) the most important to you. But much like Urgent Care is priortizing (triaging) patients, we have to priortize tax returns, too. This part is incredibly subjective, which may not feel super great. It is part of the priortization though.
Factors that may increase client need and/or reduce harm to a specific client include, but are not limited to:
- Entities with multiple owners who need information from the entity’s tax return to provide to another tax preparer;
- Late returns experiencing more penalties as the clock continues to tick;
- Tax returns under audit;
- People who do not have historical access to financial and tax education;
- Other vary specific and intense needs.
When considering this level of prioritzation, we’re weighing quite a bit, including how prioritizing a client who would not otherwise be priortized is affecting harm to the rest of our client list. This isn’t always as cut-and-dry as it we’d like it to be. And we can’t share the specifics of this prioritization.
5. Familiarity with Your Tax, Accounting, and Financial World
You will always be the most familiar with your financial world. You know how much is in your checking account, whether or not it’s enough, what’s coming in soon, what should be coming in soon, and what might be coming in soon, what expenses are coming up, what you’d like to buy, and so much more.
If we don’t work with you regularly (on your tax return and at least two planning/projection touch points during the year), it usually takes us two to three years of working with you to build familarity with you and your needs. These needs span from the kind of additional support you might need all the way to exactly how best communicate with you and ask you questions so you’re fully supported and we get the information we need.
6. Firm Administration and Continuing Education
Firm Administration is what keeps everything moving. While this isn’t something you have any control over, it is something that goes into the priority consideration.
The first two weeks after any filing season (April 16th – April 30th and October 16th – October 31st), we take time for Firm Focus & Administration. There’s not much else happening in these time frames. We take this time to rest, regather, and plan the next two seasons. We can’t get all the administration done in this time frame. But we do identify projects we need and want to dig into and schedule time to work on them.
We also attend events, including continuing education in tax (Megan is required to take a minimum of 30 hours of continuing education in tax topics every year) and other related topics, conferences, other training events, and networking. These events are scheduled at times we don’t have control over and don’t always have a full year, six months’, or even six weeks’ notice before they’re happening.
As much as we understand these events and general firm Administration are disruptive, they still need to happen, and they still need to be prioritized.
6. Holidays, Rest, and Other Days of Significance
It’s easy to start thinking we’re robots. We even think that of ourselves sometimes. But, we’re not. We’re human with human needs. With a professional life ruled by deadlines and due dates for half the year and continuing education, firm administration, and other behind the scenes activity needing to take a step forward during the other half of the year, we do slow down and rest when the deadlines aren’t pressing. That slow-down includes time and space for holidays to celebrate or mourn as well as much needed rest and restoration. We generally follow US Secular Holidays and seasonal shifts throughout the year. We also take and encourage others to take mental health days as needed.
We Use this Prioritized FIFO System for Clarity and Fairness
Don’t resist the questions!
Gathering information we’ve requested can be difficult for many reasons. I encourage everyone to approach anything new, different, and/or scary with a sense of wonder, excitement, and curiosity. Instead of, “I don’t understand,” think, “I was asked to do this, and I’d like to understand how it fits in the bigger picture. I’ll do this and trust Crayon Advisory will show how this goes into the bigger picture.”
Much of taxes and accounting is incredibly specific and counter-intuitive. Sometimes, we (Crayon Advisory) need to ask for the information and can later show you how it fits in the bigger picture after we have it. We invite you to trust the process. We’ll get to the end together.
This post has been developed as an explanation for how we prioritize your and every one else’s tax returns and other projects. This information is written to be informative and is not tax advice. You should consult with your tax advisor as to how this information applies to your situation. Your specific needs may vary and may cause specific attention to need to be given to your processes. You should speak with your tax professional regarding the applicability of these issues to you and your business (and, yes, that includes Crayon Advisory if you are a current or onboarding client).