6 Tips For Filing Business Taxes That Every Entrepreneur Should Know
Business taxes have a reputation for being a bit grueling. For entrepreneurs, however, there are a few tips you should know that will make filing much simpler to get through. Here are six tips to help your filing process go a lot more smoothly.
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Prepare Records For Easy Reference
Be sure to document carefully throughout the year and keep your records in organized categories. It’s easiest to organize your documents according to benefit category, so as to minimize application time.
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Separate Personal and Business Expenses
The government reviews business taxes for solely business purchases; having a personal expense thrown in may slow down the tax processing and may even prompt an audit. Do yourself a favor beforehand by ensuring that only business purchases are considered when filing your business taxes.
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Check Your Equipment Purchases
Some of your equipment purchases over the year may qualify for some good tax write offs. Keep receipts for your business equipment purchases (this includes vehicles used for business purposes) and review them at the end of the year to see if they qualify for tax breaks.
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Go Over Inventory Counts and Accounts Receivable
If you have unusable inventory, you can write it off and save money on revenue counts on your taxes. Be sure to go through your counts to see what is marketable and what isn’t, as it may affect your business taxes. The same goes for accounts receivable – as you go through these accounts, ask yourself whether or not you will be able to collect from it? If it’s a loss, count it in your tax filing so you don’t get burned.
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Don’t Forget Tax Credits
There’s all kinds of tax credits available where you may not expect them. If your business has any disability access or energy efficient systems, that’s a tax break. If you’ve done research and development, employed veterans or offer a certain level of healthcare to your small number of employees, those are tax credits too. Take advantage of what you can to get the best return possible.
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Keep Next Year In Mind
Prepare for next year by distributing tax documents to your employees early. Remember whether there was anything difficult about filing this year to improve your organizational systems next year.
With careful documentation, thorough credit checks and detailed analysis of resources, you put yourself in a good position for success. By implementing these six tips, you can help yourself get the best return available after filing.
