Turbo Tax is popular tax software made by Intuit. Turbo Tax software makes it easy to prepare other people's taxes. Interview-style questions allow you to input a person's information in the Turbo Tax software accurately. The program automatically puts the person's tax information you're preparing into the correct tax form. Turbo Tax gives the person having their taxes prepared the option of electronically filing taxes or printing and mailing a paper copy to the Internal Revenue Service.
Preparing Taxes with Turbo Tax
Gather all tax information and documents from the taxpayer. Assuming you've followed the directions to install Turbo Tax on your computer, press the "Start a New Tax Return" button.
Begin the tax interview with questions asked by the software, like the taxpayer's marital status and number of dependents. Turbo Tax will recommend a filing status for the taxpayer based on their answers to the interview questions. Input the taxpayer's name, date of birth, Social Security number and address into the correct fields.
Input the taxpayer's income information into the proper area. Turbo Tax software will ask you questions about how the taxpayer earns their income. Turbo Tax provides fields to enter information just as it appears on the W-2. Enter any interest income, self employment income,and jury duty pay the taxpayer may have.
List the dependents of the taxpayer. If there are children and other individuals in the household who qualify as dependents, put their information in the proper fields. Turbo tax asks questions to help you determine who qualifies as a dependent. You'll need to indicate the name, Social Security number, date of birth and relationship of the person qualifying as a dependent.
Use Turbo Tax to help you itemize deductions for the taxpayer. The tax interview asks questions regarding any taxes paid, mortgage interest on a home, student loan interest and charitable donations. Turbo Tax calculates the sum of deductions, and uses the higher of the two between the standard deduction and the itemized deduction to determine the taxpayer's tax liability.
Check the tax return for errors. This is one of the best features of Turbo Tax software. It gives you assurance that you've prepared the taxpayer's tax return accurately. If the tax return has errors, Turbo Tax will allow you to go directly to the point of concern and fix the problem.
File the taxes. Turbo Tax allows you to electronically file a federal tax return directly from within the software. To electronically file state taxes costs an additional $19.95. Electronically filing taxes with Turbo Tax allows the taxpayer to receive a refund directly deposited in their bank account in eight to 15 days. Turbo Tax allows you to print and mail a taxpayer's tax return if that method is preferred to electronic filing. Paper checks usually take six to eight weeks to be received. After you submit taxes electronically, Turbo Tax allows you to check to make sure the IRS accepted the tax return. Print a paper copy of all tax forms and documents for the taxpayer.
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Christopher Carter loves writing business, health and sports articles. He enjoys finding ways to communicate important information in a meaningful way to others. Carter earned his Bachelor of Science in accounting from Eastern Illinois University.