With time quickly elapsing toward April 15th, Jess and I talked about small businesses and what to do if you haven’t started yet.

Jen: Welcome, Jess! Everyone’s wondering – can a small business really get their taxes in on time at this date?

Jessica: If the business has a tax filing deadline of 4/15, yes – there is still time to get their taxes in on time. It’s possible. The biggest question I have to ask in response to your question is “how organized and prepared are their books?” If a small business has their books up-to-date, there is still plenty of time to file by 4/15.

If the business’ books aren’t up to date, it might be a bit more challenging, so I’d suggest striving for an on-time filing while knowing that an extension is available if necessary. I must note that if the business is an incorporation and they haven’t filed, they’re already late as that due date for filing was this past Monday – 3/17, as 3/15 fell on the weekend.

Jen: What are some of the ways you’d suggest to speed up the process so they get them in on time?

Jessica: Start now! Run, don’t walk, to call or e-mail your favorite financial service provider! I’m only half-joking. If a small business owner isn’t ready to file their taxes, now is the time to seek professional help. It’s not impossible to have a professional bookkeeper get your books together in a jiffy and if you’ve done a decent job of staying organized throughout the year, you may be more prepared than you think.

Most of us in this industry are ready and waiting for clients to call during the next couple of weeks. We’ve cleared our plates and we have the time to dedicate to your last minute bookkeeping projects. It’s much easier for us to get things done at this last minute than it is for most small business owners to stop working and focus on bookkeeping and tax preparing. So if you’re really overwhelmed and unsure how to move forward – seek help! Having professionally prepared books will make it very easy for your tax preparer to file easily and on time. Your CPA will smile when you pass over financial statements or a reconciled QuickBooks file, instead of an overflowing shoe box.

Jen: You’re not the first person to mention “staying organized year-round” in these parts. If I were one of those people with a shoe box, how do I know if filing an extension is a better idea for me?

Jessica: A qualified bookkeeper or tax preparer can certainly help to evaluate whether it’s better to file an extension or if things are in line for filing a quality tax return. In general, whenever there’s a chance that mistakes might be made because of a rush job, I always suggest filing an extension with an estimated payment, instead of over cramming to file a return that may end up needing to be amended – which can be costly in and of itself in many ways.

The biggest thing to remember when you file an extension is that you should still start focusing on the project now and not return it to the backburner again, because many business owners who file an extension find themselves in the same jam when the extension filing deadline arrives. So take action now, even if you’re going to file on extension.

Jen: So, what’s the time investment of filing for an extension versus just completing my taxes now?

Jessica: The key to filing an extension is that it’s simply an extension of time to file, not an extension of time to PAY. It’s almost impossible to just file an extension without any prep work. To figure out how much you owe in taxes, you may find that you need to complete the entire project, which might even lead to filing your taxes on time. But if the project is a full year’s worth of bookkeeping, it’s definitely less time consuming and more feasible to make a good guess and submit the extension request with a payment.

Then you can tackle the project and get the filing done ASAP and send in any additional payment, if necessary. I wish I could answer this and just say it’s easy to file the extension and it takes no time at all. But the key is making a sufficient payment and to calculate that, you need info from the books!

Jen: Makes sense. I know you’re a really caring person, so would you share some words of encouragement for those of us who’ve not yet submitted their taxes?

Jessica: If you’re in this boat, you’re not alone! I receive many, many phone calls from new clients with huge bookkeeping problems and projects at this time of year. And the good news? The problems get addressed, the books are handled, and the returns eventually get filed.

Having a tax filing challenge is actually a great opportunity to learn. It’s an opportunity to investigate a solution that will prevent this from happening again next year. Often it leads to the discovery that keeping up with the bookkeeping, optimally through outsourcing, is a phenomenally helpful process that can help grow your business. Plus, a good bookkeeper can uncover unexpected or overlooked deductions and provide feedback on how to increase profits, reduce taxes, and improve cash flow. Not to mention deliver peace of mind at this time of year, when so many small business owners are overwhelmed by tax time.

Jen: Great stuff! You actually make it sound like fun! Thanks for your time, Jess.

If you want to know more about Jessica’s work, check out her business Behind the Scenes LLC, a virtual bookkeeping firm.

And if you’re looking for great tax advice and suggestions, check out Kelly Phillips Erb’s TaxGirl blog.

Your turn! Are your taxes ready? How far do you have to go?

Post from: My Organized Biz

Kicking off the roundup is Shannon Cherry’s post about the five steps to surviving the tax season. Some great advice – plus a mini-interview with my favorite bookkeeper, Jessica Salzman.

Next, the TaxGirl gives suggestions for organizing your taxes this year. You won’t find better or wittier advice in the tax world!

Check out this post from Sharon McLoone at the Washington Post about How ‘07 Changes Affect Small Business. Definitely worth a read – looks like the US government is starting to realize how important small business is to economic stimulus. Good times.

Last, if you haven’t found one yet, Darrell Zahorsky at About.com has tips on how to choose a good accountant for your small biz – just in time to file your taxes on time. (My own accountant had them done in just a few days.)

Do you have other resources or ideas about tax preparation for small business?

Post from: My Organized Biz

This isn’t a political blog so I won’t go into my opinion on this, um, turn of events (biting tongue). Whether you agree with this stimulus plan or not, there’s a pretty good chance a juicy check will be winging its way to you this spring.

It’s kind of exciting when I think about it. $600 in cash! It’s like winning a mini-lottery.

My Plan:

What I’ll probably do is something responsible and organized like spend some on rent and the rest toward paying off a credit card. I am a sole-proprietor, so I am my business, economically speaking. My goal is to be debt-free in the next 5 years, so I’m glad to have a little extra cash to contribute toward that. (Not exactly economic stimulus, eh?)

My $600 daydream:

If I was gonna go wild and blow it all, throw responsibility and caution to the wind, here’s how I’d spend my $600:

• Get my car detailed.
• Schedule an Aveda pedicure.
• Spend a day at Powell’s World of Books.
• Take my sweetie out for a fancy dinner – and dessert.
• Sign up for a 3 month gym membership.
• Get a cute outfit for work.

Now, I’m tagging some of my favorite business owners with these two questions and encourage you, dear reader, to chime in too:

• If you could do whatever you wanted, how would YOU spend your $600?
• Is that the same or different from how you actually plan spend it?

I’d love to hear from Anne Wayman at The Golden Pencil, Kelly Phillips Erb at TaxGirl, Kristen King & and Bridget Wright at Biz Chicks Rule, Mary Emma Allen and Yvonne Russell at Home Biz Notes (new blog, very cool!), and Shannon Cherry at Start Up Spark.

Then send it along to 6 (for the $600) people for their answers.

Post from: My Organized Biz