Tax organizers are used to help perform due diligence and provide an opportunity for tax planning. They assist in organizing the information provided by the client and provide insight into possible tax planning opportunities. Sometimes they are prepared by the tax firm with prior year information that is later confirmed by the client (such as confirming if there are any changes to address, telephone number(s), dependents, or bigger items such as income or deductions). For first-year clients, the tax firm can fill out a tax organizer with the information they obtain from the client, or they can request the client fill in a blank tax organizer with any relevant information.
Directions
Review the six profiles provided in Client Tax Profiles A Descriptions found in the Supporting Materials section. Choose three client profiles to compare using the Project One Milestone Two template found in the What to Submit section. Once you have compared these profiles you will select one of them and complete the Tax Organizer template also located in the What to Submit section below.
Use the Tax Organizer to document the information you have from your selected client to prepare their tax return. In this assignment, you are using the Tax Organizer to organize the information from your client profile to prepare for the tax returns you will complete in Project One. You will not be given feedback on this assignment related to that project; however, this will be a helpful way for you to gather your knowledge of the client’s situation and to plan and prepare the client’s tax return.
Note: Once the Tax Organizer has been completed, you will need to return to the Project One Milestone Two template to complete the Tax Planning Considerations, item #6.
Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:
Compare three tax positions using the table provided.
Summarize the features of each of the three tax positions.
Identify your chosen client’s tax position.
Explain the characteristics of the client profile you selected to use in the Tax Organizer.
Complete the Tax Organizer for the chosen tax position.
Use only the information provided in the client profile.
Explain tax planning opportunities based on the completed tax organizer.
List several bulleted points to consider.
