Have Your Important Tax Infomation Ready and Organized

Whether you have your taxes done by a professional or you do them yourself, it’s important to be organized and have all your important documents ready.

When working with a tax preparer, be sure to ask about what information you will need, then organize it based on the professional’s advice.

Here are some key documents to consider:

Have information about your income sources, such as:

• W-2’s from employers.
• 1099 forms that show any investment or interest income.
• Social Security benefits.
• Any income from last year’s tax refunds.
• Any additional income sources.
• Rental income.

Deduction and credit information can help reduce your tax burden, so be sure to have:

• Child or adult care costs.
• Records of cash and non-cash charitable contributions.
• Education costs.
• Medical and dental expenses.
• Qualified business expenses.
• Moving or job expenses.

These Income adjustments can also reduce the amount of tax you owe:

• Mortgage interest and property tax payments.
• IRA contributions.
• Interest on student loans.
• Moving expenses.
• Medical Savings Account contributions.

Personal information identifies you and where any tax return should go, so be sure to have:

• Social Security numbers for you, your spouse and any family members.
• Bank account and routing numbers if you would like a direct deposit of any refund.

If your checking account number or routing number has changed in the past year, be sure to update the account number in your tax software, and if applicable notify your tax preparer of the changes.

Having your tax information ready and organized will speed up the process and help you get any deductions and credits you qualify for.