Tax relief kept preparers scrambling to keep up with law changes last season, and seemed to catch some preparers short in terms of staffing.
Those are two takeaways from a
According to the survey, the most critical issues tax pros faced this past season were related to fast-changing tax laws that contributed to stress levels, workload and the complexity of returns. Last-minute legislation had to be incorporated into federal returns that sometimes had already been filed and accepted.
One key complaint: the need for further clarification and guidance from the IRS on issues related to coronavirus relief acts. Many preparers reported getting in contact with the IRS to be a burden on their workload this season. Another complicated issue that preparers faced with the relief acts, the survey found, was clients’ recordkeeping and accurate reporting to reconcile the third stimulus payment.
Two-thirds of firm owners had made no changes to their staffing levels in response to the coronavirus relief acts, but in hindsight many tax professionals would have hired more staff if they had known the complexities of this season, the survey found. A quarter of firms’ owners plan to increase their staff for next year, up from fewer than one in 10 when asked prior to last season.
“This tax season was another one for the books, and we’re not expecting the changes to stop as the year progresses,” said NATP executive director Scott Artman in a statement.
Among the other findings:
- The negative impact of coronavirus relief acts wasn’t as great as initially feared, though changes in business operations due to pandemic safety protocols was a burden to some firms.
- About a quarter of extensions were due to effects from relief acts but tax pros filed but the number of extensions remained about the same as in the previous season.
- Overall, tax pros expressed confidence in their knowledge in completing accurate returns.
- Client interviews were often done virtually or by phone.
