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Lesson 1 of 3 · 4:32
Questions
Create custom questions with preset answers, make them required, and see how preparers must answer them on the E-File screen before saving a return.
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Written instructions
Open Question Templates
From the main menu, open Configuration. On the Configuration Menu, click SELECT next to Question Templates. The Edit Questions page lists any existing questions.
Add a question
Click ADD QUESTION. In the Question box, type the question exactly as you want it to appear, for example Were you satisfied with your experience?
Define the available answers
Click ADD ANSWER once for each answer choice and type it in the new row under Available Answers (for example Yes, No, Somewhat). Use the x icon on a row to remove an answer you don't want.
Make the question required and save
Check Is Required if the question must be answered before the return can be saved, then click SAVE. The question now appears on the Edit Questions list with Required showing Yes, plus EDIT and DELETE buttons.
Add a question for your preparers
Click ADD QUESTION again to add a question aimed at the preparer rather than the taxpayer, for example Did you make copies of the client's Social Security card and birth certificate? Add Yes and No answers, check Is Required, and click SAVE.
Use questions for due diligence
Write questions that document your due diligence, such as:
- Did you ask where the other parent is?
- For a nonstandard dependent (niece, nephew, etc.), does the taxpayer have legal custody or other proof, and what proof was provided?
Click SAVE on the Edit Questions page when you're done.
Find the questions in a return
Open a return and go to E-file. On the E-File page, the sections are Return Type, Tax Preparation and E-File Information, Third Party Designee Info and Questions. Expand Questions to see each question with a Please Select drop-down.
See what happens when a required question is skipped
If the preparer clicks SAVE without answering, a red error box appears at the top of the page listing each required question as is required. Click an error to jump to it. There is no way around a required question.
Answer the questions
In the Questions section, choose an answer from each drop-down (the preparer answers their own questions and asks the taxpayer the others), then save.
- Questions can serve different audiences: some for the preparer (compliance checks), some for the taxpayer (satisfaction, marketing).
- Use questions to spot sales opportunities, for example asking whether the client plans to buy a home and offering timeframes as answers.
- You can create as many questions as you want, and reports let you review the answers clients gave.
Lesson 2 of 3 · 2:21
Tags – Configuration
Create your own return tags in Configuration, apply them to clients, and filter the client list by tag.
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Written instructions
Understand how tags are used
A tag is a label you attach to a return to track something about the client: a procedural step, a follow-up, or a marketing interest (for example Credit Repair, Extension or Amendment). Tags show up in Client Search on the Office Client List.
See your current tags
On the Office Client List, open the Filter by Return Tag drop-down. It lists Any Tag, No Tag and every tag your office has set up.
Check a client's tags
Hover over the tag icon on a client's row to see an Edit Tags tooltip listing that return's tags. Click the icon to open the Return Tags window, check or uncheck tags, and click SAVE.
Open the tag setup
Go back to the main menu and click SELECT next to Configuration, then choose Tags. The Office Tags page shows your Return Tags.
Add a tag and save
Click ADD TAG, type the tag name in the new row, and click SAVE.
Apply the new tag to a client
Click BACK, then RETURN to the main menu and open Client Search. Click the tag icon on the client's row, check the new tag in the Return Tags window, and click SAVE.
Find clients by tag
Choose the tag in Filter by Return Tag. The list narrows to only the returns with that tag.
- You can also apply tags inside the tax return at the very end, not only from the client list.
- Reports can show which tags have been applied to which clients.
- Tags are useful for tracking who is interested in ancillary products, or for steps in your office workflow.
Lesson 3 of 3 · 4:46
Taxpayer Profile
Build a taxpayer profile, a preset ordered list of forms, and use it when starting a return so the software walks the preparer through those forms.
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Written instructions
Open Taxpayer Profiles
From the main menu, click SELECT next to Configuration, then SELECT next to Taxpayer Profiles.
Add a profile
Click ADD TAXPAYER PROFILE. On Edit Taxpayer Profile, enter a Profile Name (for example Usual Client), an optional Description (for example what share of your clients it fits), and confirm the Tax Year.
Add the forms
In Tax Form (Lookup), type part of a form name or number and click the match. Each form you pick is added to Selected Tax Forms. Repeat for every form this type of client usually needs, such as W-2, Schedule C, 2441, 1099-INT, 1099-DIV, 1098 and Schedule A.
Put the forms in workflow order
Drag forms up or down in Selected Tax Forms using the arrow handle on each row, so they follow the order you want preparers to work in (for example all income forms before credits and deductions). Use the x icon to remove a form.
Save the profile
Click SAVE. The profile appears on the Taxpayer Profiles list with EDIT and DELETE buttons.
Start a return with the profile
Go back to the main menu and click SELECT next to Start New Tax Return. Enter the client's SSN in Social Security Number and Confirm Social Security Number. Under Available Taxpayer Profiles, choose your profile instead of Basic (No Profile); expand it to see its list of forms. Click START RETURN.
Complete basic information
Click OK on the consent reminder. Pick the filing status and click CONTINUE, then fill in Personal Information and dependents as usual.
Work through the profile's forms
After basic information, the return opens the first form in the profile (here W-2). Fill it in and click CONTINUE, or click CANCEL to skip a form that doesn't apply. Either way you're taken to the next form in the profile's order.
- Create several profiles for your common client types, such as business owner, college student, single with one W-2, or head of household.
- Profiles help new preparers avoid missing forms by prompting them through what's likely relevant.
- When you start a return, a reminder asks you to get the 7216 Consent to Use Tax Return Information signed first.